Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1905-03-09


lockouts and labor warfare is Battle
Creek. Mich.
| The story? The work people, mer-
chants, lawyers, doctors and other citi-
zens became aroused and indignant at
the efforts of the labor unions through
out the country to destroy the bust
ness of one of our largest industries
the Postum Cereal Co., Ltd, and at the
open threats in the official union pa
1 pers that the entire power of the Ma
tional and State Federations of Labor
was being broughtto bear to punish"
the industries of Battle Creek. and
particularly the Postum Co.
This sprung from the refusal of c.
w, Post to obey the orders" of the
unions to take the Postum advertising
away from various papers that refused
to purchase labor of the labor trust
the unions.
Mr.. Post was ordered to join the
unions in their conspiracy to ruin"
and put out of business" these pub
fishers who had worked faithfully for
him for years and helped build up his
business. They had done no wrong,
but had found 1t inconvenient and
against their best judgment to buy
labor of the labor trust. 1t seems a
rule of the unions to conspire to ruin
anyone who does not purchase from
them upon their own terms.
An inkmaker or papermaker who
failed to sell ink or paper would have
the same reason to order Post to help
ruin these publishers. So the ped
dler in the street might stone you IL
you refused to buy his apples; the
cabman to run over you If you refused
to ride with him; the grocer order the
manufacturer to discharge certain
people because they did not patronize
him, and SO on to the ridiculous and
vtllainous limit of all this boycott
nonsense, In trying to force people to
buy what they do not want
II man has labor to sell let him
sell 1t at the best price he can get just
as he would sell wheat. but he has no
right to even intimate that he will OBJ
struct the business, or attempt its ruin
because the owner will not purchase
of him.
The unions have become so tyran-
nous and arrogant with their despot-
Ism that common citizen who has
some time to spare and innocently
thinks he has right To put little
paint on his own house finds be must
have that paint taken off and put on
again by ''the union" or all sorts of
dire things happen to him, his en-
ployer is ordered to discharge him, his
grocer is boyeotted II he furnishes
him supplies. his family followed and
fnsulted and his life made more mis-
cradle than that of a black slave be-
fore the war. II he drives a nail to
repair the house or barn the carpen-
ters' union" hounds him. He takes a
pipe wrench to stop a leaking pipe
and prevent damage to his property
and the plumbers union" does things
to him. He cannot put little mortar
to loose brick on his chimney or
the bricklayers'. plasterers' or hod
carriers union" Is up in arms, and II
he carelessly eats loaf of bread that
has no union" label on ii the bakers
union" proceeds to make life mioer-
able for him.
So the white slave is tied hand and
foot, unable to lift hand to better
himself or do the needful things, with
out first obtaining permission from
some naughty. ignorant and abusive
tyrant of some labor union
1t would all seem rather like comic
opera If 1t did not rob people of their
freedom; that kind of work will not
be permitted long in America
Some smooth managers have built |
up the labor trust In the last few |
years, to bring themselves money and |
power and by managing workmen, |
have succeeded In making it possible |
'or them to lay down the law in some |
,ities and force workmen and citizens |
o obey implicitly. stripping them
light and left of their liberties.
They have used boycotting, picket |
ng, assaults, dynamiting of property |
md murder to enforce their orders and |
.ule the people. They have gone far |
enough to order the President to re-
move certain citizens from office be- I
,ause the unions" weren't pleased.
That means they propose to make
he law of the unions replace the law
rs dominate even the chief Execu-
I've.
This is a government of and for the
'eople and no organization or trust
hall displace 1t. But the unions try
every now and then, led By desper-
tie men as shown in their defiance of
aw and support of lawbreakers.
The union" record of assaults.
ripping of men and even women and
destruction OF property and
murder of American citizens during
be past two years is perhaps ten
ines the volume of crime and abuse
erpetrated by slave owners during
ny two years previous to the civil
iar. We are in horrible period of
sthargy. which permits US to stand
lily by while our American citizens
re abused. crippled and murdered in
ogens and hundreds by an organiza-
on or trust having for its purpose.