Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-08-16
STORIES OF THE STRIKE.
The Operators Still Entertaining tn
Senate Labor Committee.

The Operators Still Entertaining the
Senate Labor Committee.
NEW YORK, August 15.-The United
States Senatorial Committee on Labor and
Education continued its inquiry to-day re-
garding the telegraph strike. The exami-
nation OF John o. McLelland was re-
sumed. He submitted, in accordance
with the request of the committee.
quantity of evidence which he
had prepared in regard to irOn-clad Oaths
which the employees in various indus
tries were in the habit of administering
to their WOrkmen when they received
them into their service. The list includes
the pottery manufacturers of East Liver
pool, ONO, OF last year, which was ad-
mlnlstered in consequence of the lockout.
and which was an agreement
on the part of the workmen in their
employ not to connect themselves with
any labor organization. The witness
said that the Western Union Company
adopted similar plan, and he could pro
duce employees who could prove if
Threats had been made by many railroad
companies that they would discharge
any men whom they discovered to
be members of the Brotherhood of
Telegraphers. Among others the
Pennsylvania Railroad and the Michigan
NenIIdI COMPANY, nau employed this
means. Other instances of the means
taken by capital to enslave the WORKING
men were also given by the witness.
Among these was the contract of a lease
executed by the Hanks Nut Coal Com
pany, of Ansted, West Virginia, and its
employees for the rent of
houses upon the property of
the company, the conditions upon
which the employees of KimbaU & Co.
n o. TO N "a nt Of D.
Y, were received back into the emplOy of
the company. After some trouble in regard
to wages, circular was issued recently
by W. 5. Rogers 81 Co., shoe manu-
facturers of Cincinnati and sent
to various firms in the same bust
ness in that vicinity requesting them
not to employ certain persons discharged
by Rogers q Co., because they refused to
abandon the union, of which they were
members, and the discharge of loo en-
ployes of the firm of II. p. q s.
5. Smith, shoe manufacturers. Of BurIing-
ton, n. j., because they refused to Give IN
their union. The witness also fur
nished statistics regarding the strikes
which had occurred during recent wears
since 1870. The number of recorded
strikes which occurred in Eurone was
1892. The trade in which the most fire.
quent strikes occurred was coal miners.
Building trades came next i'm
order, The statistics showed that
during the ten years 9,027 weeks. or
l4,2l6 days had been lost by men who
engaged in them representing wages
amounting to so, ,237, 700. OF the entire
number of strikes occurring, seventy
two were known to have been won bv
wOrkmen, one hundred and eightv-nine
lost and ninety-One compromised. leaving
about two thousand unaccounted for. and
which in all probability had been lost bv
those who engaged in them. There were
no collected statistics in regard to
strikes in this country, The witness
thought that strikes were the result of an
increase of intelligence on the part of
workmen, in the effort of workmen 10 Sc
cure higher compensation for their labors.
and a desire to benefit the condition
of the labOring classes. That was the
explanation of the present telegraphers'
strike. The remedy suggested bv the
witness of securing more equitable dis
tribqtion Of wealth between the laborer