The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-06-07
THE MAYOR AND THE STRIKE.

Monday, His Honor. the Mayor OF the
City of Providence, has spent some
hours at the scene of the industrial con-
troversy.
He has taken personal charge of the
situation in Olneyville, so far as it has
concerned the welfare of his fellow citi-
zens in that district. Backed by the
police department, and, we suppose also
by the law department of the
municipality, His Honor, the Mayor,
has taken such measures and
has personally directed their carrying
out, as to guarantee that no citizen OF
Providence, no dweller within the gates
of tho city, shall be detained from his
lawful pursuits, disturbed in his walks
abroad, or suffer injury; that all the
lanes and thoroughfares open to the
citizens of Providence shall remain
open that peace shall prevail and that
mob law shall not be set up against the
law of the community.
AS the chief executive of the City OF
Providence, in whom is vested the re-
sponsibility for the proper conduct OF
the departments that are subject to his
final authority, Mayor OLNEY is in his
proper place in Olneyville during these
somewhat stirring days. We take it that
few of our readers who have followed
the story of the situation in Olneyville
since Monday have failed to realize that
there was a strong, if careful, hand
in control there, and that
an interest somewhat closer than
that of mere superficial author
ity was in evidence. Indeed, the
Mayor has taken the kind of personal
interest in the Olneyville situation that
will make the successful closing of the
strike and opening of the mills largely
TO be credited to his efforts. On behalf of
| the thousands who had been led to
abandon their work I'm Olneyville, the
| Mayor represented to the manufacturers
that they were ready to gt to work If
only the mills were open. And on be-
| half of the manufacturers he gave as
surance TO the inen that the disposition
was to open the mills if there could be
any guarantee that the men would
| come TO work and stay at
work. In a word, as II
appears to us, the Mayor practically
went pledge for the good faith of both
interests. 1t was pretty plucky thing
to do, it strikes Us.
| The interests of the community which
the Mayor is elected to protect de-
manded that the demoralizing struggle
out in Olneyville should be brought tt
an end. and as quickly as possible, and the
Mayor properly considered it a part oi
his duty to aim to do that. and by per
sonal active effort. Then, when the
mill gates were open, there was another
duty to perform to insure the success
of the efforts thus auspiciously be-
gun. How many men and wo
men would go into the mills was
after all, unknown, although the Mayo
had the best of reasons for believing
that, if given q chance, almost all o.
them would welcome the opportunity
And he proposed that they should have
the chance. He, doubtless, had an az
gressive personal interest in the success
Of the experiment which had been un
dertaken with his guarantee, as il
the nature of man whose wore
is as good as his bond, ant
he did not propose that there should b'
any clash, or that his public-spirited
effort to close the struggle should b'
nullifed for lack of the exercise o
all the vigilance, tact and, courage at hi'
| command TO meet what might arise.
The great Olneyville strike is rapidly
breaking up. Every morning more mer
and women go into the mills, anc
every evening they come cut, with
daily less fear of molestation. The
army of workers is growing, anc
the number of loafers who don't wan
to work themselves and are opposed tC
others working Is growing less and less
influential TO move the mass. There has
been no serious trouble in Oneyville
When we contemplate the situation ou
there, the evident temper of the strike
leaders, this is a remarkable thing. Th,
strike leaders simply staked everything
on the statement that the workers woulC
not go back to work even if the mills
were open to them, and doubtless q grea
many persons believed that, even if th'
disposition of the mass was, as Mayo
OLNEY promised it was, TO return, yet tn,
methods of terrorism, and the contemp
tible trickery resorted to by the agitato
who sees his power Slipping away from
him, would prevail to overcome the dis
position Of the. followers, would dis
credit the Mayor, would make
wretched farce OF the good faith of tn
manufacturers and would succeed ii
continuing the stagnation of business