238 THE FAT OF THE LAND 



insure its removal, he declared a strike on. This 

 was the reason, and the only reason, for the 

 strike at Gordon's mine. Three hundred men 

 quit work, and three hundred families suffered, 

 many of them for the necessities of life, simply 

 because a loud-mouthed delegate assured them 

 that they were being imposed upon. 



Things went on quietly at the mine. There 

 was no riot, no disturbance. Gordon did not go 

 over, but simply telephoned to the superintend- 

 ent to close the shaft houses, shut down the 

 engines, put out the fires, and let things rest, at 

 the same time saying that he would hold the 

 superintendent and the bosses responsible for the 

 safety of the plant. 



The men were disappointed, as the days went 

 by, that the owner made no effort to induce 

 them to resume work. They had believed that 

 he would at once accede to their demand, and 

 that they would go back to work with the tax 

 removed. This, however, was not his plan. 

 Weeks passed and the men became restless. 

 They frequented the saloons more generally, 

 spent their remaining money for liquor, and 

 went into debt as much as they were permitted 

 for more liquor. They became noisy and quarrel- 

 some. The few men who were opposed to the 

 strike could make no headway against public 

 opinion. These men held aloof from the saloons, 

 husbanded their money, and confined themselves 

 as much as possible to their own houses. 



