the welfare of the country, but that it must be controlled and regulated. Organized labor is a great force that makes for good or evil of labor and of society as a whole, depending on the wisdom and patriotism of the leaders. Most men want to work and support their families, but they fear the ridicule of their fellows and sometimes follow too blindly an unwise leader who may do them a real harm.
Public opinion at one time justified burning and torturing people because they did not follow the same religious practices as those in authority. In old Salem it justified hanging women who were thought to be witches. Less than one hundred years ago it justified one man’s killing another in a duel because of some insult, real or fancied. To-day physical violence and social ostracism are still in practice toward those who do not wish to join a labor organization but who do wish to work. But public opinion will change and say to organized labor, as it has said to organized capital, “You must be fair to all.” J. B.
