The labor world., 1909-10-02

sTRIKE IIKEI.Y Z TO BE:
or VERY LONG DURATION


Eployers association ana the organ
lied workers thes troops trained 4 In.
the incessant battles OF the last few.
years. Over 150 900 are striking and
many more thousands are out OF
work III industries depending upon or
conected with the industries con-.
scerned ii the strike.
The question at issue IS not wages.
not hours. 81.
It is. a question whether the orr
sganization Of the workers shall live
or not. Thus It is not a strike In
the ordinary sense OF the word, It Is
q revolutionary skirnnish, where as
yet nobody has dared to fire gun.
Some hot-heated revoIut ionaries In
America, while themselves unable to
cause q storm even in teapot, sde-s
ride us Swedes because we did not
all go out at once and finish the
I battle Immediately This Is easy
enough to say at q safe distance, but
the matter look different to Y. the
actual workers who have to shoulder
the grave resp sibility OF revo1u-.
tionary action. =}
If the Swedish government ems
pIoyes. the railway, telegraph, tele-
phone \, and postal workers had
thought It wise to 80 out on strike
they would have dome sos As It was
they remained at work, giving about
or nearly one half Of their wages to;
the strikers. The reasons were as
follows:
II they had an gone ont the guns.
and rifles planted psfyWherea ii acon-
venient s places, would SIS have been;
brought into play hmm iiately, b.
scaaise dea had not
vet pet1ne6ted tftes stsatcaentlg,
to reach down deep enoN6h s1n xegf
nents and bdttleships to make them
dtsobey orders. Now. after seven
wrecks struggle. the idea has ripenAd
Ithrough ghout the mass Of the Swedish
people TO such an extent that hardly
q day passes without contributions
to strikers from regiments and battle
ships. AS d CONSEQUENCE, we are
better fixed for the next struggle. 81
The second reason why the gov
ernment enN loyes, especially the
railway pen, did not 80 out on strike
was that the workers needed their
| service. Without the trains there
would have been no provisions COM
ing into the industrial places where
the strike centered Besides, q rail-
road strike was entirely unnecessary.
The Industries standing still, there
was no freight to carry !; the upper
class having Aed the country OF re-
tired to their summer resorts. therc
we're no passengers to carry, and. as
q consequence q large part OF the
trains were stopped. thus giving the
! men vacation on full pay, Of which
they could give q large part to the
strikers. sss!s'
It must be. understood that the
general strike in Swede was not at
its inception sof 81 revo1t 1tionary tens
ldency, whatever It may develop into
later. In the meantime, the criticfx.
! ing srevolntio onists' may watch de-
lvelopments. The Swedes are prefect-
fly willing to act the part on the
world -stage when the proper time
comes. ss4s. ss. s9
One Of the most singlar features
lof the strike Is that the unorganized
workers have placed themselves at
THE command Of the organized, q
fact which BODIES good for the future.
Should it become necessary they
would probably 60 out again. if
asked to do So '5ssss7
Another iteresting qestion b what
! IS going to happen on Oct. when
the quarterly rents are due. or
Course, there WIN hardly be 8 single
II y