The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-05-23
"The Affair In Colorado"

1.-THE Affair In Colorado"
To the Editor of The Journal.
In an editorial under the above title and
an article in the news columns, entitled,
Causes of the Trouble in Colorado"
there are certain yerytsevere things said
against Colorado Il seems to me that
there are several misapprehensions AS
the writer resided in Lake City, Col, from
June, 1902, till October, 1903, he may be
permitted to say something from personal
| knowledge. =. No doubt many illegal and
overt acts have been committed by the
citizens, and possibly by the governor, but
the writer is not prepared to admit that
Governor Peabody is in the wrong. Does
not reign of martial law come very near
suspending the writ Of habeas corpus? It
not, then state of war does.
| There is no doubt as to the outrage
against the eight hour law. But the eight
| hour law plays a small part In this mat
| ter In fact, the writer lived among the
| men who wanted the law and knows that
| it had no serious bearing on this whole
question. Many miners did not want 1t,
and many more did not think enough Of
| the defeat to seriously protest. Yet the
outrage is none the less great technically,
altho it has not been the cause Of the
present trouble to any serious extent.
| You say that ''the mine owners Of Colo-
RADIO are believed to have defeated the
/ law with money. Then followed a. resort
| to strikes and intimidation and violence"
| This is only a half truth. Strikes, intimi~
! dalton and violence have followed the
legislature referred to, but so also had
these all preceded it's existence. In the
article referred to it is said that the
| miners, baffled in their attempt to get an
I eight hour day, resorted to extreme meas
ures. The fact is the miners, as a body.
had accepted the defeat and were willing
to try the constitutional method again.
This statement is proven by the fact that
/ outside of two camps now alas so well
| known to the world, Cripple Creek and
| Telluride, the miners have gone on in the
/ even tenor Of their ways At Ouray,
| President Moler was told to stay away
from the camp by the miners, and only
] three or four men out Of seventy -fve OF
! eighty assembled voted for a strike.
/ You are at fault when you say: EAT
about that time there appeared in the min
ing camps Of Colorado a number of per-
sons preaching socialism and anarchy
I True, but the writer heard Eugene V.
4 Debs preach his revolution in a Colorado
gold and silver mining camp before the
Legislature had had time to get together.
Indeed L believe before it had been
elected.
4 In a word, no doubt socialism and an
archy were preached after the failure OF
the Colorado legislature to pass the eight
hour law, but so also had they been be-
that the citizens and citizens alliances
have at times done the right things in a
wrong way, and that the legislature failed
to do it's duty, still all this is not the
moving cause Of the present state OF al
fairs, nor is Governor Peabody to blame
for the acts of either the citizens or the
& state legislature. Don't get these things
mixed.
| AS to the legality Of Governor Peabody 81
!, |acts, that is now in the hands of the
court whose word is final. AS to the cause
Eof the Colorado trouble, Mr.. Bakers arti-
: Icle in McClure's Magazine deals ably with
! it, but the present apparent. and / may
say, active cause, is not the one given.
It is not the unions as such, nor the cit-
liens. The apparent cause is the Italian
miner, whose tendencies to fanatfcisH and
secret assassination are too well known.
But back of him are the cranks, faddlsts
and political quacks, of which the state
of Colorado has an undue share at this
2 time, but especially those preachers Of
socialism and anarchy of which you
r speak, The writer heard Mr.. Debs Inc
$ sidious speech delivered like confrma-
ton sermon to innocent Sunday school
children, but one of the shrewdest Of
4 appeals to-. the ignorance. prejudice and
= baseness of the human heart. OF course,
e the intelligent, Independent man took IL
s. as a political effort, !" the ignorant Ital-
e. ian as a challenge to strike, burn, dyna-
mite, and to go on with secret assassina-
ton, which they did.
q What Colorado is to-day SO would the
!. Hunted States be if the doctrines of these
reyolutionists were needed by the classes
to whom they are supposed to appeal.
II. CASTOR.
- In London there is one licensed drinking pIad
: to every 436 Inhabitants