A history of the American nation . ce in the industrial world, a peacenot bought by warfare or threats of violence, came to be aproblem of the utmost interest.^ Meanwhile labor unions were formed; they were the productof the new life of the workingman and of the new conditionsof labor. In 1869 the Knights of Labor was es-tablished; though the order grew slowly at first,by the early eighties it was very large. An assembly in 1886was said to represent a membership of over 300,000, and in fact ^ It is said that between 1881 and 1900 there were in all 22,793 strikes;117,509 establishments, and ove
A history of the American nation . ce in the industrial world, a peacenot bought by warfare or threats of violence, came to be aproblem of the utmost interest.^ Meanwhile labor unions were formed; they were the productof the new life of the workingman and of the new conditionsof labor. In 1869 the Knights of Labor was es-tablished; though the order grew slowly at first,by the early eighties it was very large. An assembly in 1886was said to represent a membership of over 300,000, and in fact ^ It is said that between 1881 and 1900 there were in all 22,793 strikes;117,509 establishments, and over 6,000,000 workingmen were involved—a sorry tale, on the whole, of unreasonableness somewhere and right and wrong of all this cannot be said in a word, if anybody knowsit. We only know that if civilization is to grow and prosper, workingmenmust have decent compensation and good conditions of work; employersmust have reasonable freedom and independence; justice must in someway be reached without warfare and Modern Steam Locomotive Labor unions. 492 HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NATION a much larger membership was often mentioned. The AmericanFederation of Labor also became a powerful order, and erelong practically supplanted the Knights of Labor. It wasfounded at an earlier time; but began its more active careerafter 1886, when it took its present name. Its membershipincreased rapidly till in 1903 there were 1,500,000 personson its rolls. The union, though often resorting to strikes toattain its ends, is primarily for the general improvement of thesocial as well as laboring conditions of the workingman. Theseimmense bodies with their able leaders have almost unlimitedopportunities for good and evil in the development of Americancivilization.^ References Wilson, Division and Reunion, Chapter XIII; Dunning, Re-construction, Political and Economic, Chapter IX; Sparks, NationalDevelopment, Chapters I-V, XVIII; Dewey, National Problems,Chapters I, III, VI, XII; Co
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