Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1868-06-02
The NATIONAL TYPOGRAPHICAL
UNION.

ton Of Officers was continued, and resulted as
. follows: President Robert McKsehnie, of New
York Union, No. 8; First Vice Presi dent, Ger
ard Stiih, Of New Orleans Union, No. II; Sec
Chicago Union, No. 10; Secretary and Trras-
urer, John Collins, Cincinnati Union, No. .;
Core. spending Secretary, VIM. Turner, OF
Philadelphia Union, No. 2.
The address Of the retiring president John
H Ooerly, Esq, to which reference was made
IN our paper yesterday, was a very long doc
uInent, and contains some matters Of general
Under the head OF " Hsw can the Non MON
Printers be Organized r. he SAID Prom da IA
as reliable as any can command, am led to
me belief that not half the journey men print
ers in the United States and the Cinadas are
members OF the Union. This evil is becoming
less formidable as time goes by, and / am con i
noen. mar some plan may be devised by which
me great majority of non-u union printers within
our jurisdiction will give in faithful adherence
20 The Union. i am the more confident in this
belief, since have learned the important fact
mat during the two years of my presidency, in
which the affairs of the office of secretary and
treasurer were superintended with what i feel
compelled to call remarkable energy and dis.
cretion by Mr.. Troup, the number on the roll
of our membership has been doubled, and we
can now show a list of over seven thousand
names. This work has, however, been done
more imperfectly than 1t should have been, the
officers OF this Union not having the benefit Of
the advice Of the national body on the subject.
Without suggesting plan Of organization, I
therefore call this subject to your attention
While II is our duty to endeavOr in every DOS
sible way to secure TO our organization the
membership OF men who have never belonged
10 II, but have never worked under il, 1 believe
we should also. at all times, endeavor to re.
claim those printers who have In a moment of
impulse or an hour when want compelled the
surrender of their honor been unf.Ithful to
their union obligations; and to this end recon-.
mend the proclamation by this body of a gen.
eraI amnesty, to be granted upon such condition
as the mon may deem necessary.
He proposed an amendment of section l.
General Laws, which prohibits a Union from
admitting TO mem oership an expelled member,
without first obtaining the consent Of the
Union from which he was expelled. Occasion.
ally this provision is very embarrassing to
Unions engaged in conflict with what our
vernac ular calls .srats" Sometimes unfsithful
printers would willingly return to the Union
and leave the employers, whose tools they are:
and very FREQ uently subordinate Unions would
accept them II II were not for this section of
the General Laws. i know that ordinarily il
Is not unjust to require repentant expelled
man to await the action of the Union that
expelled him; but there times when the
very existence of a subordinate may depend
upon prompt action in a matter of this kind
During the past year Memphis Union, in self
defense, In the face of section of the General
Law, was compelled 10 whitewash eleven rats:
and Newly DIRK Union during the conflict with
the World newspaper was compelled to do as
Memphis did. and receive into fellows hip an
expelled memb Der of the PHILADELPHIA Uaion
While, therefore, L DO not advise the repeal of
this provision OF section I, i recommend that il
be qualified so that subordinate Unions, In
certain sxigeneies, may admit to membership
the expelled members of other Unions without
first Obtaining consent.
In reference to strikes he said: During the
past year printers strikes have occurred IN
Detroit, Nashville, Galveston, Omaha, Selma
and Brooklyn. and difficulties" in New York.
