National Republican., 1883-04-10
LIFE In LYNOHBURG.
The Liveliest Tobacco Manufacturing Town in
the Old Dominion.
Tho Strike OF the Cigarette Rollers and
It's Erect on Business.
Sneoinl Letker.

Special Letter.
LYEcHBuRe, VA, April 9.-Lynchburg is
live city. Like Richmond, IL claims to DO
city of hills, and, in fact, has better claims
to the title. 1t is in the center Of large to-
bacco and grain growing country. There is
more enterprise and energy displayed here
than in any other part Of tho Old Dominion.
The railway facilities are ample. The Rich
mond and Allegheny railway, built on the
ruins of the old James River and Kanawha
canal, connect IL with the capital; by the
Virginia Midland It is connected with Wash
ington, Baltimore, and the great north and
west. At Burkeville trains on the Norfolk
and Western strike the great Richmond
and Danville system-one of the long
est and best managed routes in the
country. Travel over either of these
routes is expeditions and pleasant.
The Virginia Midland is q standing monu-
ment to the enterprise and ability of Hon.
John s. Barbour. II is the leading trunk line
to the south, over which passes the great south
ern mail from New York TO New Orleans.
The Norfolk and Western road runs west to-
ward Bristol, through a rich and growing
country. Lynchburg in other days prided it.
self on its eXclusiveness. Here more than
elsewhere the +. +. V. dwelt, or was supposed
to have his local habitation. But happy
change has of late years come over the spirit
Of the average Lynchburger's dream. Not
only has some new blood been infused into
the ancient burg Of tho Lynches, but tho
young men, as they have grown up, have cast
behind them dead past and begun to live for
the present and the future.
Lynchburg town has been celebrated, both
in song and story, as great tobacco mart
Its factories are numerous and large some Oh
them are the finest in the state, and the best
NIasr t.afN tafNfq
equipments.
For some time past It's prosperity, as great
tobacco center, has not only been threatend,
but greatly retarded, by what has been called
the tobacco strike" But little has been
written concerning this strike beyond that
contained in the local papers, all of which
have been inimical TO the laboring classes.
The side of the latter has never been presented, /,
the reports written or telegraphed from
this point making out the worst pos.
sble showing for the laborers, and
placing the manufacturers in the best
possible light. There is in Lynchburg a
branch Of the Laborers association. 1t acts
under charter from the general assembly Of
Virginia. Its object as its namo implies, is
TO protect the interest of the laboring class,
and to look after their general welfare. This
association, acting on behalf of its members,
discovered that the rates paid its rollers were
below those paid in Richmond, Danville,
Farmville, and other manufacturing cities.
This association, which was composed of col
ored men, had membership of some fifteen
hundred, and represented about nine thousand
souls. The tobacco men wished to impose a
job-hand taxation of from So to "a per week.
This the rollers objected to. They demon
strated that out of a pay averaging from $l2
to SIS per week they would not have, after
paying their job hands and stemmers, not
more than 81 to SO per week-a sum insult
ficient to furnish them with the bare neces-
saries of life, to say nothing of clothing, fuel,
house rent. &c. To this class the luxuries
and comforts are things unknown.
The committee appointed at meeting OF
| the Laborers' association to confer with the
tobacco manufacturers made the following
proposition To accept the tariff Of prices as
laid down by tho latter, provided the job
hands taxation would not exceed 90 cents pei
man per week. This proposition was rejected
| by the manufacturers in q body, the number OF
firms represented by the latter body being
between ninety and one hundred.
With this rejection general closing took
| place, the laborers refusing to work on the
terms proposed and the manufacturers stand
ing firm. The strike-if strike it may be
called-differs from those in general in this
country in several respects. There has been
no disorder either at the meetings or ON the
streets All the proceedings have been quiet
and orderly. The meetings have been opened
and closed with prayer. Tho leaders in the
| lockout say that they look to prayer to bring
them relief from the trouble that besets them
In the meantime they are receiving substan-
| tial aid and encouragement from similar asso
| Citations in various parts of the state. 1t IL
claimed that the manufacturers have in
fuenced the merchants and grocers TO refuse
credit to the strikers, and in this way force
| them to yield. 1t is fact that some of the
| latter have been refused credit at places where
they were never refused before.
The Laborers' association has given the
manufacturers until May l to reflect upon the
situation. If no compromise is effected by
that period, they say they will seek other
fields of labor. They are determined not tc
submit to the unjust and extortionate demands
of their late employers.
The Iaborers' association was advised tc
| delay action until the manufacturers had laid
in their full stocks and then make their de.
mand This they refused to do, not wishing
to appear before the country as taking mean
| advantage.
One manufacturer made the experiment Of
employing white rollers. He had 80 hands
They took so pounds of wrappers to so pounds
| of twist. The usual average Is 18 pounds OF
wrappers to 100 pounds Of twist. The pro
prietor used II big d, and said he would bt
broke in one season If he kept this business
up That knocked the bottom out Of TIL,
white labor experiment.
In 1866, when the tax was 40 cents, the rol
lers received 81 per hundred for lit incl
twist when it was 32 cents they received So
! when IL was "a cents, $l75; when ii was II
cents, $3.50, aud now, under the 8 per cent
tax, they have been cut down to the starva
tion rates of $l.25. 1t will thus be seen that
at each successive reduction the manufact
urers have reduced the wages Of the laborei
and made him and the consumer the losers
while they have sought to reap themselves all
the benefits of the reduction. This has caused
the masses of the people to be so utterly in
different to the action Of congress on this sub
ject, they claiming that the people at larg,
would never reap any of its benefits.