In all the land there is no law by which any one is bound to
specifically perform the service specified in any agreement or
contract. Indeed, in any agreement or contract between work-
men and employers, were the specific terms of the agreement or
contract enforceable by law, men would, by the force of law,
be compelled to perform work which they might find onerous,
unjust, and unfair, and that moment involuntary servitude, a
form of slavery, would be established. In no agreement or con-
tract entered into between two persons in America has any one
ever been required specifically to carry out its terms. The
alternative has always been held, that unless a party to the
contract fulfills the specific terms of the contract he may be called
upon to respond in damages. The mere fact that workmen may
not be in a position to respond in damages is no reason why they
can be bound by the agreement or contract specifically to per-
form the services stipulated. — American Federationist, August,
1Q12.
