A Terrible Unrest by Philip Duke

Author:Philip Duke [Duke, Philip]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Top Hat Books
Published: 2014-05-29T16:00:00+00:00

15

Lamont Bowers was cautiously optimistic as he indulged a few moments to look out of his office window and savor a fine autumn afternoon. While he had never accepted the estimates of some of his staff that less than ten percent of the work force had walked out and the strike would collapse in a couple more weeks, he did believe that it would be over much sooner than Welborn and the others expected. And if we can’t get them back to work, he cynically told himself, the first Colorado blizzard would have them running as fast as their legs could carry them, begging for their old jobs back. That, he concluded, would end the strike but more importantly it would set back the damned union cause for years.

Since the strike had been called, Bowers sent regular telegrams and letters to Rockefeller Jr., keeping him apprised of the situation, and now it was time for his latest missive. Bowers went back to his large oak desk, sat down and pulled out a heavy pen from his pocket. The grandfather clock patiently ticking away in the corner told him that he could still get the letter out in the evening mail. His secretary could fill in all the formalities when he retyped it.

Dear Mr. Rockefeller,

I hope that this letter finds you and your family well. I thank you, too, for your kind words regarding my wife, who continues to improve, albeit slowly. As your father has said so often and so wisely, we must keep our faith in the Lord and then all will be well.

Bowers laid his pen down and thought out the letter’s details. It had to be realistic enough to convince the Rockefellers that the companies were facing a unified opposition, but optimistic enough to keep their faith in the present course of action. He continued.

Allow me to start with the only pieces of bad news I have to convey. I believe that the vast majority of the miners have now walked out. Some of the small companies have lost all of their work force; fortunately our own facilities are still able to operate, even at a much reduced capacity. Moreover, Ethelbert Stewart, who, as you know, is the representative of the Department of Labor in Washington in the negotiations that Governor Ammons is trying to organize, is not, I am convinced, sympathetic to our interests at all. However, it is my understanding that Stewart is at the end of his tether and will almost certainly disengage himself from further discussions.

I am also pleased to be able to tell you that despite attempted interference by Stewart to halt a grand jury investigation into the illegal activities of the United Mine Workers, specifically regarding the Anti-Trust Act, investigations are continuing, largely due to the indefatigable efforts of Judge J. G. Northcutt in Trinidad.

The company owners and I have made provision to hire more private guards and deputy sheriffs to ensure that the mob does no damage to our property or indeed to the general state of law and order in Colorado.

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