| Show A LESSON TO STRIKERS One day last wick the telegraph informed in-formed us thdt the strikers at th Edgar Thompson steel works Pittsburg had rejected the proposition made by the proprietor Mr Andrew Carnegie whereupon the gentleman ordered the works shut down until January 11889 This order throws out of work over 5000 men the establishment being one of the most exteneive in America Naturally the announcement was received with dismay by the workingmen as the dispatch states It could not well be received otherwise The men see before be-fore them nine months of idleness unless un-less they cn find other enjoyment I than that to which they are accustomed accus-tomed which is not likely They also understand that wherever they I go or whatever they do provided pro-vided they ae fortunate enough to obtain wageearning employment it is not at all probable that they will get as much pay as they were receiving for Mr Carnegie has the reputation of being a most generous employer his I rule being to pay well for honest work It is certain that on occasions when business was brisk and trade was lively he has voluntarily increased the wages of his men Truly the outlook is not encouraging to the army of not less than 25000 psrsons who were obtaining their daily bread from Mr Andrew Carnegie And yet one can not sympathize with them as he should sympathize with those in distress Their misfortune is due to their own foolishness their recklessness and their cussedness Mr Carnegie was paying his employees fairly good wages all that he felt justified justi-fied in paying them in the present pres-ent uncertain state of trade Asa As-a business man and a financier he dared not riskjibankruptcy by offering more than the trade outlook and the orders coming in would warrant him in paying Discontent seized upon some of the men greed took hold of them they saw that Mr Carnegie was a millionaire that he lived in grand style and spent money freely and they got it into their heads that he was robbing rob-bing them that is to say that he was making too much off their labor and that he should divide with them Thinking they had him Ion the hip as it were that inasmuch as they were members of a union and the union would stand by them preventing the filling of their places l the men struck for higher wages i they deliberately went to work to force Mr Carnegie to yield to their demands or ruin him lie proposed to demonstrate to them by bis books that he could no in justice to himself and with regard re-gard for good financiering grant what they asked but they were unreasonable unreason-able and would not see or hear they imagined that he could not escape and they continued what they believed would prove an effective squeeze Mr Carnegie then proposed a scheme which while it would make him safe against loss would give the men what they asked provided they earned it His proposition was to adopt the profitsharing system the employees em-ployees to be paid their wages as usual and at the end of tho year were to receive re-ceive a proportionate percentage of the profits of their labor after the proprietor pro-prietor had taken a fair interest for the use of his invested capital There were some condition but they we e of minor importance The proposition propo-sition was a fair and even generous one I but the men believed Mr Carnegie was in so tight a place shat he would have to give more hence they rejected his offer with the result announced above He happns to ba in a position where he can defend himself He is able to close his works and can keep what he has if he cannot be permitted permit-ted to make more By shutting r down he cannot be bankrupted True L in protecting himself he has struck a I terrible blow at his men but who can blame him They had no mercy on him and were without reason They would have roined him if it had been I possible and his salvation will come near to their destruction There should be a very impressive im-pressive lessen for workingmen in this Incident It should teach men that tho stsiks is their worst enemy en-emy in nino cases out of ten hurting I the striker more than it does his intended in-tended victim and in the other case bringing no permanent gool to those who employ it It should also suggest unions itself to workingmen and labor I r that there is danger of carrying their I bulldozing too for Now Mr Andrew Carnegie is one great employer of the country who can die I i t charge 5000 laborers and shut the doors of bis immense establishment estab-lishment nine months without going into bankruptcy Other employers will get themselves into positions where they can do the same thing and when their unreasonable hands undertake to seize them by the throat and squeeze a compliance with an unjust demand workshops will be closed and men wil go hurgry Ther can be no strike that will compel Mr Carnegie to open the doors of his steel works and employ men at a loss |
