Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-09-30
nothing for the changes and they were

THE human race was dormant But
in the last twenty-five years the chang
es have been so rapid that almost
everyone was forced to see them, and
in the last ten years they have run so
fast that no one could help seeing
them The great struggle that is con-
fronting all the nations of the world
today is the labor question. All the
governments are up against it. All
countries are, and it is before the peo-
pie for a final settlement A chap in
New York the other day said that we
had better not make the capitalists
mad. Let me tell him that is just what
We mant to do. They whom the gods
destroy they first make mad. We pro-
pose to destroy the capitalists and we
propose to start by making them mad.
Mocks Bishop Fowler.
81 will perhaps draw some appalling
pictures today. They could not be
overdrawn. While some of my col
leagues have been among the strikers
in West Virginia and old Virginia, they
| like Bishop Fowler, have only seen
| the surface. Bishop Fowler after
spending seven days among the miners
in West Virginia, announced that he
concluded that the miners were right
If he had lived among them seven
years, he could not have known the
sorrows, the expressions, the wrongs,
the miseries that have been heaped up
on them. He would never have known
the lash that had been used upon their
shoulders.
| How easy it has been for me to
come here, to have been dined and
treated with the best that was to be
procured. But go amongst those men
and hear their stories of oppression,
of slavery. / have seen their trunks
| full of statements from the mines and
| crosses upon them. Those crosses
meant that there was no money coming
to them 1t was there for two years and
| l say to you that if Christ were to
come down from Heaven and attend
the best university ON earth he could
not draw picture of the miners in
West Virginia and old Virginia. Siberia
in all the Russian tyranny cannot COM
pete with it.
Conditions in the East.
Since the fight began 1000 families
have been turned out upon the high
| ways-out of the shacks which they
have built and paid for a thousand
times over. And what are those
shacks? I'll tell you what they are
six boards, four shingles and two nails
One old lady. whose husband had pro
duced so much wealth, and had lived
for years under the earth finally died
in the mines, was turned out of her
miserable little shack the other day. She
went when she found that she could
no longer live there, went out along
the road and as she walked along
poorly clad and without a cent, she
wiped the tears from dim old eyes
(she had no handkerchief, wiped item
away with her old gray hair which
flew about her face
But the assistant general manager
of the Paramount Coal Co. says that ir
half MONTH fifteen men drew out
$1,000. This may be, probably is true
But they were the bosses lap dogs
They probably got good rooms They
were contractors, slave owners They
hired four or five slaves apiece at S.
per day and all of the coal of these
slaves went in on their statements.
The Injunction.
Il was put in Jail for violating TIL,
, injunction which was issued by thu
federal Judge who knew nothing O
the conditions under which the people
work. Why should a man sit in judg
ment who knows nothing of these mat
tiers and takes the word of the capital
lists for his guidance? l was in jai
with seven others. There We're eight o
us and | was the only one who spoke
Their injunction said that no meetings
should be held in sight of the com
pany's tipple within a half-mile of tn,
tipple, nor within quarter of mill
from company house. We held
meeting, but I didn't see compan,
, house to know that it was a compan,
= house throughout the time. and I didn'
see the tipple. But We We're arreste,
for violating the Injunction, and whel
!, a comrade came to me and told M
that We We're arrested, | turned t
: the boys, and told them: Boys, w
are all arrested. but don't give ur
Keep UP the fight. Even though w
are arrested the organization will sen,
others and if they are arrested the
will send still more. Don't be afrai
: of injunctions, don't be afraid of tn
: courts, nor jails. And for that | wa
, arrested They said that | was guilt
!, of contempt of court. and God know
. that as truly as | stand here | have
a contempt for such courts as those
couldn't respect any such courts
They are against the constitution an
J, I want them overthrown. They are dar
q gerous to our liberties.
Experiences in Jail.
1--WE were taken to Jail and wer
put in there with ten or twelve others
! There was one man who had been pr
!, there for stealing shoes. Anothe
. man had been put there for walkin
? on the railroad tracks in violation {
. the injunction. He had been give
Il forty days. Two others were the,
:. for robbing the postoffice. | aske
= them what they were there for an
! they told me. | said, Why didn't VIC
rob the operators. When you no
. the postoffice you are robbing YOU
a SELF but when you are robbing the o
q orators you are getting back VIII;
q really belongs to you. Why do VIC
= rob Uncle SAM And they answere
. me that Uncle Sam was easier tina
q the operators.
d Il had certain liberties. l WASH
) under lock and key. And so l wei
,lou,p {oup eovarol ti,,,oe n,aa T .,