The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1905-02-02

s, upon us whether or no.
10 Suppose an American In a foreign
city should DO chased by o mob, caught
E. and beaten unconscious, then his
!. mouth pried open and carbollc acid
i poured down his throat then his ribs
|. kicked in and his face well stamped
l. with iron nailed shoes, murdered be-
= cause he tried to earn bread for his
g children. BY the Eternal, sir. a fleet
J. Of American men Of war would assem-
J. Bile there. clear for action and blow
r something of the face Of the earth,
if reparation were not made for the
! blood Of one Of our citizens.
And what answer do we make to the
!. appeals Of the hundreds OF widows
, and orphans Of those Americans MUIR
dered by labor unions? How do we
try to protect tho thousands Of intelli-
gent citizens who. with reason, prefer
not to join any labor union and be
subject to the tyranny Of the heavily
paid rulers Of the labor trusts?
Upon firm refusal by Mr., Post to
join this criminal conspiracy a gen
eral boycott was ordered on Grape
Nuts and Postum all over the coun-
try, which set the good red blood of
our ancestors in motion, bringing
forth the reply that has now passed
into history: ave refuse to join any
conspiracy Of organized labor to ruin
publishers, nor will we discharge
any of our trusted employees upon the
orders Of any labor union. If they
can make their boycott effective and
sink our ship, we will go down with
The captain on the bridge and in com
mand."
This set the writer's In labor papers
crazy and they redoubled their abuse.
Finally one Of their official organs
came out with a large double column
in denunciation Of Battle Creek, call
ing 1t "a running sore on the face OF
Michigan" because it would not be-
come organized" and pay in dues to
their labor leaders. The usual coarse
villainous epithets common to labor
union writer's were INDUCED in.
The result was to weld public SEN
timent in Battle Creek for protection.
A citizens association was started,
and mass meetings held. Good citl'
zens who happened to be members Of
local unions, in some cases quit the
unions entirely for there Is small need
of them there.
The working people Of Battle Creek
are Of the highest order Of American
mechanics. The majority are not
union members, for practically all Of
the manufacturers have for years de-
clined to employ union men because
of disturbances about eleven years
ago, and the union men now In the
city are among the best citizens
No city In the state Of Michigan
pays as high average wages as Battle
Creek, no city Of It's size Is as pros
porous, and no city has so large pro-
portion Of the best grade Of mechanics
who own their own homes.
So the work people massed together
with the other citizens Of the organl-
cation of the Citizens Assn with the
following preamble and constitution:
Whereas, From 1891 to 1894 the
strikes lnstigated by labor unions in
Battle Creek resulted In tho destruc'
ton Of property and loss Of large
sums Of money in wages that would c
have been expended here; and.
Whereas, These acts caused serious
damage to the city and in a market |
way delayed Its progress at that time; S
and
Whereas, Since the year 1894 the c
citizens have been enabled. by public
sentiment, to prevent the recurrence a
of strikes and labor union disturb. /
ances which have been prevalent else v
where; and, t
Whereas, The employers Of this city S
have steadfastly refused to place the a
MANAGEMENT of their business under 0
the control of labor unions, but have d
maintained the highest standard Of t
wages paid under like conditions any S
where in the United States, and here v
by unanimously declared their intent S
to continue such policy; and the en- b
poyes Of this city, large percentage e
of whom own homes and have fami- p
lies reared and educated under condi- II
tons of peace and the well-earned
prosperity Of steady employment, have u
steadfastly maintained their right as o
free American citizens to work with. Q
out the dictation and tyranny Of labor II
union leaders, the bitter experience of Il
tho past offering sufficient reason for 6
a determined stand for freedom; and,
Whereas, The attitude Of the citl. II
zens on this subject has been the o
means Of preserving peaceful condi. o
tons and continuous prosperity, In o.
marked contrast to the conditions OK. 81
lsting in other cities suffering from p
the dctation Of trades unionism; it Is ia
therefore u
Resolved, That the continuance Of p
peace and prosperity in Battle Creek al
can be maintained, and the destructive p'
work Of outside interference avoided D.
under the combined effort and action re
of oil our people, by the formation Of tc
4 Citizens Association. III
CONSTITUTION. -,
Article Name. u
Article 2.--0bjects. u