United labor bulletin., 1910-05-19

in the community, and consequently he
was compelled to abandon his work and
retreat to the agents house Next day
a committee called on the servants and
workmen in Captain Boycotts employ,
with the result that every one of them
departed, leaving the unfortunate gentle
man without servants, farm laborers or
lstablemen, while his crops remained I'M
gathered and unsaved. Nor did the people
stop there. The local shop keeper re-
fused to sell to him, and even the post
boy who carried his letters quit his posi-
ton sooner than serve him even to this
lslight extent.
Captain Boycott was left severely
alone" put into moral Coventry" AS
days wore on it became a matter of
pressing importance to him to have his
crops saved, but no one in the neighbor-
hood could be found to do the work. At
this point, the Ulster Orangemen offered
their services to the Captain and one
hundred of them volunteered to invade
Connaught and save his crops. Captain
Boycott informed the government author
tiles that fifty men would be quite suffi-
cent for agricultural purposes, and &C.
cordingly fifty Orangemen were dis
patched to Connaught under the protec-
ton of large force of military and
police to save Captain Boycott's crops
When the work was done Captain Boy
colt concluded to quit the country alto
gether, and went to live in England.
The isolation of Captain Boycott was
followed by other famous cases. Mr..
Bence Jones of Clonakilty, in the County
Cork, had incurred the popular displeas-
ure because of ais bitter opposition to
the Land League movement, and when
his case was being considered by the To-
cal branch of the Land League one of
the members proposed that he be boy
cotted, and thereby coined a new word
in the English language 1t is needless
to say that the system was applied to
Mr.. Jones without dissenting voice. He
tried to sell his cattle in the Cork mar
tet, but no one could be got to buy. He
sent them to Dublin to be shipped to the
Liverpool markets. but the longshoremen
in the employ of the Dublin Steam Pack
ing companies refused to put them on
board. Finally after a great deal of diff
ficulty, the cattle were taken in small
patches across the channel and sold.
After these cases boycotting became a
great weapon in the armory of the
league, and was. as one of the leaders
said, better than any 71-ton gun ever
manufactured
1t will be seen from this, that boycott
ing was not Invented by irresponsible
American labor leaders, as some men in
high positions as we'll as the daily news
papers and other interested parties would
have the public believe. The system was
invented and put into successful opera
ton by a gentleman of the highest social
standing in the country where he lived.
Mr.. Parnell at all times advised the
people to use the boycott against the
men who attempted to deprive them of
their rights, and in doing SO he always
proclaimed their moral and legal right
to use it.
When the rich and powerful employers
and landlords found that the boycott was
irresistible, and in a measure, at least,
prevented them from continuing to open
ly rob the people, they appealed to the
government and courts for assistance.
All schemes known to the legal fratern-
ity and hostile government were en-
ployed to make boycotting in itself IL
legal. What is known as the coercion
act was passed by the British Parlia-
ment which enacting went SO far as to
suspend trial by jury in all agrarian
cases.
1t must be said, however, in behalf OF
the British courts and even the govern
ment, that they never went So far as to
say that a person had no right to refuse
his patronage to any particular firm, not
that he had no right to advise others
not to patronize any unfair person or
firm. 1t was only when 1t was alleged
that violent acts were comitted in the
enforcement of boycott that men were
sent to Jail in Ireland.
When it was found that the govern
ment and courts did not meet with their
requirements. the landlords went SO far
as to appeal to the highest authorities
of the Catholic church, for the purpose
of having the practice of boycotting de-
clared out of harmony with teachings OF
the church Here. again, they were ut
terly unsuccessful Not only did they
fail in having the church authorities as
sist them in destroying the boycotting,
but instead the priests, bishops and arch
bishops of Ireland with very few ex-
captions. took the side Of the common
people and assisted materially in making
the movement successful and the boy
colt effective.
Here we have the example of the Brit
ish courts-conceded to be the most en-
lightened judicial tribunal in the world
refusing to make the boycott in Itself IL
legal, and we have also the further ex-