The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1875-06-12
THE COAL HEAvERs' STRIKE.

were abused IN ann ensured terms. The
entire article WAS based upon falshoods
and fragrant misrepr presentations, which will
bear but one Interpretation, and that is
settled purpose on the part Of the Tribune
70 crush the laborer and strengthen the
monopolists whenever an opportunity is
afforded to do. The Tribune, when
speaking Of the nature Of the work, says
The labor consists Of unloading yes
sci of coal The force Is divided into
shovelers, wheelers, and bumpers. The
shovclers g INTO the hold and nil the
buckets these buckets are drawn al, by
se-power and are dumped into wheel
barrows the wheelers then wheel the coal
To the place of deposit. The prices de
manded and exacted last year and the year
before were shoyelers, IA cents per ton /;
wheelers, % cents an hour; dumping 80
cents an hour Hosting, that is a horse
and driver, about - per day. Fifty tons
a day, or ten hours work, constitute an
average days work These rates. there
tore, amounted to shuvelers. - per day
~heelers, - per day bumpers, 50 The
Prices offered and nos paid by MIR Law
one Of the principal dealers, is shovelers,
about 10 cents per ton wheelers, 30 cents
an hour bumpers, 30 cents an hour
hosting, the same, an average of 50 per
day. II those employed by the hour work
longer, they get proportlunate pay. At
tins price there are several thousand IN
employed men who will gladly accept the
work
Now II matters not, whether the wages
earned by shovelers art seven dollars or
seventy dollars a day The fact to be
considered is that these men % into the
hold uf vessel where there is 10 yentila-
tion whatever, under burning deck that
would broli a heefstake IN hive minutes. and
handle coal at fifteen cents a tou. In
other words, they 40 kind Of labor that
not one man IN ten thousand is capable of
enduring. To contend. then, that they
shall be paid the same as ordinary laborers
is virtually t. contend that Matt Carpen-
ter ought 10 be coutented with the fees of
an average police-court shyster. No man
of common sense will insist that fifteen
cents a ton Is an eNturtionate price for
handling cal. even ia the open air, much
less III the dark hold Of vessel Besides,
the work must be done rapidly One
bucket must be filled while another is he
lng emptied If this labor does not re
Qulre much skill, it requires a tremendous
amount of Endurance, and an unusual de-
veIopmcnt If muscle
The facts N regard to the earnings oi
the men, however, are as follows
For shoveiIng coal the average wages
paid are ID cents per ton, ll5 tons being
considered fair days work. This amounts
to 81. %. which has to be divided among
a gang If three men. making - - Il
each shovel. For dumping coal they get
II cents per ton. and for wheeling coal II
cents for every hour actually engaged
They receive no payment whatever fol
erecting ~ tearing down Scatfolding, runs
etc., ana thu time lost on each vessel varie,
! from ten to fifteen hours, for which NJ
rrcompense Is received Taking into con
sideration then that they are not empluye,
more than seventy eight days per season
lost time, Sundays, and holidays being de
/ Quoted, we ind the average wages durin.
the working season to be as follows: Shov
elers, $3.50; wheelers, $500 and Goa
bumpers, 1928. Thus II will be seen tina
the shoyelers' wages allows him 81 N tn
bumper, 81 .0S, and the wheeler, ~ cent
Per day tn year round to support a fauul
ou.
Here is sample Of the barefscyd yin
II the Titb,ns II says
= A reason gwen for the unusual wage
paid last year is. that the rates Of freigh
were 50 nearly nominal that the contract
allowed but comparatively few hours il
! which the conslgnee was To unload tn
vessel, heavy charge being made III tn
way Of demurrage for any delay, As
consequence. the vessel had to he uuloade,
at whatever cost, and the coal-heavers ha,
a harvest II is not claimed that coal
| heaylng is any more eXhausting or requir
ing more skill than hod-carrying. or III
excavation and wheeling Of blue clay an,
mud from foundations, and yet the pric
demanded by the Union exceeds that pai,
for any kind IF skilled labor.
Not only last season, but every seasol
the freight contracts require that vessel
shall be unloaded with as much dispatcl
as possible, although the vessel owner
were more anxious than usual last year t,
make quick trips. 1t is admitted by every
body except natural born fools, if the,
know anything about labor, thai coal
heaving Is much more laborious and ex
hausting than hod-carrying, or any othe
kind Of labor, with but very few excep
tons. These men are, therefore, entitled
to more pay, as they do more work. Tn,
unfalrness Of the Tribune is apparent wher
we consider that hod-carriers and mud
wheelers do not work by the load or ton,
but by the day, and can, therefore, moye
leisurley, while the coal HEAVIER must make
rapid movements. 1t is known by all en-
gineers that the increase Of speed requires
an increase Of power in arithmatical pro-
gresslon. The coal HEAVIER, therefore, ex-
ponds at least four times the amount of
vital force that the hod carrier does, and
should be paid accordingly. The Tribune
falsitier, however, although lie pretends to
be philosopher, evidently considers it
beneath his dignity to consider such vul-
gar subject as the expenditure Of vital
force Of the coal-heavers, although he
might figure week to ascertain the exact
capacity Of a steam engine Muscle is
cheap, but steam engines are expensive.
This is sufficient to make a vast difference
i'll the falsifier's philosophical investiga-