The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-05-08
THE NATIONAL TEXTILE BLUFF.

silent, with all trade and business para
lived and the whole community in a
state OF unrest in the face of most
serious conditio n, there has, most unfor-
tunately, enter ed into the situation the
mockery of a convention Of one OF the
most ridiculously burlesque institutions
that has ever played fool with the work
ingman or juggled with his necessities.
What is called the National Union of
Textile Workers Of America, or some
such high sounding title, is holding an
annual convention" in Olnsyville. BY
coincidence the convention comes at the
place and the time of great industrial
conflict. The convention and the
Union were much heralded. We thought
we were to have with us great repre-
sentative body Of mill workers from all
over the land, and we awaited with
especial interest the view these repre-
sentative textile workers would hold
with regard to the Olneyville situation.
The advance agents of this great labor
show told us that the convention would
represent $4,000 textile workers, and
that perhaps as many as ESQ delegates
would meet at the convention.
To the workers, the idle workers as
they are today, this great national con-
vention was looked forward to eagerly.
The idea of having the national body"
actually in their midst was an impress
i've thing. The manufacturers would
have their eyes opened at last to the
kind of stuff that the textile workers of
Olneyville had back of them. The ma
tional body with its superior
leadership and boundless re-
sources would promptly grapple with
the situation and the manufacturers, the
business men,, and folk, generally, who
labor without chasing phantoms, might
as well prepare to be surprised at what
they would see and her.
Well, of course, we know the whole
story now--the ridiculous farce of this
great national body of textile workers.
There have been all sorts of imposing
functions associated with the conven-
tion-a reception, parade, banquet
and ali the rest-and Olneyville has had
a gallus time with the honors thrust
upon it. But the burlesque is all the more
apparent by contrast with the big time
that has been made over it. An expert
press committee has furnished all the
information that the newspapers have
published and reporters have been ex-
cluded from the m eetings. But this has
only emphasized the sham of this
"great national body"
We know, for instance, that this
much-heralded Convention Of the
Textile Workers Of America" dwindled
down to so delegates, and that at least
30 of these came from Rhode Island!
We know, for instance, that this con-
vention represents not 40 per cent. of
the 90, 900 workers which it claimed to
represent. We know, for instance, that
all its boundless resources are bound
less bluff, rs ridiculous as its claim
of prestige and power in other direc-
tions-that it has, according to its finan-
cial report, just 81. 90 in its treasury and
simply exists by hand to mouth assess
ment on the deluded workingmen
who support the sham. In a word this
nationl textile workers business is as
hollow mockery, as ridiculous a bur-
lesque, as absurd farce, as thoroughly
inconsequential and useless as any
scheme ever devised to make capital out
of labor.
We don't expect the workingmen at
Olneyville who have been led to go on
strike to accept this view of the matter
until it is forced upon them by sterner
evidence Of the weakness of this so
called national body than anything we
can print. We know with what blind
faith and hope they have looked forward
to this convention" how eagerly they
have awaited its action in the case Of
their strike, how much they have
the prestige OF the national body" for
support We know, too, that they
won't wake up 20 realization of the
real facts just because THE NEWS tells
them. They will probably condemn the
newspaper and go on chasing the will-o'-
the-wisp. Yesterday, as this newspaper
informed them exclusively, thanks TO
the newspaper enterprise Of our Olney-
vile bureau, this convention endorsed"
the strike, and will urge the raising Of
funds to support it while as many as
possible will be asked to leave town and
seek work elsewhere, thus relieving the
strain on the strike funds. We have no
doubt that this action of the "conven-
tion" occasioned much qualification
among the Olneyville mill workers out
on strike.
All this would be laughable if it were
not pathetic. The fact that the interests
/ n g. ,.l Il