TRADE UNIONISM 
190 
Following upon the great anthracite coal strike of 
1902, which suddenly brought out the power of unionism 
to paralyze social activity, and the fact that unionism 
had grown stronger than the employers, the latter awoke 
to the need of better defensive organization and a great 
growth of radical or militant employers’ associations 
took place. The immediate aims and policies of the em 
ployers’ associations were accordingly directed to secur 
ing mutual aid in the industrial field, rigid enforcement 
of laws on unions through the courts whenever possible, 
and new legislation curbing the unions. Injunctions 
were increasingly sought and suits instituted against un 
ion workmen. As a later phase, special employers’ asso 
ciations were formed, such as the Anti-Boycott League. 
The purpose of this organization was to get the courts 
to decide that, although unions were voluntary organi 
zations, they could be sued for damages under the Sher 
man Anti-Trust law as combinations in restraint of 
trade. Success along this line was calculated to cripple 
business unionism, for business unionism succeeds in col 
lective bargaining only because it can threaten to strike 
and it can strike successfully only when there is money 
laid up to support members on strike. It all goes back 
to financial resources in the end. Unions have under 
stood all this and for this reason they have stood out 
against incorporation because they want to do things in 
their struggles which would subject them to suit and loss 
of strike funds if they were incorporated. 
At the present time the methods of the employers’ 
associations, more especially of the militant, may be 
summed up as follows: 
I. Effective counter organization; employers parallel 
the union structure, trade against trade (local, district