Simultaneously with the destruction of the Grangers came the revolt of the coal miners. It was the expiring effort of organized labor.
- Three-quarters of a million of miners went out on strike.
- But they were too widely scattered over the country to advantage from their own strength.
- They were segregated in their own districts and beaten into submission.
This was the first great slave-drive. Pocock89 won his spurs as a slave-driver and earned the undying hatred of the proletariat.
Countless attempts were made upon his life, but he seemed to bear a charmed existence.
It was he who was responsible for the introduction of the Russian passport system among the miners, and the denial of their right of removal from one part of the country to another.
Entre tanto, los socialistas se mantuvieron firmes. Mientras los Grangers expiraban entre fuego y sangre, y el trabajo organizado era desarticulado, los socialistas guardaron silencio y perfeccionaron su organización secreta.
En vano nos suplicaron los Grangers. Sostuvimos con razón que cualquier revuelta por nuestra parte equivalía virtualmente al suicidio de toda la Revolución.
El Talón de Hierro, al principio dubitativo ante la perspectiva de enfrentarse a todo el proletariado a la vez, había encontrado la tarea más fácil de lo esperado y no habría pedido nada mejor que un levantamiento de nuestra parte. Pero evitamos el conflicto, a pesar de que los agentes provocadores plagaban nuestras filas.