Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-11-12
.SOVEREIGN'S PLAN
For Turning the K. of L. Into q
Political Society.
CoUEsELs SECRET ORGANIZATION

With Free Silver at l6 to I rs the Principal
Object to Attain-Other Similar Political
Ideas on His Programme Speaker Be-
fore the Farmers Congress Presents .
Silver Scheme-Cougress Puts Itself on
Record as to Silver and Tariff ON Agri-
cultural Products.
Rochester. n. Y. Nov. 1e-Master
Workman Sovereign delivered his ad-
dress to the assembly of the Knights
Of Labor yesterday. and 1t probably
goes more warmly into politics than
any former annual address to a labor
union in this country. He said in part:
After a struggle of twenty-seven
years against the evils of aggregated
wealth by our order We are confronted
with more serious problems affecting
the rights and liberties OF the industrial
masses than ever before. Not only have
the idle speculating classes demon
strated their ability to dominate the
productive enterprises and accumulated
wealth of the toiling millions. but they
coerce wage earners and mortgaged
| farmers with threats of discharge and
foreclosure into submission to their
| will. The autocratic holders of idle
| money have subverted the principle of
free government by forcing politi-
| cal service from the poor as the tenure
! Of employment.
''StOod Like an Iron WALL"
Laboring men can combat a false
hood and bid defiance to traitors from
their own ranks. but when a depraved
monster of corporate rapacity steals
! into their homes and threatens them
with discharge and persecution be-
| cause Of their political convictions, they
| sacrifice their liberties in consideration
| Of food and shelter for their helpless
wives and innocent children. The
| struggle just passed has demonstrated
| that pecuniary dependence is political
slavery. In the struggle just passed
the Knights Of Labor proved itself to
be the only labor organization that
stood like an iron wall before the fire
| of the organized money power of the
| two continents. Every general officer
| and every district and local assembly
of our order sDurned every offer of
bribery and scorned every threat of
:he money king
Whack at the Other Organizations.
Sovereign added that. except Eugene
| v. Debs, the heads Of the labor or
| ganizations, including the Federation
| of Labor, gave no material aid in the
| recent struggle. The master workman
| says the knights should abandon
Utopian plans and center their efforts
| as follows: L would so change and
abbreviate our present test of mem
| bership as to center our immediate de-
mands upon an equitable income tax,
the free and unlimited coinage of silver
at present legal ratio, the payment
of all government bonds according to
present contract, and the government
issue of all the money of the country.
| l would make positive and unequivocal
declarations against government by in
juntion, increase of the standing army,
the payment of the bonded debt in
| gold alone. the issues of bonds in times
| of peace and the issue of circulating
| notes by banking corporations.
Wants a Secret Higher Degree.
Il would then prepare an entirely
new secret work with stronger oblisa-
tions than we now have-establish a
degree known as the Minutemen. and
as far as possible return to our former
system of working in absolute secrecy
| l would then appeal to the free silver
and reform forces everywhere fol-
membership and support. and throw
this organization into the great broad
field of agitation to fight the money
| power and the corporations to an ever
lasting finish. I appeal to tbs
delegates here assembled to place &
demand for the free coinage of silver
at the present legal ratio in our pre-
amble. and bar our ports and clea- oui
decks for action against the plutocrati,
combine arrayed on the side of th'
single gold standard
| Teport of the Executive Board.
Later the executive board issued
signed report built on The lines o
Sovereign's speech in which his rec
concentrations are advocated. The re
port opposes hasty and ill-advise,
strikes and says: Every strike an,
lockout Is inCipient civil war. One 4
an attack of the employe on the EN-
plcyer and the other is the attack o
the employer on the employe. Thes
attacks ard counter attacks often de
, velop into civil war. and as one hloy
brings on another we can never fore
tell what the final outcome of some o
these struggles may he. The plutocrac,
| is seeking an excuse TO greatly increas
the standing army. The petty violenc
connected with the strikes and lock
outs is their most plausible excuse now
Let us not play into their hands,"