Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1913-05-22
Discusses Trial of Civilians By Court
Martial and Othet Questions Of !
Interest To The Workingman
Qua I'd System Has Caused All Trouble
gAmerica's Greatest Socialist Says Coun-
\ try Cannot Exist Half Nom Union--l3
Conferences of the Rich Are
Conspiracies of the Poor.

"Our position" said Mr.. Debs, "is
this: If any man has violated the law
in any way, and the courts are open,
he should be tried in court under the
forms Of law, and il he is then found
guilty, he should be punished. That
is our position"
Then you believe that National
Committeeman John Brown and others
should have been tried in civil court
and not by court martial?"
Il do not say as to that. These are
properly matters of inquiry. do say
that nothing could be palmer than the
words of your state constitution, which
provides that the military shall be
subordinate to the civil power, and
that no citizen not engaged in the
military service of the state shall be
tried or punished by a military court
for an offense punishable by q civil
court. Whatever this clause may. be
construed to mean, it seems to me that
iii the intent is expressed in the words,
there can be no doubt. The vital point
rs this-that there should be no trial
for a civil OF criminal offense while
the civil courts are open and doing
business" s.
The Guard System.
The guard system. formerly in OPP
leration on Paint and Cabin creeks, and
lare still in operation in the New River
field, is feature of mining conditions
i'm the state with which Mr.. Debs is
familiar.
yes, know the mine guards" he
said. Il was in the F1airmont field
with other organizers III, years ago,
and met them there. have met them
since, and elsewhere. In !. the Fair
mont field was pursued by them from
one speaking point to another. And
though ! was careful to speak every
word with proper appreciation for the
truth and the law. Iwas goaded and
insulted in oredr that 4 might break
the law and become liable to arrest
or lose my temper and provoke an as
sault. got away without becoming
victim of the blackjack, but It was be-
cause l subjected myself to the gross
est insults and the most humiliating
indignities, ia .fI#
Responsible for Trouble.
The guard system is responsible for
this trouble. The spirit Of the Ameri-
can people is averse to militarism-to
the coercion OF the citizen by the man
with the gum In these coal fields the.
operators have maintained q private
army-a standing army in time of
peace. You or could not do that
And what an individual cannot do d
corporation should not be permitted
to do. The miners realize this. Their
American spirit rebelled, and the trou-
BILE followed.
But will say here that the labor
leaders do not encourage violence
We do all in our power to prevent 1t.
And where violence breaks out In an
organized field it is in spite Of union
ism and not because of it. Another
thing disturbances are always worse
in nOn-organized territory, because
there is no restraining obligation.
And agree with you that the fact that
the men of the Paint and Cabin creek
coal fields are abiding by the agree
ment with the operators recommended
by Governor Hatfield is evidence of
the high regard in which the laboring
man holds q moral obligation
Only In West Virginia
Senators Chiffon and Coz, in op-
posing the Kern resolution In congress
speak of the labor troubles in New
Jersey and Ohio. These men should
remember, however. that in those
states the right Of organization is so
thoroughly settled that there Is no
question about it. Labor organizers
are free to pursue their work in every
state IN the union except West Vir-
ginia. In asking for organization, the
miners ask for the same rights that
the operator enjoys; the lawyer, too
he must be union lawyer before he
cam appear at the bar.
ITO paraphrase Lincoln. this coun-
try cannot exist half union and half
non-union. When think Of Lincoln r
think of his speech to the laboring
men at Hartford, in (which he said:
I thank God that we live In a country
in which the wortingmen have. the
right to strike!' Another great Ameri-4
can, Robert g. IngeFsoll, put the labor
question in q few words, thus: IF the
rich meet to reduce wages, that's a
cOference; Il the poor meet to resist
L A. - !