Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1898-05-12
ALL IN THE SAME BOAT.
WE MUST ALL PULL TOGETHER
FOR SAFETY.
The Interests OF the Common People,
Though not Identical, are Mutual and
Cooperative. Antagonlsms are Ina
ginRry, and not Real.

erShlp ana management OF the magnl-
icent system of public highways of
the United States, the railway corpor-
atoms have their methods of warfare
They have the ambition of Lucifer, the
wisdom of Satan, the conscience of
Beelzebub, a rapacity that 10 unap-
peasable, and, u money-bag instead of
q heart Having tried in vain other
plans to suppress the popular clamor
against their spoliations and cruelties,
they now come TO the front with a
scheme of encouragement, thinkiRg
that the people may be led to abandon
a hopeless cause. They now tell us
that the American people, and, espeei-
ally the farmers and the railway en-
ployees, can never be induced to act
together for common purpose. The
railway kings say this because in their
opinion, the peoples interests are so
different, and even opposite and antag-
Onistic each to the other.
That is like saying that a mans
hands cannot work together for COM
mon purposes because their positions
are opposite and labors different Each
hand has its own secret pocket into
which the other is not admitted Each
has special functions to perform, many
Of which the other cannot perform.
Yet those same two hands find in prac-
tice, that, though their labors and in
terests are not identical, yet they are
mutual and cooperative They meet
together for common purposes daily
and hourly, and aid each other in the
most intimate and necessary duties of
life. They wash each other in the most
friendly and confidential manner.
They seize together the same handle of
q sledge or an axe for common pur-
pose; and when the right hand would
handle q Ratchet the left hand holds
the pin to be sharpened,. or, the nail to
be driven. All day they cooperate and
work together most effectively for
common purposes; but when work is
done each rests and recuperates in its
own side pocket. alliance on labor as
sembly without the slightest symptom
of jealousy.
Yet, it is upon this alleged jealousy
and imaginary antagonism of interests
that the enemies of labor found their
hopes of dividing aud subdividing the
people,
1t is claimed that the farmers desire
TO hire labor as cheaply as possible,
while laboriDg men desire to get the
highest wages possible; and, that,
therein lies an antagonism of interests
which can never be reconciled. If this
near-sighted view Of the matter cover
ed the whole case, or even any consid-
cradle portion of it, it would have
weight. But it does not. 1t might
with better reason be said that farmers
cannot unite with each other in frater-
nal organizations for common pur.
poses because of their emulations and
rivalry in supplying the same markets
with the same products Every farm
err is the commercial competitor Of
every other farmer, and, must, in the
very nature of things, it would seem,
be the energy of the man whom he is
trying to crowd TO the wall, and who
is trying to crowd him to the wall.
Yet, is spite of this narrow and short
sighted view of the case, farmers hnve
no difficulty in uniting and working
shoulder to shoulder with each other
for their own common interests; and
they often stand manfully together in
life and death struggle with the
common enemy.
1t might with much show of reason
be said that two lawyers in the same
village can never unite in fraternal Or
ganization for mutual benefits, be-
cause each takes from the other one
half of the local business which the
other might enjoy were his competitor
out of the way. Yet lawyers find no
difficulty in uniting for the benefit of
their profession. This is true, also, as
to each of the other professions, as to
merchants, and as to men of all bust
ness pursuits and industries, even
where individuals aud firms are rivals
of each other.
In every profession, in every bust
ness pursuit and in every industry, in
telligent men find it quite practicable
to form unions, guilds, alliances, asso-
Citations, semblies, boards of trade
and other organizations for general
and special purposes and mutual bene-
fits. Moreover in the matter Of poll
ties their cooperation is not prevented
nor even retarded by The least shade
of jealousy or antagonism.
In view of these facts open to the
observation OF all thinking men, how
foolish and absurd it is to say that the
men who are the customers of each
other, and in no true or general sense
rivals or competitors, cannot cooper
4 L.