Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-08-16
OUR NEW YORK LETTER.
The True Inwardness OF the Strik e--The
Trouble not Yet Over-The Efect OF the
strike upon business Labor Troubles In the
City-The Liquor Dealers - Crime = The
Fashions

New York, August IL, 1877.
| The True Inwardness OF the
Strike.
/ went up to Ludlow Street Jail, last week
to see Donahue, the leader of the strikers on
the Erie road. He is a man of considerable
intelligence, and was fitted by nature for q
leader. He is not one of the kind who want
their employers to divide with them, but he
does insist that business shall be so adjusted
that The operative car live in somethin like
comfort. Donuhue says that the average
that the men make is from $50 to $50 pei
month, and that the cost of living in Hor,
nelsville is higher than in New York. For
instance, flour is from 5000 to Sill; butter
80 cents; beef, 2S cents; brown sugar, IL
cents, coffee, 3S and 40 cents, and any de-
cent tea from 80 cents to Sl.25 pound
Rents are terribly high there. $50 a month
is extorted for common frame houses or from
eight to ten small rooms. Those who, when
wages were better, had purchased property,
were losing it by the reduction; and what
ground them more, the wages had been screw
ed down to such point that workman under
the best circumstances were debarred from
everything of social nature. He could not
take newspapers or buy book, he could not
pay dues to lodge or church, or SO dress
his wife and children that they could attend
church or anything else improving. The
| company had even gone so far as to charge
the employees with rent for the waste land
beside the track which was formerly allowed
them as a perquiste. Donahue admits that
the strike was failure. but SAYS that some
| good will grow out of it.
| The Trouble is not Yet Over,
| For there can be no doubt that the workings
men are suffering, and that the companies
have not dealt with the question in a liberal
| spirit 1t is true that the roads are making
nothing, and that the stock -holders are miss.
| ing their regular dividends, but that it is so
is the fault of the management If they
would keep up freights to paying figure in
stead of cutting each others threats, and
more especially if they would drop all nom
| sense in style, cut down the salaries of their
| officers and inaugurate system of economy
in the management, there could be enough
of a saving to make up for the loss by reason
of hard times The workingman whose wages
were $50 month, doesn't like to be cut
down to $50 when the higher grade of offci-
ais are voting themselves their old salaries.
1t is very bad economy to squeeze the great
mass of men who were getting little enough
| before.
| The Effect of the Strike Upon
| Business
| was terrible There was an enormous de-
| struction of goods by the iufuritated mass,
which made interruption in trade, and i'm
| stances of severe loss are coming to light
| everywhere. One western brewer has been
three years Introducing his beer into New
| York, Boston, Philadelphia and Batimote;
he had spent hundreds of thousands of dol-
lars to create his trade and had 1t working
| smoothly. His shipments cought in the
jam at Buffalo and Pittsburgh some ears re.
manning week In the meantime, his stock
| being exhausted other brewers stepped in
| and now he has his work all 10 do over again
| or abandon it. There were thousands of
| car loads of perishable goods allowed to stand
1 for ten days, and the goods that were not per-
| ishable were so plundered as to be almost a
| total loss. The action of the companies in
cutting down wages and the method of the
| strikers in seeking redress has cost the coun-
| try millions upon millions OF dollars. The di-
rect loss can be ascertained--the indirect
will never be Known.
| In The City
| the labor troubles are not settled, and trouble
| is certain to come. The busy season is half
| over, and employment has been so scarce and
| wages so low that the workingmen have not a
dollar ahead for the coming winter, and they
are organizing for some purpose. The coal
lockers have already struck, and are making
| JTUuDIS. me WIVES VI bltC sLIlhttS diC hiVlI
bitter than their husbands; and are more de-
| termined to hold out If man shows any
| symptoms of yielding, the women assault him
| and 40 they can't strike woman. they are at
| a sad disadvantage The feeling is extend.
| ing among all classes of working-men, and
| there is no doubt but there will be wild work
| here within the month The railroad engin-
GERS are doing everything in their power to
swell the food, and the Communists are busy
as bees. Look out for some ugly work very
/ soon.
| The Lilo Dealers
are having trouble The enforcement of the
excise law has been put in the hands of the
captains of police, and they are going for the
rum<mills severely. Last week over two huns
dred arrests were made, and there was trouble.
| Such a thing had never been done before. The
shops were entered, and if the proprietor did
| not have a license he was summarily arrested,
no matter what time of the afternoon it was.
Very many were taken in when it was too
| late to procure bail, and had to anguish all
/ night in the tombs. The movement is being
made at the instance Of the temperance ALI
ance, the object being to so harass and worry
the liquor>dealers as to drive out all but the
strongest, and to make their continuance a
very expensive affair to them. The move
ment thus far has been directed against the
bucket-shops, to make the sale of liquor tc
the poor unpleasant. The best men in the
city are behind it, and there has been feel
ing created that makes it formidable. The
work is going right along, with cords o.
money and any amount of influence behind
it. The societies are all very active, and the
temperance people are in earnest.
| Crime
has been running rampant during the las
month. Three men have killed their wives
two because they did not like them, and on,
because he desired to marry rich woman
determined, apparently, to make money il
some way. Bar-room fights common
as mosquitoes, and to diversity the ghastl!
panorama, three wives have killed their hus
bands There have been two cases of mel
killing women because they would not MARI,
them and dozen or two for no cause what
ever. One man, German, killed his wife
| three children and himself, because he haC
been out of work two months, and had come
to the end of his resources, aud was too
proud to see his children begging Ont
Frenchman was nearly at the end of hi
, string financially, in March, and determined
to commit suicide. He took stock of wha
= he had, and calculated how long it would
!. support him. lie paid his board to Angus
9Th, that being all he had, and on the eve
ming of that day blew his branes out. III
. was French to the last. He left note to hi
landlord, saying that he did it to avoid trouble
He preferred death to running up board- bill
which he had no means of paying TIL,
clearinghouse keepers of New York wisl
there were more like him. The oxcessiv,
heat has something to do with this epidemic o
crime, but the hard times more. A man will
family, who can get nothing to do, has yer.
little to live for.
. Fashions.
Nothing is seen on the streets bus broad
brimmed hats Of rough straw faced with bacl
velvet, turned up on one side, with plain out
side trimming of band and plume. Thu
dresses seen are the plainest and thnnest WOO
materials, sky-blue for young ladies, the light
est shadowy gray for quieter ones, and thu
, inevitable black grenadinc for elderly ladies
| robes made airy with thin pleating and quill
. ings of French lace. Insertions Of embroidere.
grenadine also come to suit the breton fancy
This, by the way, Is having the last of its run
, and handsome suits embroidered in white oil
blue CLOTH which in the spring brought $50
are now marked SIS. Poonaises will b,
more worn in the fall than they are jus