, 1879-03-02
THE PRINTER5.

! On renssembling after supper, Mr.. Streetel
was selected to present the case Of the printers
He stated that the wages paid that class o1
| workers we're 60 per cent less than they were
| three years ago, while large numbers couldn',
| get work even at that.
! Mr.. a. B. Adair followed on the same subject,
| giving the Committee some general information
| which they had not previously possessed. He did
not think the Legislature ought to busy itself in
passing laws to legislate printers out Of work,
and had something to say about the employers
picking up apprentices, md educating and keep
ing them to the prejudice of the lourneymau.
As to Asst.-Supt Di1on's statcmelt that the
militia was absolutely needed to keep down the
armed organizations here, he knew it to be
false, as did Mr. Dixon himself when be made
1t, and be would even go further, and state that
he believed Dixon was lor large appropriation
for the police force, and at the same time max
ing, or trying to make, little political capital
to elevate him to the position Of Chief Of
Police under the incoming administration.
As to the reduction OF wages to printers, A1r.
Adair thought it due to the hard times, which
had their effect upon the commercial and other
classes and, in turn, upon the proprietors OF the
newspapers themselves.
AR. Streetcr arose to contradict the last state
ment, and sailed into the newspapers -indiscrim-
inately, charging tue alleged fallingof Ia crcu-:
lation, aud, rs consequence, the reduction in
wages, to the alleged misrepresentation by
those papers Of the working classes. Mr..
Strceter "sticks type,'' it is understood, on the
Ns.rs.] He had something to say also about
police attacks on peaceable meetings of work
ngmen, with particular reference to the West
Twelfth Street 1uruer-Hall meeting in the SUM-
mer Of 1877, as did also alr. Stah, who was Sec
rotary of that meeting, and who was enabled to
give more facts in regard to 1t.
MIR. Truesdell remarked that the workingmen
ought to have gone to the Grand Jury with
their complaints
Mr., stah1, NJ. Morgan, and Mr. streeter ex-
planned that this was considered irnrracticab1e.
The identity Of the policemen was something
difficult TO get at, the apparent object OF the
city being to change the men around SO as to
prevent their subsequent identification. Ac-
eording to Mr. Morgan, the attempt to take the
thing before the Grand jury wouldn't have
done anr good, as no one but petty offenders
were ever indicted aud punished.
Mr.. Ehmann, an intelligent young man be-
longing to
THE SILVER GILDERs' UNION,
spoke Of the ul-ycutilated rooms in which the
labor, and of the child-larbor in the
business. Children OF 10 years OF .ase
were cmployed-childrcn so small that the c11-
ploycrs bad to nse raised benches for their az
commodation ut the tables, where, instead OF
looking down at their work, they looked up.
craving for drink, and 1t was impracticable to
opep the windows and let in the air because that
would blow the silver all over the shop. The
we're also opposed to the system
Of conrict LABOR not because it atlects their own
trade in this State. but the trades generally:
Wages were commonly s1.5o day, or 81 aweek,
for men, but the cmployn ent OF the boys cut them
out OF work four months in the year. These boys