The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1911-12-02
From. same Office Is issued
Isli. LAKELAND NEWS
UNiON!S.! AID THE
slcNAMARA CASES

The .ou!r. ion q, James y. Ne
Nama1a thaj he dynamiled III"
buldiN ol the i.os Angels Timc
thereby rausiu., the death ii TWEEN
ty-oar persons, has sent q shock o!
suruli.e, not uumiHed With disap-
poinimelt throughout tn" entire
nation Frnm every part OF the
country Ills trial has been watched
with keenc, interest, and the hope
was stron" aud general that the in
potcuce Of the accused men would
be- cstab'i. he'd. This was more
particularly IL ease for the reason
that il lis ,Ircn represented, es-
pecialiy ~ t.ends of the defense,
that organized labor was, to GER
tain cNicut. On trial; and disin-
tercstcd plbllc generally, as we'll as
the pa!lio:,l4s of uniOnisln, was 10th
to haze such a neinous crime laid at
Orga,..sd labor's door.
NoN that tne guilt of these men
is alM,tlcd, 4 keen sense of disap-
pointmen follows the first shock of
surpl -, However much We may
sympa,nluc with the principles and
purposes Of organized labor, no one
can endorse or cOndOne such crimes
as those confessed by the Nc
Namaras, .cgardless of the cause in
the name OF which they were COM
mitted. Conditions to justify such
crimes are hardly conceivable. The
people who met death at the hands
of John r.. Mcnamara were guilty
OF no grave offcnsc against him or
suing the same walks Of life as he;
men engaged in earning their daily
bread by the work of their hands;
men against whom there could be
not even the anmus of class hatred.
Yet these innocent persons were
hurled into eternity by the anar-
chistic act Of one who even in the
hour of confession cants about
principle"
The sympathies of this paper are
with the man who tolls. In every
lawful way he has the right to bet
ter the conditions of his life; to
seek reasonable pay for his services;
to conserve some of the golden hours
for rest and recreation But there
is solemn warning in such terri
bile tragedies as that in which these
apostles of unionism are the self
confessed principals. and every la
boring man in the land would do
well to heed it. There can be no
permanent or satisfactory advance
ment of labor conditions. unless
such advancement is the result OF
effort along reasonable and temper
ate lines As long as the laboring
mans contentious are founded on
Justice and reason. and pursued in a
legitimate way. the spirit of fair
play, ever active among the American
people. will align public sentiment
with his forces and he can accom-
plish his just and reasonable pur-
poses Hut ii he countenances or
encourages such acts of anarchy and
violence as these committed by the
McNamaras. he alienates at once
the sympathics and support Of the
great mass OF the people. 50 essen
tial TO the success of his endeavors.
t'nionism is all right We be-
lieve in il. hope for it, But its suc-
Tess depends upon the justice of its
demands. and the moderation and
fairness with which these demands
are pursued. Street corner orators.
with axes TO grind. may appeal to
prejudice: organizers may instili
the seeds of diseord ard discomfort,
and cause well-paid employees to
abandon their liyings. for the vague
promise CT something better: in
temperate organs may. for selfish
purposes. inflamc the passions of
men and incite them to deeds OF
anarchy; but the only real sub
stantial. permanent progress that
is possible for the working man is.
first, through his own individual
ability. seeking to achieve an eN-
cellenee which will always command
q premium: and s-,or,. through
such organized effort oriy as will
command the approval and respect
of the reasonable and fair-minded
masses of the people.
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