The daily silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1903-1907, 1906-01-20
Md :. W4sWW Q WWFW =
GRAND OPERA AND THE trade
UNION.

"AO
newspaper career in Eureka, this State,
and was afterward connected with the
Reno Gazette, and has since gained ma
tional fame as a newspaper man, hs
San Francisco Bulletin:
The w~orkingman is a sore trial to hi
financial and social betters. He decline
to be obedienr and d%eferential and to &C
cept the counsel which is SO freely an,
copiously offered him. He refuses to be
lieve that all his troubles are due to hi
fatal propensity to be 'misled by dem
agogues." Nor can he be brought te
share the horror which is awakened il
the breasts Of his superiors by NANTES
tations of class prejudice a passion
which, they constantly point out to him
is equally ignorant. wicked and odious
and peculiarly offensive and dangerous
in a democratic republic.
How abhorrent class prejudice is te
the ~workingman's mentors was illustrat-
ed in the Metropolitan Opera House OF
New York one evening not long ago.
The singers of the chorus were not sat
isfed with their pay-so scanty thai
Madame Calve had made a public pro-
test against it-and formed a union in
the hope of forcing an increase. 1t is
affirmed tina before doing this the chorus
shingers had signed contracts as indi-
..I..-t- x-Lt>l fhnxy hrokn uhnn thew
as a union, made their demand, in itself
admittedly reasonable. That was not
honorable, of course. but it was hardly
moral shock at the thought of a broken
contract which moved the audience to
explosive manifestations when Herr Con-
ried appeared before tue curtain to ex-
plain why the opera would be sung with
out a chorus. The New York Evening
Post, which is Americas foremost jour
nalistic apostle to the plutocracy, eli
torially tells what happened. By going
on strike the singers had done their
best to destroy one of the gala events
of the season and mar the pleasure of
nearly four thousand persons who had
nothing to do with their quarrel'-not
even to the extent of caring whether the
chorus was hungry or not. THE audi
ence was keenly alive to the situation,
and when Mr.. Conried came forward and
announced that he had firmly and abb
solutely refused to be dictated to by the
chorus as a labor Union there was an
outburst of applause such as usually fol-
lows only the song of some favorite
tenor OF prima donna. The ~public"-that
whelmingly with the manager" 1t is
not recorded that Senator's Depew and
Platt were in their boxes. or whether
Messrs. Hyde. Alexander and the rest
of the INSURANCE magnates, who loathe
broken contracts and dishonesty in "a
its forms, were present, but if so. +
doubt they a~pplauded as enthusiastical
as any the attitude of Manager Conrie
toward labor unions.
Considering the affection in which the
arc held by the better Classes. the class
es which live we.- without hardening
their hands, the lack Of fondness tn,
trades unions show for them is indees
astonishing-astonishing that in the
workshops there should be distrust anc
dislike instead of respectful admiration
and that touching loyalty which in the
good old times distinguished and beauti-
fed the character OF the retainers Of the
aristocracy.
Humorists smile at the English country
gentleman, who's head contains suet in
stead of brains and whose breast is dis
tended with pride of caste. who goes to
church on Sunday. not to worship his
mysterious Creator or in the interest of
his own soul. but for the sake of setting
an example, to his tenants and depend
ents. But. after all. Squire Western, In
his own fashion, has some sense Of the
responsibility of leadership. He does not
content himself with testifying to his
consciousness OF superiority by despising
and detesting the poor. In getting rid
Of a hereditary aristocracy we AVE suf-
fered some loss that has to be set against
the o m gain. Had Manager Con-