Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1919-08-27
DEMANDS OF RAILROAD MEN
Fruition OF Surrender Of National
Sovereignty Three Years Ago.
(Manufacturers Rccord.)

dent and Congress and the country
with an ultimatum for Increased
wages and for the nationalism OF
our roads.
Three years ago these brother
hoods practically held Il pistol at the
head of the American Government,
and the American people cowardly
shrank from the contest involved
and yielded up the sovereignty OF
the nation to these men.
In the light Of our trucking then
the brotherhoOds are hardly to be
blamed for this second demand.
They found ii was very easy to bull
doZe this nation and to make Con-
gress yield TO their bidding.
During the time when the con-
test was on the Manufacturers
Record republished from large
number Of Southern pepers vigorous
dcnunciatio of the coid-bloodcd
way ir which the brotherhoods made
their demands and the cowardly way
in which Congress, for political
effect--for Democrats and Republi
cans alike were cowcd into submis-
son---yielded to the threat Of the
eighty OF the nation.
When this country permitted it.
self thus to be bulldozed 1t planted
the seeds Of which the new demand
Of the brotherhood Of Railroad Men
is but the natural fruition. We are
reaping the harvest now Of what we
joined in sowing then. Every man
and every newspaper which yielded
without Il fight to the action Of the
brotherhoods three years ago is, to
the extent Of his or it's influence, re-
sponsible for bringing on the present
condition.
We do not think that the brother
hoods are one-half as much to blame
at the present time as they we're
three years ago. They found then
that the majority Of politicians were
apparently towards and afraid to
stand up and fight for the right and
to leave the consequences to God,
and that Is the only position every
honest man ever has the right to
take on any subject.
Whom 40 brotn nrhCulH rOu0f 'N2i
Amcrica W,,S woaE ana Hahhy in itI
hnG!tbout, on, indcnl, WIS apparently
lhinuS a backbone, and when thoy
found that by ,hrcuts they could
browheat this nation, they naturally
grew more and more eager for a
larger control Of American affairs,
without regard to how this might
affect the nation or millions of other
people.
They have been told over and over
again, in the press, in Congress and
from public men in every walk of
life, that railroad owners we're rob-
bers and unhung scoundrels; they
have been told that all accumulation
Of wealth has come about through
fraud, and newspapers and public
men have gloried in gloatingly seek
ing to raise the spirit Of class hatred
against every evidence Of success;
they have been told that the people
must oVerturn governments II
governmental authorities do not do
to suit the laboring men.
Who, therefore, can blame the
railroad men for accepting these
statements. made officially by poll
ticians Of all parties, and made
sometimes from the pulpit by men
who knew no more about business
and the facts in the case than Ger
many knows about honor or than the
dwellers OF tn" lower world know
about ice-water.
How shall America meet the issue
which Is now forced upon 1t Is the
question we must face. We cannot
meet 1t in exactly the same way we
should have met It three years ago,
for as a people we are responsible
for having misled the railroad men
and taught them to believe they had
a right to grab everything in sight
but to yield to them would be ma
tional suicide. Personally, we would
rather be murdered that to commit
suicide. Our duty now is by every
means in our power to seek to change
the thought OF the people Of this
country from the Socialistic doc
trines. which have been so dominant
in public affairs Of recent years, to