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Show feOCUL COHJ10T10. We are In the midst of an era of social commot ons, that Imrst out among thu people like storms at f-n. The strike among railroad men In Suulli Wales has no parallel in the hi-torj ol Great Britain. While the lockout projer does not include- a fcicub uuuj li jieuj-ie, it inuirceiij lnvolvesa tren.eudous mass of Uiom whohae no immediate connettion with the movement. The entire number thus thrown outof emptoj-ment emptoj-ment by the blocking of the avenues of transportation Is appalling, be'ug numerically suffieieiittu constitute an immense arm . A railroad ttriko in the Mother Country I, in some of its features, much more hurtful than otic in the United t-tates, because of the utter-1 utter-1 helpless eiiaracter of the suple lu some districts regarding the means of subsistence, as practical! nothing Is produced from the soil in that line, huch, for Iu-Unce, Is the condition of the Inhabitants of Iluonda, nhot. Inhabitants, numbering num-bering over IW.OOJ, are entire dependent de-pendent for the introduition of supplies sup-plies upon the Tall railroad t tem. the traffic on which has been suspended sus-pended by tho strike. It will be observed from this very situation how easily a movement of the character now In operation, a dbpule between one class of work-ingmen work-ingmen alono aud capital, a famine could be precipitated in large districts dis-tricts of Great Britain within a few days- This suggests tho Urr.ble thought that though London is the most populous and in sonio respects the grandest aLd most powerful c ty In tho work. It Is In one regard the weakest on the globe. If transportation transpor-tation to it from othir parts including in-cluding tne scores of miles of frelaht trains that enter it tlally wiih provisions for its population were suspended fur a week, a terri-b'e terri-b'e conditioa would ensue. TLe p-opls would be driven to starvation starva-tion and In all prcbaLility the extremity ex-tremity ttduM result In uprisings ' I rapine and bloodshed. ' r7ho knows thatin these turbulent tl messach a cataatropne Is outside til region of probability, seeing that Che contentions conten-tions between the two great ecclal divisions labor and capital are becoming more and mora embittered? embit-tered? It Is to be hoped for the -sake of poor, suffering humanity, that, the Welsh railroad strike "ill soon reach a peaceful tcrmlnattal l. The strike on the Vanderbllt system sys-tem anc.' New York Cent ral rail-way rail-way in our owr countr , begun yesterday, Is of no mean pre tension, and threatens to widen. So far as relates to fsvne parts of the country, it practical isolates Goth am in a bualnes sense. Outbreaks of violence vio-lence are feart si, the first symptom in that line having already appeared. ap-peared. Tu guard against tho destruction de-struction of life and property, thu State militia has been called out. It will be a nitter of congratula t.'n If they shall have no occasion for active Interference. News from the respective seati of difficulty will b looted for 'rlth keen exoectation. |
