Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1913-12-25

|of the Dublin Employers Organisa-
ton reproachfully said In a recent
speech. In the meantime these ern-
ployers have organised and when din
cultiea aroae~a short time ago hetween
the Tramway Co. and the men. the
employers began % take action by
means OF disciplinary punishment the
men replied with the sympathy
strike" which meant that men re-
fused to forward or handle tainted
goods. The Employers organization
+ then decided on lockout and declar-
ed that once and for all they would
clear out this "syndicahst transport
workers organization. BY this time
about 20. 900 men were involved in the
struggle. THIS would probably have
ended In a defeat of the men. IL the
employers, under the protection of the
police, etc. had not made an attck on
the right Of the worhmen 70 combine
and, on what Is so dear to every En-
gltshman. the right of free speech.
This attack on traditional freedom
caused public opinion to swing over
imm ediately to the side of the strug-
Cling Workmen. The Trades Union
Congress which was sitting at that
time in Manchester sent deputation
to Dublin to assist in defending the
threatened freedom Of speech. The
Board OF Trade also sent down it's
most trust worthy arbitrator and held
a public enquiry into the cause OF the
struggle. In this enquiry the employ
ers Jared very badly. The Commits
sion, consisting of an employer and a
member o 1.-THE Labor Party under the
Presidency OF the above mentioned ar
bitrator, criticised the sympathy strike
but on the other hand 1t severly con-
demned the action OF, the employers
and finally suggested the setting up of
q Court Of Arbitration. The employ
ers unceremof1iously rejected this sug-
gestion, and public opinion which DOS
SEbly on account of the wild speeches
Of Larkin iHSwhach he went out of this
way to sharply attack tariff agree
ments and specially the Labor Party
had been somewhat alienated, turned
again decidedly in favor of the work
erss In spite Of the indefensible at
Party, the Parliamentary Committee
OF the Trades Union Congress organi-
zed q liberal scheme OF assistance.
Dublin with cargoes of provisions
from the Wholesale Cooperative Soc
iety. to be divided out there among
the families OF the struggling work
ers. The position of the workers is.
however. 80 shocking, and the obstin-
acy Of the employers so determined,
that the fight must certainly have
ended in defeat of the men If the
afF to <N 1A1n hi -
ished. An attempt to transfer the
children Of the workers to English
families during the struggle-such az
Is often done in France and Belgium
came to grief as result of the op-
portion Of the Roman Catholic Clergy.
who induced their followers to watch
over all the points Of departure, both
Of ships and trains in order to pre-
vent the transfer of Catholic children
to socialist and protestant infected
England" What would have happen
ed to strikers If they, In the same man.
ner. had tried to prevent the arrival
OF strike1breakerS Their leader Lar
kin has been sentenced to seven years
imprisonment on q charge Of sediti0n
but has just been released after serv-
ing few weeks in consequence of the
pressure which public opinion brought
to bear on the Government Appar-
entity 1t was hoped that it would be
easier to crush the rebellious workers
In the absence OF the leader.
The railwaymen. whose organiza-
ton has grown In three years from 80,-
900 to 10000 members. and is at pre-
sent increasing the abolition Of the
existing Cancellation Boards. Only
actively employed raiEwaymen are al.
lowed to act as representatives on
those boards. Such men are, however,
IN danger Of being dismissed II their
lactayities nrnYa IN hA ssnnlS.~-~--A Z A.