Memphis. Pittsburg. and other places. All the
strikes Were disasters; and the s.diffcu
except the one in Memphis, were. to the Unions
engaged in them. expensive luxurIes. The
failure OF the strikes can be traced to q lack of
funds 10 sustain them. Brooklyn Union, for
instance, while New York could give il money,
sustained itself until ii obtained funds from
Albany and Montreal. Its appeal for aid to
Philadelphia, its neighbor, resulted IN refusal
a law Of that Union requiring a unanimous
vote TO appropriate money. which the friends
OF fellowship in the craft could not obtain
Eight weeks after the downfall of the BROOKLYN
Union, Cincinnati and New Orleans answered
the call for aid by sending money, which was
refunded Not another of the subordinates
sent cent. This .plain. unvarnished tale''
proves 10 my mind conclusively that the estab-
llshment OF a national fund as an absolute
necessity; and the fact that Memphis Union
ton without money does does not weaken the
conviction. Memphis Union made muscle
answer all purposes of money; but muscle is
not as potent as legal tender outside of the
With reference to the introduction of print
ing into States Prisons" he said an attempt to
introduce the ''art preventative of all arts
into the prisons OF New York STATE, was
brought to the notice of the subordinate unions
by circular issued by the Albany Typo
graphical Union, March l., l-6s, which stated
"that they had learned that o contract for the
la Dor Of seventy five convicts TO be applied TO
the purposes of printing and stereotyping, was
then pending, and that 1t had already been
awarded by the prison inspectors, but was not
finally consummated. and unless prevented by
an act of the Legislature, would go into effect
on the first Of April" On receipt of this circu-
far and remonstrance, Mr.. Troup, the Secretary
and Treas urer, addressed a communication to
the subordinate unions in New York State re-
questipg them 10 leave nothing undone to have
the contract set aside. and suggesting that the
senators and Assemolymen be invoked TO put
a stop to the matter by Legislative enactment
1 his remonstrance was also forwarded to the
10 labor organizations of the State. and 3D0n
signatures were obtained and presented to the
Legislature. After Just delay and considerable
work bill was prepared and preeented to the
bly, calling for the abrogation of the con-
tract which passed that body by a vote Of IS to
~, and also. In an amended form.. passed the
Senate: when upon going back TO the Assembly.
the amendment was Concurred In, and the bill
received the signature Of the Governor.
Statements having been made throughout the
press that seventy printers were confined in the
prisons, Mr.. Troup visited Sing Sing prison To
ascertain the facts in the case. After doing So
he published q letter in the ALBANY Argns stat.
ing tnat at that time MAY 81 there Were twenty
eight men assigned on the contract, only three
OF whom were printers, and that there Were not
half dozen practical printers in the whole
PRISON. OF the y employed in the prison print.
ing once, under the name OF printers are in.
Guided newsboys, folders, sweepers scout and
in tact. some who have never seen a printing
ONCE One man could not read, and another
working on English work. could not sneak ths
nrst word OF the language. About half the men
in the ONCE as printers were learning to read
and Write when Mr.. Troup visited the prison.
At the next meeting of the prison inspectors
sH order will be ued for the removal of ths
printing material in the prison.
SECOND DAY.
The Convention reassembled this morning AT
nine O'Clock, AZ Odd Fellows Hail. Robert
Nc kec hnle, the President in the chair
sNr. Cayis, from the Committee on Creden.
nails. presented those from Unions No a. of
allentown, Pa, Carl Benno, delegate, and lO7,
d HUDSON, N. j., VIM. b. Cunning, delegate:
and the desegates were admitted 70 seats
The Chair announced the following standing
Committees;
On APpeaIs-G, A. Treyer. Milwaukee: r. :.
Providence; H. 1. Hampton, Phila-
ielphia: j. :. ODonohoe, New York: W.
Mclean, Mobile; j. H. Hoyt, Norwich: H. j.
Savannah: q. Within gton Alex.
lndria; 7. +. Maher, Columb ia, Washington,
ID. C.; w. Z. Bloor. Columbus.
On Findnce-A. 7. Cavis, Washington, d. C.:
.. Vaughn. Cincinnati; T.. T.. White, Albany:
J. ID kennard, Harrisburg; w. Albert Detroit;
Daniel 7. Reagan, Dubuque; r. NugenL st.
Joseph; John w. Dickinson, Leayen worth; r.
w. Goodenough, Hartford; ]. H. Black Rolla:
De Witt T.. Hotehkiss, Toledo.
On Returns.-John King, Louisville; Column
bus Huzza, Baltimore; Il. =. White, Jackson;
J.. X. Fields, Columbia: T.. A. Wilcox, Proyi-
fence; w. Roland, Buffalo: O. ]. Newton, st.
Louis A. Wayt Pittsburg; H. Raynor, Detroit: