The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-09-08
False Prophets.

~ Within the radius of its ac-
a. "a tivity everybody suffers, those
engaged in ii as well as those
who are merely passive. helpless on
lockers OF the struggle. There are few
redeeming features in a strike. Its po-
tential gain, if any, is sharply dis
counted by its immediate loss. Its in
trinsic, inevitable accompaniments are
waste, rancor and decentralization.
What cannot be alleviated must in
the nature of things be borne. In the
meantime it is wise to accept the dis
pensation of the strike as philosophic-
ally as we can. There is one feature Of
the present situation which is cal
lous aggravaton of all its other mis-
fortunes. There are few strikes on
record in which the issues have been
more clearly set forth, in which there
has been less need for newspaper inter-
pretation, less justification for journal
istic vaporing and ignorant declama-
tion. Those who are parties to the
struggle know each other and UNDER
stand each other. They have met and
discussed the matter in dispute, and
have definitely decided to fight them
out to the bitter end. This strike will
not last forever, even if those who
have the misfortune to be engaged in
1t are all dead before the end of 1t.
There Is always consolation in knowing
the truth about things, even the un-
palatable truth.
Every day lying reports are crcu-
lated from New York which it is nee
essary for President Mitchell on the
one hand or for the operators on the
other to contradict and refute. John
P!erpont Morgan has had four months
in which to intervene in this strike if
he had the mind to do SO. He has
shown no disposition in that direction
and Mr.. Mitchell has given no encour-
agement to the strikers or the public
generally to suppose that he would. If
Morgan remains an hour later in his
office than usual forthwith cock and :
bull story is flashed across the wires
that the great man is succumbng to
the pressure that is being brought to
bear upon him from the outside" If
Mr. Mitchell calls the district presi-
dents around him for consultation it
follows of necessity that there must be
something abnormal in the wind
We do not know where Senator Platt
has obtained his information that the
strike would end in week or at most
two" We do not know why he in
slsts that it will end soon. If he is
merely giving expression to a general
ization founded upon personal obser-
walton he is as likely to be mistaken
as any other person. So far as those
can observe who are living through the
strike there is to-day as little appar-
ent probability of this desperate
struggle coming abruptly to an end as
there was on the day on which it be-
gan. TherY is the formulated deter
mination on each side that the fight
will continue to finish. AS Superin-
tendent Rose says, all the predictions
that have been made have been falsl-
fled by the implacable course of
events. 1t is due, to the miners to own
that their leaders have given little or
no collntenance to Wall street rumors.
We are all inclined to accept as genu-
Inc representations that fit in with
our prepossessions and desires.
Sufficient for the day and more than
sufficient is the evil fact that the strike
will enter its fifth month without any
clear foresight OF the probable extent
Of its continued duration.
The three-to-one vote by which the
British trades union congress rejected
resolution calling for the creation Of
plap for compulsory arbitration sug-
gests that, compulsion Is most popular