Show THEIR EYES OPENED One night last week discharged em iloyees of the New York Central railway or more properly speaking strikers held a meeting in Albany the speeches at which were significant Most of tha men who talked confessed that tile strike was a failure fail-ure and several of them said it had been illadvised and unnecessarily precipitated that it ought not to have been ordered and the leaders should be censured for calling I out hundreds of men when ordinary intelligence I intelli-gence would have suggested tho improbability I improb-ability of the men winning But the sug estive speech of the evening was by a I laboring man who proceeded to roast the coders of the organization first fororder ng the men out and then for their style and extravagance He said tho bosses were living high staying at the best hotels eating eat-ing tho fat of the land ridin in carriages and hiring highpriced lawyers while the families fam-ilies of the poor strikers were necessarily placed on short notices Ho said if the I leaders would be less eager to show their I authority and call then out and would I practice economy in their expenses the I I real workers would be a good deal better i off and their families would not so often I j i i > e hungry and illclothed The man was I heartily cheered by his associates showing show-ing that the men generally had been keep ling their eyes and ears open and giving their intelligence a chance Some of the leaders were present and one of them in an effort to defend the others proceeded to denounce the men in vile and blackguard terms among other things saying they were 4a lot of whitelivered curs There was more of this kind of talk and while the meeting did not breakup break-up in a row everybody went away with feelings It is unfortunate for the members of the labor organizations that they too often place blatherskites and irresponsible agitators agita-tors to tho front or maintain them at the front after they have crowded themselves forward The wisest most cautious and most conservative men should stand at the head of workingmens associations and men whose integrity honesty and personal d deportment above reproach There is too much at stake for men to place themselves them-selves under the control of unwise or incompetent in-competent persons and submit to a rule or dictation which can bring them to starvation starva-tion If men are going to place themselves II I in i a position where they cannot act independently I inde-pendently and it seems necessary that they must so place themselves in this age of warfare between labor and capitalthey should be doubly careful to choose as leaders persons who will not abuse their authority but use it for the best interest of those in whose behalf they are supposed to labor One of the strongest most successful and best re spected of the unions ib the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and that it is strong successful and respected is due largely to the fact that its head is a man of great intelligence in-telligence of big brain and admitted conservatism con-servatism We regard Chief Airmen as ono of the really great men of the time On the other hand POVDERLT who stands at tho head of the mighty organization the Knights of Labor is little better qualified for the duties of the position which he holds than a bull is to preside over a china store He is eternally quarreling with the order or with employers keeps the men in trouble almost continually and personal lives like a prince at the expense of the honest hardworking but misguided fellows who maintain him in the place If Pow DERLY were a wise capable and conservative conserva-tive leader the Knights would long ago have been the most powerful labor organization organ-ization that the world ever saw instead of which the association while strong as to numbers is weak in every other respect torn by internal dissension and discontent and steadily going to decay I Workingmen should understand that all power is in their hands but that they will be helpless so long as they place wide mouthed agitators and blatherskites in authority With wise leaders who will think more of the interests of the men than of their own personal pleasure profit and importance the labor associations will thrive will obtain justice and their rights and enjoy that essential to success popular respect and good will The leader who will spend money lavishly on himself and I I for style while the poor fellows who contribute thaT cash are suffering for the I necessities of life will never be a successful I success-ful head of a workingmans organization |