The San Francisco call., 1896-02-14
P|NKERTONS NOT WANTED,
Labor Unions Protest Against
the Importation of De.
tectiveS.
THE SOUTH CAROLINA LAW
Local Workingmen to Organize and
Enter Politics for Their
Protection.

is the beginning CT movement of greater
| Importance than many understand. OS-
tensibly it is for the purpose of uniting all
labor unions more firmly in one central
body, in order that they may support and
protect each other in matters where gem
eral support is required by the laboring
element. Back of all this there is another
movement on foot, which if carried out as
planned by the leaders will cut big figure
In the next and all general elections.
Briefly stated, the labor unions of San
| Francisco are going into politics. The
purpose OF the mass-meeting is to form a
| central body, so that in everything under
| taken there will be a concentration of
| forces upon the object to be attained.
This movement was started by the
Trades Council several months ago. Years
ago the Federated Trades, and later, the
Trades Council, were powers in the land,
! because enrolled under their banners were
all the labor unions in the City. Hard
times and other causes produced a de-
| pressing effect upon trade unlonism, and
while few went out of existence, others
| drifted off by themselves and fought their
battles single-handed. AS may be sup
posed, the result was disastrous, for nearly
every stick in the bundle was more or less
| broken whenever pressure was eXerted
thereon. The revival of the trades unions
in the East, and the atfil1ation of the ma
jority with National and international
| bodies, caused corresponding interest on
this coast, and within the past six or ten
months the former strength of the local
unions has returned.
With the past as an object lesson the
principal leaders in this City determined
to avoid the rocks on which they struck
| in the past, and they determined to ex-
a of Of 10 W. rly1f1 ort,,nY IN,
manipulating the affairs OF state instead
| of wasting it upon strikes and boycotts.
| They believe that by changing the laws
that make labor troubles possible they
will be striking the very root of the evil.
! While the meeting is called under the
auspices of the Trades Council, every
union in the City will have voice in the
proceedings. Each union will be repre-
sented by delegates in proportion to its
membership.
Since the call for the meeting the SUBJ
ject of politics has entered largely into the
debates of the various unions, and there
seems to be a unanimlty of sentiment
upon the matter and deter lmination that
hereafter the laboring man will "do poll
! tics" for himself and not for the political
bosses. So far as can be learned there will
be no party lines followed. The motto
will be men, not party. From the present
appearance of the plan the proposition is
favor of the candidates who will stand
firm for bettering the condition of those
who earn their bread by labor. One OF
the labor leaders said:
This means that we will throw all our votes
and influence in favor of those we know to be
our friends. We have too often been deceived
/ by men we have assisted to put in office. We
| have been laughed at by traitors who were pu
into positions OF trust I by our votes We may
does 1t again. Our purpose is to secure ouI
rights by the ballot. II that is denied to US the
| traitors may be punished in other ways than
| by their consciences. We mean business this
| time.
At the meeting tonight the principal
business will be the reunion of the labor
unions in q central labor body, probably
in the Trades Council, the principles OF
which have been tried and found to be sub
stantial. In this central body will proba.
bly, be vested the power to conduct an ag-
gressive political campaign in the interest
of organized labor.
I There is another matter of great I'M
portance that will be considered at the
mass meeting, and from the attitude of
all the large labor organizations no as
pirant for political honors will be sup
ported by the laboring men, unless he
commits himself upon the Issue in qIes-
ton. 1t is demand that law be enacted
i prohibiting the entrance into the State OF
private detectives or private police, armed
or unarmed, to suppress domestic disturb
ances. This means that the Pinkerton de-
tectives or other detectives shall be pro-
hibited from taking part in any labor
troubles as they did at Homestead and in
| numerous States during tho recent railroad
strikes.
The labor union people learned from
what they consider to be q reliable source
that William Pinkerton, the well-known
detective, is at present in this City making
a contract with the Southern Pacific Rail-
road Company to do its detective work
over the entire system. That detective
agency has already obtained hold in the
State OF Oregon and is doing the railroad 8
business on the Oregon division.
When the Southern Pacific Company
abolished its detective bureau recently, an
officer of the company stated that it was
done for the purpose of giving the bureau s
business to Pinkerton's s agency, which had
already performed many special bit oil
work for the railroad people. The sue
cessful hunt and capture of train-robbers
in Oregon, and conviction through the
efforts of Pinkerton's men, placed the
Chicago detectives in an exceptionally
favorable light before the high officials oi
the railroad and, 1t is said, led to the con
tract which is now being closed, or may
have been. signed. Pinkertons local rep
resentative has been John Curtin, but it il
now thought highly probable that an inde
pendent agency of the Chicago detectives
will soon be established in this City anc
main tanned with special force of men.
These matters have been carefully
watched by the labor unions, and one of tn,
members said: ''Pinkerton and his gane
have been kicked out of several of the East
ern States by legislative enactments, and W,
do not propose to allow him to establish
himself here" Con ntinuing he said:
South Carolina was the last to kick thes
private detective gangs over its border, ant
hereafter in that State no Pinkerton men nee(
apply to do the South Carolina corporations
work. The Review of Reviews of January pub
fishes the following upon the now law in tina
State
1.-THE general agitation of the labor union.
against the class of private watchmen know
! as 'Pinkerton mem has conquered public opin
ion in South Carolina SO completely as to have
placed the following section in the new con
stitution:
mo armed police force representatives of a de
tecive agency shall be brought into this Stat
for the suppression of domestic Violence nor shall
any other armed or unarrhed body Of men b,
brought in for that purpose except upon the appli
cation of the General Assembly or of the executive
OF this State when the General Assembly Is not Ii
session, provided in the constitution OF th
United States"
From what can learn the labor unions IL
this City stand solid on this proposition w,
sir Aa0ic