Morning journal and courier., 1883-07-20
News by Telegraph FROM ALL QUARTERS.
 AT A GIVEN SIGNAL The Telegraph Operators
 Close Their Keys
 AND co OUT ON STRIKE After A Last Appeal To The
 Company. THE LINEMEN WITH THE STRIKERS, A GhcerIess Outlook for the
 Company.
THE STRIKE BEGUN.

Lady Operators and Linemen in the
 Strfke-But Few Left to Work the Of
 1ces--A DtscOuraging Prospect for the
 ComPany-BOth Sides Firm and Bound
 to Sttek-The Situation at New York
 and at Other Points.
 NEW YORK, July 19.-At 12 o'clock this morning, Washington time, or eleven min utes past the hour in this city, the 473 men and women employed by the Western Union Telegraph company were at work at their tables in the operating room Suddenly someone blew a shrill whistle. No one seems to know definitely who it was that gave the signal but at once every thing was excite ment. few of the men kept at work, but nearly everybody in the room rose at once from the table in front of which they were seated, and shut of tho key of the instru- ment at which they had been working. There was little boisterous conduct the men quietly putting on their coats and hats, and at sec- ond signal nearly every man in the room marched toward tho door. The men filed down the steep stairway to the fifth story of the building where they halted for few minutes. and when a crowd of two or three hundred operators had gathered there three cheers were given for the Brotherhood of Photographers, and the men clapped their hands and waved their hats, shouting in answer to question, Do you mean to stick ?' "We do, in chorus. At the s s.me time the men employed in the battery room, below the operating room, numbering about dozen men, quit work and joined with the crowd of operators, who marched down the stairway to the street. About dozen of the women operators employed in the operating room, including all of those who have been working the Wheatstone instruments, quit work and joined the other members of the brotherhood. That this action on the part of the operators was expected by the officers of the Western Union company is proved by the fact that early this morning they sent word to the Twenty-seventh Precinct police station, in Church street, asking for police protection. Officers Johnson and Mcdonald were detailed by Captain Berghold, and were stationed at the door of the operating room, but there was no call for their services, as all those who struck work at once left the room, not stopping to try to induce any of those who remained at work to join their ranks. Every one of the Wheatstone operators quit work, and the full force of linemen employed by the company also left the building at the same time. Four of the chiefs employed in the operating room left their desks and joined the ranks of the dissatisfied workmen. Of the 160 women employed in the room only 37 remained at work. A careful canvass was made by one of the operators who quit work, but still remained in the room, and his esti- mate was that there were twenty five chiefs of departments thirty-hve women and about twenty-one men operators still at work. One spectator who counted the operators as they filed out of the room said that he counted 375 men and women.
 At half past nine this morning 8 last ap- peal was sent to General Eckert asking re- dress of the grievances. It was signed by John Campbell, district master workman. No answer was returned by General EckeIt. The subcommittee of three appointed yes terday by the executive committee of the Western Union company met at Il o'clock o-day, EX- Governor Cornell, John T. Terry, J. W. Clendenin and Jay Gould, the latter, however, not being member of the commit tee, being present. Nothing was done except to issue direction to all the heads of depart ments and chiefs in the employ of the com pany to notify the operators under their charge to present their grievances, if they | had any, to the committee, and that such action would be taken as might be thought 1 proper.
 | 4u0 SLElA1uR OpSEdtOEB Qlu AOG ESAuhh4 III the building for many minutes, but marched down the stairways, cheering at each land | ing, and out through the main entrance to Broadway. Here large crowd of specta- | tors blocked the sidewalk on both sides of | the street. The men were cheered as they marched out and after halting for a minute or two on the sidewalk to give parting cheer, the crowd proceeded in body to the Elevated railroad, where trains were taken for Caledonia Hall, at Eighth av- enue on Thirteenth street, where a secret meeting was held. For an hour or more 0 crowd of people hung around the Western Union building, but number of police ofh- cers were sent to the spot and kept the crowd moving. There was no disorder, and the few operators, linemen and battery men who remained in the neighborhood dis cussed the situation quietly among themselves and in reply to questions said that there was nothing more for the men to do that the telegraph companies had now to take some action.
 At No. 1s7 Broadway Manager May, Of the American Rapid Telegraph company, said 'Ali the Morse operators employed by this company in this building, numbering about thirty men, quit woTk-at noon. -. We are still operating our 1ines to Boston by tho automatic system, and as soon as we can bring our scattered forces together we will conduct our business by tho same systom with other points. cannot say what will be done and have no opinion to express"
 At the down town office of tho Baltimore and Ohio Telegraph company Mir Price the manage of the msa.@.dS Ios re- Looking through the half-opened doc the reporter saw six or eight girls at wor
 From another source the reporter lear that the company employed about thirt1 9 : orators, about twenty of whom quit wo when the signal was given at moo messages were refused by the clerk9 .. { receiving window of this office, apf aTI smaller offices and branch offices ,h.o,,nho the city were closed to business
 At the Produce Exchange bus1 nass .o,,a a standstill immediately after she teleerar Hennessey said that busines z stdn-,ad eIn1I arrived.
 The Western Union r telegraph company u alteLnooh sens ous Il : following order to [ country
 A sGpsrintsHdents VI SG frARue' 0. A. Tinker gene ,o1I Piease instruc' u officers by telegraph as
 Until otherwissk instructed all officers will be ca sender e n tSst ths not lay and to may ine sn route S necssasry so oompl sages taken ion to point of addres'; A All s such n sa%Pea mp tSe faoe Of the same over the
 mailing sE, oeS.t the Ss.T WoTdS; Accepted subject
 super1 ntendents Will cause to be printed g ] the principal O1nCee or G0e1r respect usIf!c I ts a placard bearing the following inscr l NC stice-Messages taken to-day subject to delay
 THos I. EokERT. Acting President R Some desperate ruses were resorted to u
 afternoon by the Western Union officials E keep up a show of continuing business vii out serious embarrassment The bHildi
 swarmed with reporters all anxious to $ n for themselves the effect of the stril They were not, however, admitted to Us operating room until that was prepared or their reception and deception. Meantil ... General Eckert, Jay Gould, Governor O. ire sse nell and other dignitaries hunted on, every available clerk in the exet = tive offices and sent an ord 'est to the American District company on m- ground floor to send all their large sized n ter senger boys up stairs. When the lads or all been assembled in the operating roo
 they were told to take of their hats a
 coats, sit down at the tables and mak ; noise with the keys They did so, and
 reporters were admitted. tThere, gent