The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-03-29
Manufacturers, Coal Operators, &C.
Advancing Wages.
fSnecial to the Press. l

| Especial to the Press.l
! WINTHROP, Me-, March Recommending
April 1st the Winthrop Mills Company will
| increase the wages of their employees in their
| two large factories at Winthrop, ten per
| cent
! VINALHAvEN, March.28- Rockland-
| A committee from the RQckland board of
| Assembly No. 1915, Knights of Labor, re-
Gently waited on Hon. Moses Webster, vice
president of the Bodwell Granite Co., for
the purpose of ascertaining the day the COM
| pany would hold their annual meeting, leav-
ing with him to be brought before the stock
| holders a request fer conference between
| any representatives the company might
choose and committee from the assembly
for the perpose of adjusting scale of wages
to govern their employees for the coming
| year. Mr.. Webster courteously received the
| committee and willingly consented to have
| the request brought before the meeting.
The committee received shortly after from
| the president of the company, Hon. j. h
| Bodwell, communication, in which he eX-
| pressed his appreciation of his employees
desire to promote friendly relations between
the employed and employer, and stating that
the committee to represent the company
would be Moses Webster, John Love and
| Edward Russell, who have been long con-
! nected with the company and are thorough
| ly acquainted with the granite business in
| every detail. A committee from the as
| sembly met the above committee and were
received in gentlemanly and friendly
| cpirif Tho ipfa re of hp Qmn1Ovad and
employer and the necessity of a mutually
arranged scale of wages was discussed and
agreed upon to the satisfaction of all the
parties.
The Bodwell Granite Company employ
| about four hundred employees in this town,
| all engaged in the granite industry The
new SCALE which goes into effect April 1st,
will he an increase over the present rates of
| from 10 to Is per cent, and a reduction ON
! Saturdays of the hours of labor from ten to
eight hours without loss of pay Under the
| new scale the cutters are to receive not less
than $2.75 per day; sharpeners, $3.50; teams
ters from $1.S5 to $225; quarrymen from
$1.75 to So; laborers, $1.65; boxers, $1.75;
the engineers and polishers also receive an
increase the same as the quarrymen over the
old rates; carmen, 50 per day; drag tenders,
$l.70 to $1.s0; paving cutters an advance Of
about 25 cents per day.
Everyone is pleased with the result as the
adjustment was brought about without the
use of a harsh word or the loss Of a days
work.
LEWISTON, March 28.-The firm Of A.
| Cushman & Co., of Auburn, Saturday eve
| ming at Auburn Hall, announced to their
| 750 employees the details of their profit
| sharing plan, and the help appointed a COM
mittee to represent them in carrying the
plan into execution. The firm will pay as
high wages as their competitors and will di-
vide among the help the net profits in the
ratio that labor contributes to the cost of the
shoe. The management will be in the firm
and the net proceeds will be the balance re-
mairing after paying all ordinary expenses
and proper salaries to the management, de-
Quoting reasonable amount for wear and
tear and interest on the plant, with reserve
fund for losses.
After Mr.. Cushman had developed the plan
to the help a dozen OF more of their number
made brief addresses of thanks and congrat-
ulation. taking the ground that the plan
would result in an increased economy in the
factory and increased interest and energy.
and that even if no dividends were secured
they would be as well off as under the old
system. Mr. Cushman showed that it would
be easy to increase the profits five per cent
by an increased economy in the processes of
manufacture, and that whatever was thus
saved would be part of the profits to which
the wage-earners would be entitled. The
4 orl~o Il
thusiasm and good fellowship.
The Southwestern Railroad Strike.
NEW YORK, March 27.-The general ex-
ecutive board of the Knights of Labor is
now in session at the Astor House The
board consistsTof General Master Workman
Powderly, of Scranton, Penn; Frederick
Turner, of Philadelphia; John w. Hayes, of
New Brunswick; William A. Bailey, of
Shawnee, o.; and I. B. Barry, of East
Saginaw, Mich. The object of the present
convention of the board is to settle the ex-
isting troubles on the Southwest railroads
amicably by arbitration.
The principal purpose which has actuated
this body is, if possible, to meet Jay Gould
in friendly conference, and thus smooth over
many difficulties which could not be effected
by correspondence. Although the board re-
mained in session until almost daybreak last
night, it convened at 10 o'clock this morning,
and after drawing up letter dispatched it
to Gould.
Mr. Gould was not in his Office when the
letter was sent there, but he reached the
Western Union building an hour afterwards,
and he, with his son George and an official OF
the Missouri Pacific Railroad, locked them
salv int a nriuatp offipp tn consider IFS
tents.
Mr.. Powderly, in an interview, said:
We hope to settle the Gould strike. If we do
not, we have other matters OF Importance to at
tend to Which will keep us busy for three or four
dayS at least. cannot tell what we may do if Mr..
Gould declines to treat with us.
In regard to his circular published this
morning Mr.. Powderly said
When issued this circular. until yesterday 1
intended il as Il secret communication 10 the
Knights of Labor In their various assemblies. l
was surprised TO see it in print; but as it has ap
peared do not deny its authorship. Since 1t was
issued, ON March IS, although it has not. reached
all remote assemblies have received no less
than 900 letters from 500 district assemblies in
each Inder the seal of the order Most of these
letters have come from assemblies Oldest IN the
order. but many came from new branches OF the
organization | considered this circular an abso-
lutte necessity, for some ill-advsed enthusiasts
have lately been bringing the kn1ghthood into
false position before the public. One of our chief
purposes in coming to New York Just at TINS time
is to undo, ii possible, a grleYous wrong Wnlch
was done to Mr.. Gould last fall upon the settle
ment OF similar troubles on the Wabash road.
Then the attacks upon him by the press and many
so-called OF Would-be mouthpieces of the knights
were simply outrageous No man could stand
such iibeis without being justly indignant and in
disposed to treat peaceably with the men who
are supposed to have attacked him. hope to
find Mr. GoulI a fair man. and expect that he
will adopt our suggestions and be willing to treat
with us as with fair men. as we CLAIM to BE-
Not long ago Mr.. Arthur, chief of the
brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, is
said to have made harsh statements CON
cerning Mr. Powderly. These allegations
accused him of working for his own interest
and not for that of the Knights OF Labor at
large This attack upon the executive has
caused considerable comment, and MI
Powderly said today that he did not believe
that Mr.. Arthur is capable Of having made
the statements imputed to him:
II am not acquainted with Mr.. Arthur" ne
| said, "but if he were acquainted with me petter
| he would never have uttered such falsehoods,"