Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-11-14
PARKS PARTING ADVICE
Fallen Labor Leader Warns
Unions Against Graft.
ACCEPTS FATE WITHOUT PROTEST

to His Wife.
Samuel ]. Parks, the former walking
delegate of the Housesmiths and
Bridgemen's union of New York city,
who has twice been convicted of ak
torting money from employers in the
building trades. before being taken to
Sing Sing prison the other day to serve
his sentence of two years and six
months made the following statement:
Every laboring man in this country
should remember me for years TO come.
l should be Il warning to them. I'm
the victim of a custom that is older
than am, and that is the habit of hay
ing money transactions with employ
ers. That's put me here.
II tell you, and 1 want the boys to
know it, that the salvation of the I'M
ions lies in stopping that practice at
once. They must give up fines, wait
ing time. back pay for strikes and ev-
erything like that. That's the lOophole
through which this grating as they
call il, creeps in. If they don't in the
years to come many another good fell
low'n be where l am going tomorrow.
Don't for Il minute think l mean
that the labor leaders are 'grafters' at
heart. If they are they are made so.
And that brings me to say that right
here in New York city is the crooked
est set of men in the world, the en-
pIOyers in the building trades. You'll
never see any of them awaiting SEN
tence; they are too slick. They never
leave any tracks. But take how they
work. Why, 1 know and could name
for you 100 employers of New York
city-by that l mean the big companies
as well-who have made a practice of
using labor unions against competitors.
Maybe that isn't Il crime! Maybe
there is no sentence coming TO man,
for instance. who will go to a young
fellow who has been put in authority
by his union. This young fellow has
never made more than a couple of dol
lars day in his life before. He's on
the level and wants to help the cause.
The employer holds out roll of
bills bigger than anything the young
fellow has ever seen before.
See here he says, L want you to
be friendly to me. l don't want any
trouble. You can look out for me lit
1T isn't long before that easy money
gets easier, and then comes the propo-
sition to pull the men ON rivals job
so that men enough from the friend can
be had. 1t isn't far from that to having
a rival employer blacklisted. troubled,
struck, and after that where's a foolish
young fellow to stop: His heads gone.
know plenty of employers who have
made fortunes by working that way.
Some of them know l know it too.
They'll never be up here. Well, 1 don't
kick. I'm forgetting all the past now.
The newspapers have been pretty
busy with me for the last six months.
guess the world has Il pretty bad
opinion of me. That's another thing l
don't kick about, especially if it's be-
cause I'm an advocate of force in labor
unions. 1 believe in that. That makes
me out bad man, but l tell you that
it's the only way organized labor has
ever gained anything in New York city.
Figure it out for yourself Did arbitra
ton raise wages? Not once. but strikes
did. Does arbitration keep nOnunion
men off buildings? Not much. 1 re
member how that is done.
"Many's the time l have gone 10 the
boys and called for volunteers and
with them gone down town to build
ing where the boys hadNbe struck and
men had taken their places.
1t was only Il case of waiting around
the corner until the whistle blew In
most cases that was enough. The nom
union men didn't come back the next
day.
Il was young fellow in Chicago six
teen years ago and tried bridge build
ing. OF course l joined the union, and,
being pretty husky. it wasn't long be-
fore the big men noticed me. and 1 be- |
came member of what you people !
have been calling the entertainment |
There was lots of work |
for me to do.
Il spent most of my time outside the |
city. l was on the bridge in Louisville |
when it fell, taking sixty of the boys |
with it. l got out somehow. and then |
in 1896 l came on here. The union was
in a bad way then, and when l was |
elected Il walking delegate soon after
ward l didn't do anything for six
months but work to get them together.
The last time l was at Il meeting near
v 1900 men were on the rolls.
"Now I'm out Of the labor movement
forever. 1 hope to come out of prison
Ill right. I'm going to do all l can to
get back my health. I'm telling you !
his only because l hope some of the
boys will see it and read it and think
lbout it. Keep away from money
transactions in every way. shape and
form. Let them do that, and it's all
light
Just before reaching the prison Parks
asked the deputy sheriff if he could
nave just minute This was granted.
md then Parks drew from his mana
led hand u plain gold ring. kissed it
Ind placed it in an envelope
ION your life, Johnnie. give that to
ler." said he to friend who accom-
panied him. Tell her tonight it's the
asst thing l did in the open air"