The daily gazette., 1883-05-05
MINERS CAMPING OUT.
PROSPECTS OF A GENERAL
STRIKE.
FIVE THOUSAND MEN ENGAGED.
The Strikers Confident of Ultimate Sue
cess-EsOth Sides Firm, and the Result
tn Grave Doubt.

PITTsBuRG, May 4.-The great strike
| among the oituminous coal miners of
| Western Pennsylvania still goes ON and
from surface indications is likely 10 merge
into one OF the tiercest and most protracted
labor struggles ever inaugurated am ,ng this
class OF workingmen. There are dire stly
interested in this strike not less than 25,0O0
| persons, 20, 900 OF whom are women and
| children dependent upon their husbands
| and brothers, who compose the remaining
| 5000, for support. Perhaps the most re-
| markable feature of the lookout, in view
OF the disasterous effects of the strike of
last year, is the fact that these women and
children or at least certain portion of them,
are encouraging the strikers to maintain the
stand taken for a three and a half cent
/ rate. 1t bespeaks a wonderful amount of
| pluck and courage on the part of these de-
pendent ones. Fifty-four mining establish
ments, representing 5,S45 men, are involved
In this lockout. The capital represented In
these 81 collieries cannot be less than
g., 100000. Every day of idleness repre-
sents III $50 lost to this band OF |, 5,S45 work
men, and should the strike be successful at
the end of 80 days $780, 700 will have been
lost in obtaining the half cent per bushel on
account of which the strike was inaugu-
rated.
Course the money; it's the principle we
are fighting for" said one of the most en-
thusiastic OF the strikers to-day, and this
sentiment runs through the entire origani-
zation.
MINERS CAMPING OUT.
One reason why the miners believe they
will win in the present instance is that the
time of year is favorable to camping out
and by this means they hope to maintain
their lines intact, a failure to do which has
| always contributed to their defeat in the
past. Camping out is one of the peculiari-
4 ~. "a ,N,slrn a.. e IL.
| Leaving their families at home the men of
one particular section select a suitable spot,
erect tents and proceed to settle down to life
after the manner of frontier bush meetings.
| Provisions, pork, beans, bread, molasses and
coffee are furnished them from the general
fund of the association, while the ones at
home live OF the fnnd laid by for the antic-
| ipated "rainy day" " In many instances
there is nosuch fund, and as the credit of
every miner on a strike ceases at the com
pany store with the beginning of lockout,
| the family often subsist upon the same bill
/ Of tare provided for the camp, and this for
| weeks at time, The days in camp are
| spent in listlessly lounging in the shade of
tents or trees, hearing harangues on the
situation, or else parading to the music
| OF q martial band in the vicinity of
mines where the men are still at
| work. Music has wonderful effect, and
| last year the drum and fife won scores of
recruits to the ranks of the strikers where
persuasion had failed. The mass meetings
held for the past few nights at various points
| where the sJf1Ke is In Progress are prcnml-
nary to camping out, and If the weather is
agreeable and there is no prospect of an
early settlement or the trouble between en-
ployers and employees, In a few days camps
| will be in full blast down the Pan Handle
and up the CHARTERS Valley road.
A GENERAL STRIKE IMMINENT.
PITTsBURG, May 4.-The action of the
conference committees OF the iron manu-
faeturers and Amalgamated Association
yesterday in adjourning sine die without any
satisfactory agreement having been reached,
makes the strike on June l at this time ap-
pear inevitable. Both sides are firm and ex-
| press their determination to hold out. The
| committee of iron manufacturers consider
their work as completed and say that
If the workmen desire another conference
they will have to make the request and
another committee will be appointed. Manu-
facturers say that they cannot run the mills
with profit at present wages and prefer to
shut down rather than sign the scale. They
claim that their strength will be greater
and that of the workmen weaker than last
year. Trade is such that suspension would
benefit it, and besides, since then, mon union
plants have started up all over the country
and are running successfully and they can
be relied upon to supply pressing demands
for an indefinite time, unless there is a
radical improvement in trade. On the
other hand, employees say trade is not as bad
| as the iIon masters say and that they will
| be stronger than when the last strike oc-
CURED, the reductions proposed being SO
general as to cement the ranks and prevent
dissensions. In the miners strike the only
new feature today was the returning to
work of the miners in one pit at the reduc-
ton. Officials say that this action will have
| no effect on the general result.