At Lawrence, by express purpose, unionism had been stifled. "This was great luck for us," as one expressed it. "Gompers' fakirs had been kept out and we had our chance."
New Bedford followed. I met one hurrying to this new field. "We will put New Bedford on the map, too," he said. But it did not then get on to the map. With bad generalship, the invaders fell upon a mill long organized. These men felt so competent to manage their own affairs that the failure of the I. W. W. was immediate and complete.
There is but one fair inference from this wide experience. If capitalist management, itself endowed with every advantage of organization, deliberately refuses it to labor, capital will suffer. It will suffer because public opinion and the political action which that opinion reflects, will more and more take sides with labor in every struggle that becomes conspicuous. This wider public will side even with turbulent and disorganized masses like the I. W. W. It will be said, and justly said, "The fight is too grossly unfair." The public will say this and act upon it, in spite of all
"The strike committee then served notice upon the commander of the Cossacks that for every striker killed or injured by the cossacks the life of a cossack would be exacted in return. And that they were not at all concerned as to which cossack paid the penalty, but that a life for a life would be exacted. The strikers kept their word. On the next assault by the cossacks, several of the constabulary were killed and a number wounded. The cossacks were driven from the streets and into the plants of the company. An equal number of strikers were killed and about 50 wounded in the battle. This ended the killing on both sides during the remainder of the strike. For the first time in their existence the cossacks were 'tamed.' The McKees Rocks strike resulted in a complete victory for the strikers."
