Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-06-13
ATTACKS THE UNIONS.
Southern Man Before the Indus.
trial Commission Has
Many Objections.
SEES PERIL IN ORGANIZED LABOR.
Presents a Long List of What He
Considers Sins of Omission
and Commission.

Washington, June 13. - Henry F.
| Devens, of New York, assistant sec
| retary of the Metal Trades assOcia-
ton, was before the industrial commits
sion yesterday. lie gave the employ
er's version OF the Chicago settlement
| with the international Machinists' as
sOciatiOn. He spoke with great conf
i dence OF the benefits TO be derived
from the arbitration clause in that
agreement, saying that he believed it
would prove an efficient method of set
tling all differences i'll the future. He
also expressed the opinion that 4 board
of arbitrators composed of men in the
work would bc more acceptable than
a state board because of the proba-
bility that members of n state board
would not have the information neceS-
sary TO successful arbitrament
Jumped ON Labor Unions.
y. +. Thompson. secretary of the
southern industrial convention, of
Huntsville. Ala, made a somewhat sen
sational attack upon labor unions. La
Dor organizations are today" said
Thompson, the greatest menace to
this government that exists inside or
outside the pale of our national do
main. Their influence for the disrup-
ton and diSorganiZation of society is
far more dangerous to the perpetual
ton of our OgVernment in its purity
and power than would be the hostile
array OH our borders of the armies of
the entire world combined ThOmp-
son declared that he made this state
ment from years of close study and Il
field of the widest opportunities for
observation. embracing the principal
industrial centerS both of the north
and the south.
His Objections to the Organization.
In support of his statement he said
that ''on every hand. and for the
slightest prOVocation. al classes of or
ganiZed labor stand ready to inau-
gurate n strike. with all its attendant
evils. and that in addition to this
stronger ties Of consolidation are be-
ing urged all over the country among
labor unions with the view of being
able to inaugurate n sympathetic
strike that will embrace all classes Of
labor simply to redress the grievances
or right the wrongs of one class. how
ever remotely located or however I'M
just may he the demands or that
class" He maintained that ''OrganiZa-
tiOnS teaching such theories should be
held as reasonable in their charac-
ter. and their leaders worse than
traitor TO their country"
Says They Are SOciaIistic.
Thompson declared that many labor
leaders are open and avOwed social
lists: that their organizations are weak
ening the ties of citizenship among
thousands OF our people, in that they
have no other standard of community
obligations than what these organiZa-
tiOnS inculcudte: that they are creating
widespread disregard for the rights Of
others: that they are destroying re
Spect for law and authority among
the working classes; that they are
creating antIConiSmS between employ
or and employe; that they are destroy
ing the right of individual contract be-
tween employers and employees. and
forcing upon employers men at ar
bitrary wages: and that they are bring
ing public reprOach upon the judicial
tribunals of our country. by public
abuse of these tribunals. and often
open defiance of their judgments and
DEGREES, thus seeking TO break down
the only safeguards of Il free people.