The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1905-03-18
TRIBUTE TO THE
LATE DR.. DARLING
Story Of How He Came to the Assist
ance Of the Granite Cutters Union
in It's Early Struggles in South
Ryegate.

4AyCkdNc.
J. d. Grant of Division street, this
city, writes the following letter to the
Granite Cutters Journal:
Editor Granite Cutters JournaI-Dear
Sir: There died at South Ryegate, VT,
February 10, last, DR.. J. B. Darling,
at the age of 81 years, a man whose
memory deserves more than passing
notice, especially from union granite
cutters. He proved himself friend to
union men, when friends Of organized
labor we're few and far between in the
benighted state Of Vermont. IF a
friend in need is friend indeed DR..
Darling proved his right to the title,
not only by his many deeds Of kindness
done to his fellow men in a general
way, but in a special manner, when he
and few others hkeminded with him
self came 10 the rescue of che South
Ryegate branch Of the Granite Cutters
National Union, when ia its infancy it
came pretty near strangulation at the
hands of its deadly enemies. South
Ryegate branch was the first foothoId
taken and held by organized labor in
the state of Vermont and to stamp it
out, the enemies of organized labor in
this state put up the fight OF their lives.
to prevent las their mouthpiece, Judge
Ide, put it,, "the Shiny monster OF
unionism from trailing his loathsome
carcass across the face OF our fair
state
It was away back in 1ss4-5, in the
days of old King Carter, whose policy
was TO hire whom | please, discharge
whom please, pay my men when |
please, and what ! please, and who once
told the writer Of this letter that lie
did not calculate to pay any bill except
he had to and my impression is that
he told the truth when he said so. into
such environment and under such cir
eumstances was the South Ryegate
branch Of the Granite Cutters National
Union born.
Some seventeen or eighteen Of the
granite cutters who were then working
al South Rygate, and who had nearly
all been somewhat familiar with the
aims and objects and methods of work
ing of the Granite Cutters National
Union before they struck Vermont and
who felt that the time was ripe TO
do something for lettering the condi-
tons which were daily becoming more
uncndurahie, met one evening after dark
in the home Of one Of their members
who lived a short distance outside the
village and organized the branch aud
sent in an application for charter;
and SO The ship was launheed but sure.
w Il
such stormy sea The enemy had
not been alseep. King Carter had heard
rumor that sent the cold sliyers along
his spinal column, but eonsoled himself
with the deccitful hope that this union
idea could be nipped in the bud, and
so be proceeded 10 devise ways and means
to stamp 1t out. The dictum was
union in South Ryegate shall not be.
So he Immediately sent out a circular
letter to all his men, setting forth the
pernieious nature OF unionism in gen
eral and especially among granite cut
tiers, and his utter abhorranee of it in
any shape and wound up by informing
them that if any OF bis men Joined the
union they would be summarily dis
missed and ten or a dozen did SO and
lost their kits at that time, but the
branch went merrlly on. We got our
charter and began to initiate new mem
bcfs. But Carter was wild and deter
mined to burst us mp, as he bursted
himself. One night we initiated a man
or something in the shape Of man,
which it would have been better for the
branch If milestone had been hung
about his neck that night He was one
Of Carriers spies, and went out like the
judas Of old and sold his brethren to
the enemy, and reported the names of
every one who was present at that
meeting, and so we were spotted for
the sheriff when the time arrived for
the stroke to fall. Meanwhile, Carriers
shed had been declared a @scab" shed
and advertised as such in the Boston
papers and the men who chose to remain
there to work soon began to show that
they we're "seabs" indeed by acts of
petty spite till the whole community
became divided up into two hostile and
antagonistic sections. About this time
Carter and bis agents concluded that the
time was ripe for q final scoop, and
50 he sent word to the High sheriff at
st. Johnsbury to come immediately, end
bring all the help he could get, and plen-