Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1885-10-07
rHE STATE AVERAGES.
THE WAGE WORKERS.
Strike of Drivers and Conductors Ol
ST. Louis street Car Lines.
General Assembly of the knights of
EabOr-MinOr troubles.

ST. LOUIS, Mo, October 6.-At meeting |
of the Executive Committee of the |
Knights of Labor this afternoon it was de- |
cided to order & general strike of street
car men. TO begin at O'Clock this after
noon. Promptly at the appointed time
the men on the Washington avenue line
turned IN, and at this writing the strike
seems to be taking shape.
By o'clock this afternoon the strike
was well under way, and the running OF
cars was almost totally suspended on all
the roads in the city except the Olive
street and the Market street lines and the
South st. Louis road. The strike was
made in accordance with an order Issued
by an executive Board of the Knights Of
Labor, into whose hands the street-car
men had placed their affairs, and who al
legs that the men were ordered out be
cause the presidents or other officials OF
the car companies failed to meet them
or to even notice their invitation to
arbitrate the differences between the
men and the companies. Some days ago
the men drew up a set of grievances and
made demand that twelve hours Should
constitute days work; that cond c'ois
should receive 81 per day wages, drivers
81 70, and that drivers OF ''bobtaiP" cara
should receive the same as conductors.
This, the Executive Committee allegs, was
sent to the presidents of the street-car
companies, and they also say that they
specially invited the presidents OF the
eompaniee to meet them and three prom
inent members of the Merchants Ex-
change who had been selected for the oc-
cssion at the Laclede Hotel to-day to con-
suit together and arbitrate the matter.
Only one president responded to
the call, Ir. Johnson OF the South
st. Louis road, who acceded to the de-
mands of the men, and mis- line was at
once exempted. But on all other roads,
| and in opposition to the advice OF the
leading merchants, whom they had called
| to their aid, the Executive Committee or.
dered strike, and the men went cut ex-
cept on the road above mentioned. The
| appropriateness of this strike, no matter
what the grievances of the men are, OF
| how just they may be, is so manifest al
| this particular time, when the city is
| thronged with visitors to attend the fair
and witness the various spectacles pro
| vided for their entertainment, that the
universal sentiment of the citizens is one
| of the severest condemnation. The men
| have wholly forfeited the sympathy OF
| everybo y, and they cannot hope to be
successful in their ill-advised movement.
| Thousands of people who visited thu
| business part of the city tonight to wit
| ness the parade of the "Veiled Prophets"
| and the illumination had only words of
| indignation to express at the conduct OF
| the car men. What the outcome will be
no one can tell tonight, but the
| officials of the car companies who
have been seen show no disposition
| to yield to the men, and they will proba-
bly, employ new men and attempt to run
their cars tomorrow. 1t is alleged tc-
night that if this is done the car men will
| resort to violence, il necessary, to prevent
it. The police department have prepared
for any emergency, and the hope tonight
is that there will be no serious trouble,
Labor Demonstration at Detroit.
DETROIT, MIoa., October 6.-To-night q
labor demonstration was made in this
city, which was a great success About
2OO0 men were in line, comprising five
divisions, or twenty-five organizations,
and embracing all kinds of labor. The
demonstration was orllcc.-iy throughout.
Upwards Of 100 transparencies were car
ried, among the nlottoes being the
following: "Convict contract iaDoE must
:" Eight hours only for a days
work." when capitalists conspire.
| poor men must combine )" HThe employ
ment of child labor should be made q
State-prison offense;;" Equal pay to both
sexes for equal work; !" "Rent, interest and
| profit are robbers" "Agitate, educate,
orgsni.e;" ''The land for the people, not
! another acre for railroads." "Child labor
is the product of our boasted civilization =
SCHOOLS fer children-work for men, =
EMPLOY the unemployed and reduce the
hours Of labor" Similar notices were
|, printed in German and Polish.
Grand Assembly .Sar S6 the knights of
HAMILTON, ONT, October 6.-The Gen,
eral Assembly of the Knights of Labor
| reconvened this morning. Master Work,
man Powderly, in his address, said he had
prepared the draft of bill to be presented
to Con .ress which will, if adopted, pro-
hibit the the employment of inmates oi
! State or comfy prisons on government
work of any kind. He recommended that
Congress should be asked TO incorporate
all the trade and lahnr associations in the
District of Columbia and the Territories
of the United States, also to amend the
bill passed last session to prohibit m
ployment Of foreign labor under cont act
Some postmasters Who employed labor in
, tsrcapted and opened COMMUNICATIONS be
tween officers of the assembly. The rem.
! | edy was to prohibit employers from acting
as postmasters. The working people o.
the State should demand of Congress the
massage of law creating. postal say
ings banks. III Massage oi MI oates
: bill, introduced at the last session U. U",, I'm
i gress, prohibiting shsns from holdine
large tracts of land, should be insisted
} upon, and the Assembly should go further
: in demanding that all lands held for specu
: lative purposes be restored to the public
domain. He discountenanced the propo
sition to inaugurate strike for the estab
lishment of the short hour plan on May
3 l, 1886. He believed an annual conven
: ton should be held in every State, Terri
: tory and Province, to be composed of rep
3 resentatives from all the labor erganizs
5 tions within the boundaries of the State
Territory or Province, to discuss al
matters pertaining to labor interests
Boards ofindustry should also be organized
: in every municipality, which should keeI
0 watch oyer the destinies of workers
Workingmen on the continent of Nortf