The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1909-06-19

with ali the sinews OF Industrial war.
and have had armies OF toadtes ana
ssvcophants busy fawning at the altar
Of Mammon, always ready to hurl
poisoned shafts at the work4ngmen's
institution. and ever willing to do
anything within their power to be-
wilder society and prejudice 1t In be-
half Of their masters, the opponents OF
our movement hove failed completely
to stamp out trade untonism. or even
to seriously cripple it. :
Value Of organisation. +,
~ All over this land the worktngmen
have learned that their salvation rests
in organization. The more flercely
they are opposed the more firmly do
they grasp the banner of trade union
ism and press it on from step to step.
There IS not a. dtscouraging sign In
the times. Our trusted and venerated
leaders. Gompers. Mitchell and Morri-
son, may be sent to prison through
persecution by conscience -deadened
commercialism, but hundred leaders
will rise up to take their places If
necessary. and two million loyal men,
bers Of the working class will con-
tinue tho battle for, Industrial liberty
with more grit and greater courage
than has ever been. shown before.
Truth VIII Prevail.
The truth these leaders proclaim IL
one that walls OF stone and gates of
steel cannot hide. 1t is a light set
upon hill, and fair and clear 1t
shines afar. It's radiance illumines
the souls OF men wherever free men
be. Who shall say what Is q blessing
and what blight in our great work?
Hundreds and thousands. aye, tens Of
thousands, Of men who have regarded
our cause with indifference and our
efforts with the barest tolerance have
been reused to CRY scorn upon this
outrage. even though it is the logical
sequence Of long train of precedent
events. The blow given by the con-
viction and sentence OF these men,
which seemed TO fall wholly upon us
and our cause. has awakened many
and many man from the slumber Of
Indifference, and, Just as the assault
upon Fort Sumpter thrilled the heart
Of the. North in 1861, so this assault
upon the freedom of speech and Of the
press has aroused every free American
citizen who loves his liberty to a real
izatton that liberty itself is imperiled.
Let US be Of good cheer, The lessons
OF the ages have taught us that 'the'
blood Of the martyrs is the seed Of the
church." Our leaders have never
made louder rallying cry for our
forces than their martyrdom trumpets
out. and eagerly responding hosts will
pass the message on and bear our
SCARED banner forward.
Majesty of Labor Movement.
The labor movement is not the
growth Of a day or one gathering of
workmen. 1t has the majesty of far
centuries upon 1t. 1t sprang into be-
Ing because of widespread hunger for
food. Then came longing for better
homes, greater industrial tndepend-
ence and a higher civilization. The
American standard Of living, the ware
to support 1t. leisure hours for adj
vancement humane and wholesome
working conditions, industrial and
political rfghts-these and more are
the achievements Of the organization
OF the working class, and it will re-
qutre more than hurtful mistakes from
within and sturdy blows from without
to crush this one institution that has
reared aloft and kept burning the
torch-light of progress Tor humanity
When all has been said and done, the
trade union has been the protector Of
all society against the greed Of COM
mercialisnn. =.
Meeting at Red Wing.
Today branch of the great move
ment Of organized labor meets in this
beautiful city of Red Wing. That this
branch is doing what it can to amel-
iorate the condition of Minnesota
working men and working women. to
save childhood from the relentless
lash Of untimely toll, to prepare the
next generation for a broader view
and a higher standard OF life, physical,
mental and spiritual, than the pres
nv
broaden and render more comfortable
all classes of our people, will he
shown by the proceedings of the con-
vention and the work it's officers have
been doing during the year; and some
ldea OF the heroic sacrifices made by
the adherents Of the movement in this
state In behalf of the work they are
engaged in can be gathered from an
analysis Of the accompanying financial
and statistical statements, which are
appended hereto.
u. Value OF State Federation.
One who studies the labor move
ment will scarcely fail to see in the
State Federation Of Labor the logical
outcome of: unionism, the only COM
p4ete expression of class conscious
ness, and the best guarantee Of safe
methods. Whom SO impressed one
wonders that federation has had Ia
work so hard to establish itself and
We are often at a loss to understand
why the work OF federation is not
long since completed.
Tbs labor movement IL radical IN It's
aim II compared with the defensive
principles Of conservatism but its
methods must be conservative. its
Judgment dare not be narrow. while
IT. views should be based on the in
terests of tho whole laborinr class in
Its modern relations to law. EMPLOYER
and the public: -,
"A particular trade union will often
lind 1t difficult to hold IT'S action to
conservative, methods, and It will at
times, base; radical action on narrow
Judgments. Men feel intensely and
act rashly when looking at their
wrongs at close range and under pres
sure of emotion. The result is some
times seen in unwise policies, reckless
claims, which avert public sympathy
and Issue In heavy burdens on labor
ers Themselves
Must Not BE: TOO Radical.
Where the union Is in close and
sympathetfc relation with, the other
organizations in the movement, "a
seen In federations' these danxers are