The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-03-17
STRIKING CAR DRIVERS.
Unusual Scenes of Violence in New
York City.
An Army Of Policemen Aid in
Running a Car.

Unusual scenes of violence and disorder
followed strike of car-drivers in New York
the other day for a reduction in the hours Of
labor. The company refused the mems de-
mands, but in order to save its charter from
being taken away it was obliged to run at
least one car day over its route.
The attempt to r1ln this car and
the efforts of the strikers and their friends,
aided by the Knights Of Labor, to prevent
the trip from being made, resulted in the po-
lice being called out, and much disorder fol-
lowed. A summary of the trouble is given
by New York paper as follows:
Since 4 o'clock on Tuesday morning last
way and Battery Street Car company-the
company that operates the line on Grand
street, from river to river, across the city
have been OH strike. 1t is the most general of
any of the street car strikes in the
history of the city. Every employe,
outside of the office ITSELF of the company
from conductors down to er-boy-stopped
work at the word, 75O in all. For the
two days preceding yesterday the strikers
had full possession of the road. On Tues
day lame attempt as made to send car
across, but the strikers drove it back into
the stables On Wednesday the company
tried to force way through the Instructions
heaped by the strikers upon the tracks, but q
Thousand men put themselves along the line,
overturned the car, and, in spite of the police
compelled the company to give up the ef-
fort.
Tuesday night there was conference be-
tween State Railroad Commissioner Herman
and the officials Of the road. Finally Com
HI
that the company must run at least one car
s' its charter. % If Il they were r prevented re 'i by
mob violence from doing so then the city au
thorities, the company holds, are RESPONSE
BILE for the failure aad its consequences-in
Guiding consequential damages. The appar-
emily bona tide effort of Wednesday was
frustrated by violence. Yesterday the
police were massed iu great force along
the line of the road, and one car was run
from the East to the North river and back
again. A hundred or mora cars Of other
street lines had been taken from their own
tracks by the strikers, and overturned at in
tervals along the Grand street line; as many
more trucks, drays, brewery wagons and
carts were likewise used as OBJ
structions, and these, with loads
of brick, coal and ashes dumped by the
strikers along the line, the police had to re-
move before the one car could complete its
trip Police Superintendent Murray had a
small army of 900 policemen did the work.
Along the street there was good deal Of
riotous conduct and the police had to do some
clubbing, But there was no serious trouble
and no one was seriously hurt. The strikers
themselves were not very violent; the i'm
mense crowd of idlers and lookers-on was in
the main good natured and the police were
remarkably cool but determined, kept well
in hand by the new chief.
After the car had been returned to the
stables the many platoons of police were or
dered back to their stations, a few only being
left to guard the buildings of the railroad
company, and the great crowds that had
watched the slow procession across the city
aud back again quietly dispersed. There was
no disorder last night.
Late in the evening the executive board of
the Empire Protective associations which in
clude in their membership practically all the
employees of all the street car companies
in this city and Brooklyn, and which
are assemblies of the workingmens s
organization known as the knights of Labor,
ordered genenal ''lay off" on every railroad
in the two cities. This step was taken avow-
edly with the intention of forcing the Grand
street company to accede to the demands of
its striking employee. The general strike
was to begin at o'clock A. NJ, and after that
hour not street car coull be seen in the two
f.ifiaS