The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-07-18
WILL WALK OUT.
The Telegraph Operators Say They
VIII Go and Stay
Tf the Company Does Not Come to
the scratch The COmpany's Views
Comments by the New
York Herald. :

NEw YoRK, July 1.-THE Herald e4i- |
torially says Of the threatened strike of the !
Brotherhood of Telegraphefs that although |
their petition is couched in respectable terms,
it leaves the impression of asking too much.
1t requests that the days work be made
eight instead of nine hours, and that nights
work seven instead of eight hours-a reduc-
ton Of one-ninth in one case and one eight in
the other At the same time, it wants all
wages increased Is per cent, irrespective of
the age, skill or position of the operator, be-
sides extra compensation for Sunday work.
The real effect of these de-
mands will be hest illustrated
by example. Day operators receive
say S75 per month, or counting nine hours to
the day and six days to the week, abont 35
cents per hour. Under the proposed rate the
monthly wages will be Ss625 The day will
be eight hours during six days in the week,
or at about As cents per hour, an actual In
crease Of more than q per cent. In regard
to the WheatStone operation an increase Of
IS per cent is demanded for them. On the
whole, It may be doubted, whether the opera
tors have resented strong case. That evils
exist cannot be questioned, but they viii not
be remedied by the course taken.
The executive committee of the Western
Union telegraph company meet, and the
petition of the operators will be brought to
their consideration. One Of the officers of the
company said that it was impossible to say
what action would be taken The general
opinion was that the demand was excessive
and unreasonable
NJ, l. ~.
Union, the American Rapid, or the Baltimore
and Ohio companies
FORGED TELEGRAMS.
Western Union officials state that the tele-
grams published in the morning papers in
this city, puIporting to come from two di-
rectors of the Western Union, and advising
compromise, were forgeries. No such dis
patches have been received
AT CHICAGO.
CHICAGO, July 1--WE will 60 ont of the
office in a body between 10 O'Clock and IL
noon," said member Of the Telegraphers'
Brotherhood employed by the Western
| Union. land wo will not go back until the
company gives us everything we ask Every
thing will be quiet and orderly We cannot
afford to act otherwise than as gentlemen
even were We disposed to do SO. There will be
! probably dozen chief operators left, and
| possibly as many more operators who can
work wires, but not over twenty five, all told
If the company claim they will have 100 men
left the assertion is wild know what am
| talking about, and say the Office will he in
| no shape to do any business San Francisco
will be entirely cut off Every man will 60
| out of Denver These cases will have coun-
! terparts throughout the entire country We
/ shall regret to paralyze business but it can
not be helped. Tho company either have no
| idea of our strength or they purposely blind
themselves to the truth The order to stop
work may reach here three hours before the
time to strike. 1t will, of course, come by
wire, and we viii see that it reaches every
part of the country"
CHICAGO, July 1.-THE operators wha
are loudest in their complaints TO outside par
ties, said an official of the Western Union
''have not been near US with request that
the new rules be explained to them, or any
thing of that kind They simply imagine
they are not treated fairly. If we made AZ
actual advance on their regular salaries they
would be satisfied; but where we shorten NJ
the hours and advance the rate of payment
for extra service, which is practically ad
vancing salaries, they fail to understand it
One of their greatest complaints, as VIC hav
seen them voiced by the press, is that three
fonrths of the men have been kept on the ex
ira roll The new rule abolished
this system entirely, Everybody wa
put on the regular rolls oI
July l. In the future it may be deemed al
visable to establish an emergency roll, hu
nothing of the kind has been done YET. An,
statement We make regarding salaries an,
hours of service can be Substantiated by iis
ures The operators would make hette
case if they would produce f-w TO max
good their assertions. They cannot deny tina
Il man will now have 10 work but four hotr
overtime in the twppty-iom hours t, Elak
IN income of SlS4 per month on a regula
salary of $50. The shortening Of hours Vii
tuaIly increases salaries about 10 per cent pc
month, and in comparison with bank clell
and other young men i'll like positions opel
ators are well paid
Have your views on the probability Of
strike changedl'
No, sir. think there will be one. Th
men will probably go out"
"All of tbem"
Not all Fully one hundred will retail
their seats With this number we shall t
able to handle business in fair shape, thong
not as rapidly as with full force Ipredit
that operators will come in every hour aftt
the strike is inaugurated"
is the rumor true that you made preparI
tions for trouble by placing two policeme
near the operating room and connecting tn;
deuartment with the fire alarm and police
partmentf
There is no truth whatever in it.
The man ager of the operating departmeT
corroborated the above figures from his pa.
rolls. There are ten men on this May rol
said he. who drew Sl25 each that mont
Their regular salaries are $50 If they woI
the same hours In July they will receive ul
der the new system Of computing salaries,
trife over S136 In the course of a year tn
makes difference to the company of S9S {
each man He can't help but make IS mo
- per month than formerly unless he lays c
and fails to work his full time. Where v
formerly paid So 50 for eight hours extra Sc
vice to s75 man we now pay e2.s for sew
hours. An $50 man receives 81 for sevt
hours, where formerly he received s. 65 fl
| eight hours work. This ratio of increase
preserved down to the cheapest man we ha'
on the force II the men would only tai
the trouble to inform themselves they wou
see where they have nothing at all to cor
plain about"
Immigration Decreasing.
- New York, July l7-The statistics Of IL
migration for .Ilne and the half year end