Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-08-05
PITTSBURG.
The Labor Situation In the Iron
City. 81
The Great Iron Strike-Snteen Mills Signed
Those Running With Non-Onion
Hands-Trouble at McKeesport-
The Chicago Convention.
LATEST NEWS FROM ALL QUARTERS.

Special Correspondence Of the Register.
PITTSBURGH, August 4.-To-day is the
first day of the tenth week of the great iron
strike, and the end rs apparently no nearer
than it was two months ago. All this time
the twenty-nine rolling mills in this ci2y
and Allegheny, employing puddlers, have
been idle. These mills employ total of
10, 735 men, and they pay every two weeks
$4,000. During the weeks the mills have
been idle the strikers have lost in wages
$2,2O5,OOO. What they have lost elsewhere
I have no means of knowing, not being
able TO ascertain the pay rolls of foreign
mills. The total lossfh wsges throughout
the country will probably reach twice that
figure, or $4,4lO,0OO.
Mills Runntsg.
Since the strike commenced, on the first
dsy of June, operations have been resumed
in sixteen mills, where the Amalgamated
Association claims the scale has been signed,
not including Cincinnati, where work has
continued on last years scale. The manu-
facturers deny that all of these mills have
signed the scale, and at the same time
claim that thirteen mills are running sue
cessfully with non-union mel. Among
the latter are the following irms Eyerson,
Maersm & Co., Scottdale; W. u. Wood q
Co., Mckeesport; Laufman 4 G., Apollo;
Park Bro. & Co., Pittsburgh NJ n.er, Met
calf & Parkin, Pittsburgh; A. Kloman,
Pittsburgh: Lake Erie Iron G)mpany,
Cleveland; Cleveland Rolling Nj, Cleye.
land; Ohio Iron Company, aesville;
Wellsville Plate and Sheet Iron c 'mpany,
Wellsville, O.; McDopal & Bro, St. Louis,
and two other concerns my infor olant pre-
ferred not to name at present. Added to
these is
National Tube Works,
which has Just resumed operations in some
of its departments, with non-uIilon men.
This is one of the largest concerns i'll the
country. The attempt to Introduce nom
union men into these works is likely TO
cause serious disturbances at Mckeesport,
at which place the works of the company
are located. Yesterday two pudding tur-
naCes were in operation, as were also four
heating furnaces, which supplied the con-
tinuOus rolls.
While the new men were on their way
to and from the mills they were followed
bv crowds of strikers, who hooted at them
and in one instance went so far as to strike
one of the men with brick. Mr.. Hender-
son, one of the new men, was accompanied
TO his work by his wife. This had no effect
on the behavior of the strikers, large
crowd of whom fell in behind the couple
and followed them to the works, enliven-
ing the march by singing
"GIOry, Glory, Hallelujah,"
and other songs. Mrs. Henderson was es-
corted to her home by the crowd, and was
grossly insulted. 1t is feared that when
more men are put to work serious riots may
take place. The authorities OF the town are
taking measures TO prevent disturbances,
and say they will do so at all hazards
Thirty extra policemen were sworn IN TINS
morning. Preparations have been made for
a large number of men to go to work as
soon as the gas furnaces are sufficiently
heated. Manager Converse says that he IS
very we'll satisfied with the quality OF iron
turned out by the non-union men, and that
he entertains no doubt OF the sue
cess of the experiment. The men
he proposes to put to work have
have been brought from the East and are
now quartering in this city. They Will be
taken to MckeeSpOrt as soon as the mills
are ready for them. Some Will he put TO
work this afternoon. Mr.. Converse states
that no violent demonstrations will have
any effect upon the determination OF the
Company to operate their work lndepen-
UenL Ol lut %ANSNN'NN'O
Members of the association deprecate the
disturbances ut MckeeSport,and claim that
none of their number have engaged in
them. They offer to assist the special police
in maintaining order.
Thomas A. Armstrong
claims to have received telegram from
Chicago to the effect that the convention
had endorsed the strike. Considerable
doubt exists as to the authenticity OF the
telegram. 1t states that the Endorsement
was made unanimously, when 1t IS wei
known that some of the delegates wou ID
not vote in that way. Secretary weeks,
of the Manufacturers Association, says
| that the action OF the Chicago convention,
unless it revokes the demands MADE. can
| have but little effect upon the sltuatlon
| He believes the manufacturers Will re-
main firm all along the line, and that non,
union men will be introduced wherever II
becomes desirable to start the mills again
| Manufacturers seem to think that non
| union men can be obtained without muci
trouble.
| The Leading Men
| of the Amalgamated Association are at the
| Chicago convention, and placard announc
| ing. 'Gone to Chicago" hangs upon The
! np,,.- door of the Association headquarters
Your correspondent encountered very IN
! telIigent workingman lust iii front OF tnt
| Association headquarters, and engage I'LL
| in conversation. He used the usual argu
ments to show the business of the cause oi
the strikers and seemed to think the result
would he a victory forthem. He closed his
| remarks about as follows:
THE Chicago endorsement OF the strike
settles the fact that We are TO hold out in
| definitely. Assessments are coming IN
regularly, and we can eBsily do this. Every
| day the Pittsburgh mills remain idle theiI
| trade is going away. The owners are losing
ten dollars to our one. Then the incentive
we have to hold out is too powerful to lei
US think of failing. Ii we weaken now We
cut our own throats. The Amalgamated
! Association would go TO pieces and
| il would never recover from
| the blow. You may be sure that If they
once get us down We should feel 1t. We
are insuch position that it is fight or die
as an association, and every man OF US fully
realizes this. 1t is fight"
What the workmen Loose.
A gentleman with whom was convers
ing few days since, went into figures t.
show that the workmen were the heaviest
losers by the strike. He argued that the
manufacturers did not care about running
now at any rate, hence they are losing
| nOtnlng. As SOON aS tneg see tuelE way
clear, no sticking for principle will keep
them from signing any scale. His argu
ment to show the loss of the strikers was
about as follows: Take a mill running out
100 tons of iron a week. At $3.50 pei
ton, the price paid last year, the
wages of the puddlers would amount
| to $3.50 Der week. The strike has
| now lasted nine weeks which would entail
a loss on the puddlers of this mill of 81, $50.
Now, the puddlers demand an advance oi
so cents per ton. At this advance, to make
up loss of 1850, Just twice that many
| tons must be turned out or $500. The
capacity OF the mill is 100 tons per week,
and to make $500 tons will take it 80 weeks,
within three weeks of two years, and count
ing the holidays upon which the mills will
| be closed will bring the time up to two full
wears. Then there will be too long shut
downs, for repairs, or on account of the
heat, so that it will take over two years
work for the puddler to make at the ad.
vance what he has now lost by the
strike, and every week the strike
lasts adds eleven weeks to the
l. l.