The Rising of the Tide: The Story of Sabinsport

by Ida M. Tarbell

The War Board treated Ralph’s ideas on munition making with almost unanimous ridicule. Indeed the only help he had at this body in defending his position came from a new friend, one who had begun occasionally to attend the sessions at the Paradise just after the war broke out. This was Otto Littman, the only son of Rupert Littman, the president of the Farmers’ Bank, one of Sabinsport’s most beloved citizens. Rupert Littman had been only ten years old when he and his father, a revolutionist of 1848, obliged to fly for his life, had settled in Sabinsport. The history of father and son was as familiar from that day to this as that of the Sabins, and Cowders and Mulligans and McCullons. Otto, however, was not so well known. He had been much away—four years in college, six in Germany studying banking and business methods, only eighteen months at home, and in these eighteen months he had not been able to adjust himself to the town. The town felt that he sneered at her a little, which was true, felt himself “above her,” which was true. Rupert Littman, dear heart, had been very much concerned that Otto did not “take” to Sabinsport, and he had confided to Dick once that he feared he had made a mistake in sending him back to Germany so long.

With the coming of the war Otto had begun to circulate more freely in Sabinsport. He had quite frankly undertaken to make the town “understand Germany,” as he called it, and as Ralph had shown from the start his belief in neutrality and now his hatred of munition-making and exporting, Otto began to talk freely. According to Otto, it was England that had forced the war. “I like your consistency,” he told Ralph. “It is the only attitude for Americans, but so few are intelligent enough to understand this case. Pure sentiment, this guff about Belgium. It is sad that people should get hurt in war. Read what the emperor says of his own grief at the disaster Belgium has brought on herself. Why should she resist? No reason save that France and England bribed her to it. They were both ready to attack Germany via Belgium. I know that. I can get you the proofs. What could Germany do when she knew that and knew Belgium had sold herself? Oh, you innocent Americans! It is always a little hurt or hunger that sets you crusading. You never look deeper. I’m glad to know a man that has more sense.”

Otto kept Ralph stirred over England’s seizures and examination of our ships and mail. “You see,” he said, “talk about freedom of the seas—there is none. She can do as she will with the shipping of the world. What can the United States do if the day comes that England wants to drive her from the sea as she has tried to drive Germany—bottle us up. I tell you, Gardner, if we don’t join Germany in her fight for liberty, England will ruin us. England is the enemy of this country as she is the enemy of Germany. She can’t tolerate greatness. She fears it. She has expected to keep Germany shut in; she can’t tolerate our having a single colony. It’s your duty to America’s future to do your utmost to explain to Sabinsport what England’s inner purpose is.

“Take what is happening to-day. She’s forcing us to unneutral acts by her arrogance. She’s preventing us from carrying out our right to sell to all nations—stopping our trade—destroying our goods. She has the power, and that’s enough for her. There is no way to meet this but an embargo on munitions. If England won’t let us sell to all lands, as is our right, we shouldn’t sell to anybody.” Ralph was entirely with him. That course would put an end to Cowder’s pollution of Sabinsport’s soul.

Now, Cowder and Mulligan were clever men. They knew, as Dick had frequently warned Ralph, that attaining your objective depends largely on your skill in maneuvering; that if you are going to hold your main line, you must sometimes give up long held positions. They had spiked small guns of Ralph’s several times in the course of their fight in handling the mines and factories of Sabinsport by withdrawals from the points which he was besieging. There was accident compensation. After the accident at the “Emma” they had won the favor of labor leaders and the liberal-minded throughout the State by working out and putting into effect a compensation plan much broader than any reform agency had yet suggested. It was a shock to Ralph to see them honored.

Then there was the case of the coöperative stores. After much grumbling, they had consented to let Jack try it out at the mines; and, having consented, they both had stirred themselves to make it a success. Mulligan particularly had spent much time among the miners, the men who had grown up with him, and who at the start no more liked the change than he did—explaining why they did it, how it was to be done, and how it might cut down their expenses if it was a success.

It put Ralph into a corner. You couldn’t abuse men for doing the things you had abused them for not doing. You could hint that they were “insincere,” but that was a little cheap—looked like sour grapes. It held up his campaign, which, for rapid promotion, had to have a villain, a steady, reliable villain that couldn’t be educated, that wouldn’t budge from his exploitation and greed. To have the villain come around to any part of your program was as bad as having a hero with feet of clay.

Cowder and Mulligan, watching the progress of the anti-munition campaign in the factory, decided something must be done. “I say,” Jake told his friend, “that we put it up to the boys. The Argus is always howling about their not having anything to say about the way the mills are run; let’s give ’em a chance. You know out at the mines that boy of mine has been having what he calls ‘Mine Meetings.’ He built a little clubhouse out there a year or so ago, and one night a week he goes out, and everybody that works in the mine can come in and they discuss things. There ain’t anything about the mine that Jack don’t let them talk about. I thought he was crazy when he started it, but ever since the accident I’ve kept my hands off, as you know. The funny part is that it seems to help things, and Jack claims he gets all sorts of good ideas. He says he is going to have these men running the mines, and I don’t know but he will. I don’t see where we will come in, but I promised to give him a free hand. I don’t see, Cowder, why we shouldn’t try something like that now. Call the boys in the wire mill together some noon. Put it up to ’em. Let ’em vote whether they want to make wire or not. I’d like to see what the Argus would say if we tried that.”

Reuben shook his head. “I’ll think about it, Jake, and we’ll talk it over again to-morrow.”

There were few people in Sabinsport who credited Reuben Cowder with having a sense of humor, but deep down in his stern, suppressed nature there was considerable, and it came to the top now. To call a shop meeting appealed to him as effective repartee. I am quite sure, however, that if he had not been convinced that the men would vote to go on with the work, he would not have risked it. What he did want to do was to prove to Ralph and the shop agitators, whoever they might be, that ninety-five per cent. of the laboring body in the wire mill would not strike against making wire to sell to the Allies. They might strike for other reasons, but not for that. He was willing to try them out.