League of Friendship, Mechanical Order of the Sun

Its object was "to advance and foster the interests of its members by cooperating in effort and financial assistance whenever called upon to serve a worthy and approved cause."

[1] In the 1860s, secret associations, with signs and passwords, were established, the largest in point of numbers being the Supreme Mechanical Order of the Sun.

[3] The object of the League was to advance and foster the interests of its members by cooperating in effort and financial assistance whenever called upon to serve a worthy and approved cause.

It was an incipient effort striving in the direction of that which later was represented in the labor unions of the U.S.[3] The Mechanical Order of the Sun was an organization with an extensive ritual, having numerous degrees.

[2] Soon, however, suspicion was aroused as to the integrity of the governing body and especially of the officers that were conducting the affairs of the Grand Council, as it was called.

This dissatisfaction culminated when the Meadville League was called upon to pay a tax to the Grand Council which they apparently considered an unwarranted demand.

Rightly or wrongly, he had come to the conclusion that the Mechanical Order of the Sun was a fraudulent concern, the purpose of which was to exploit workingmen.

[3] The committee of seven members of the Lodge, consisted of J. J. Upchurch as chairman, W. W. Walker, J. R. Umberger, M. H. McNair, Henry Deross, A. Klock, and J. R.

Extract of letter of J. J. Upchurch to J. M. McNair, Meadville, Pennsylvania, February 3, 1873:—[3] "Below I give you a few points that probably you are unacquainted with that may be of use to you in writing up the history of the Order.

The circumstances which first led me to study the wants of the working people and the best way of arriving at them were as follows: In the year of 1864 I held the office of Master Mechanic of the Mine Hill and Schuylkill Haven R. R. In the month of June of that year the crews of engineers on the road demanded an advance of fifty cents per day of wages.

When I made the proposition, it was received with derision; at the same time I was told that their union had directed them to demand an advance of fifty cents and they would not go to work without it.

My mind seemed to be drawn towards the introduction of a plan whereby the necessity of all strikes might be obviated and all differences be settled by the more satisfactory method of compromise.