The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-04-29
Manufacturers Do Not See Their Way Clear
to Granting the Demands of the Work
men, and Great Strikes Are Expected.
The st. Louis Citizens Committee Again
Tries to Settle the Gould Strike.
A Non-Union Switchman from Indianapolis
Kills st. Louis Striker-Labor News
from All Parts Of the Country.
CHICAGO STRIKE NEWS.
"Der Committy'' Appears and Orders EN-
pl0yes to Cease Work.

CHICAGO, april Zo-Ine 1fo oinpoyeS VI II.
Rothschild & Sons. furniture manufacturers on
Kinzie street, are in state of rebellion. Last
Tuesday they struck for eight hours work and
ten hours pay. The firm promised to meet the
demand on May l. Since then one or two men
have been discharged. slight protests have been
made, and informal committees have, from time
to time waited upon the heads Of the house, and
a general uneasiness has been manifested. Yes
terday there came from Cincinnati tdings which
have preciptated q crisis. The main house of
the firm there employs 500 men, Shortly after
resumption of work following the dinner hour a
messenger entered the Kinzie-street shops and
announced that the men in Cincinnati had struck
for the same favors granted here, and had sent
an appeal for support and help This bit of
news swiftly spread At this critical juncture
stranger sauntered into the establishment, coolly
walked up the stairs to-the Office floor and thence
with the same deliberation another fight to the
shops filled with busy operators Here, accord
ing to the published accounts he struck an atti-
tude and said: ''Iet every man quit work Tm
| der committy" All hands resigned their work
to stare at the intruder Mr.. David Rothschild,
who had heard the unusual sound, bounded up
the stairs
what do you want here?" he thundered at
the visitor
II am der committy," said the man.
'You are the committee, are your howled
Mr.. Rothschild; ''we, we'll just call the patrol
and take good look at you" He dashed down
to the telephone, but der committy" was first
to reach the bottom of the stairs and sped out of
sight up an alley. Work in the shop was re-
sumed, but at the close of the day the men gath
cred in groups in the neghborhood to discuss the
situation. Last night the men held
a secret meeting. A stormy and turbu-
lent session ended in a decision to
| strike. Formal notice was sent to Mr.. David
Rothschild that the men would not go to work
in the morning. The entire force, which includes
the packers and handlers in the warehouses,
will remain out on this order. No demands
were made in the notification dispatched to Mr..
Rothschild, although it is understood that this
strike is ordered pending the settlement of the
Cincinnati grievances. One striker said last
night that the cooperation in this strike of every
furniture worker in the city would be obtained,
and that unless the employers come speedily to
| terms. a walk-out of mammoth pro-
portions will ensue. Mr.. julius Rothschild
says: 1--WE agreed to the eght-hour demand Of
the men here last Tuesday, aud have heard of a
strike every day since. Now our men have no
cause for discomfort but the trouble is that they
arc carried away by these unions, assemblies
and the like, to which they belong Why, when
| that tramp came in here they almost walked out
on his order. AS to Cincinnati strike, don't
know what to do The men quit work yesterday,
| and guess that will have to let them stay out
| until after the 1st of May. These labor turmoils
have thrown trade into very bad shape. /
Iou IA Iaxy frv Iona
ply that l might have to turn out. Yesterday
attempted right here in this city and elsewhere,
| by telegraphing, to make contracts with furni
| ture manufacturers for 500, 600 worth of house
| hold goods which have not the Capacity to fur
nsh. can't make the contracts, as no manu-
| facturer will engage to do the work with the
| price of labor SO uncertain. We have foreseen
this state OF affairs for months. and ali winter
| have pushed work until we have now four ware
| houses full of our manufactured product We
could starve out strike, think"
Another member of the firm says if the men
do not return to work to-day, the factory will be
| closed.
| Between twenty five and thirty brass workers
| employed in the agricultural department of the
Union brass works, waiting to secure an advance
| in wages. quit this morning. They sent in pc
tition before going to work, saying that unless
| their demands were granted they would strike
| within two hours. The company refused to act
| favorably from the mems point of view, and
| they threw down their tools and loft the prem
! ises. In other departments of the factory some
| four hundred men are employed. committee
| from the men waited upon Superintendent
| Hitchcock and made it known that after May l.
| they desired to work only eight hours day.
| This demand Mr.. Hitchcock conceded until Fri
day next, when the president of the company, j.
| McGregor Adams, will decide the question
Mr.. Adams is also president of the Adams and
| Westlake Manufacturing Company. on Ontario
| street. and five minutes before the six hundred
employees there quit work, this noon, notice
was posted notifying them that, commencing on
Monday, the firm would hereafter recognize
eight hours to constitute days work, and that
the scale of wages would be reduced proportion
| ately
The employees of Hutchinsons packing house.
| at the stockyards, made a demand to-day for
| eight hours work and ten hours pay, after May
| /. The superintendent replied that he would re-
| qure an eght-hour day and nine hours pay for
| month"; and it, at the end of that time he
| found he could make money enough to justify
him, he would accede altogether to the de-
| mand.
Tonight the men decided to demand nine
hours pay for eight hours work. Mr.. Hutchin-
son gave the men their choice of ten hours pay
for nine hours work, or nine hours pay for
eight hours work.
One of the morning papers publishes inter
views with all the leading iron and steel manu-
facturers of the city, who declare that the pres
| ent eighthour movement among their men has
been badly conceived; that the real laboring
.nou "'o NV o0oN VI ~ oue Cnas ~ 40
| fomented by non-laboring agitators. and
that they will not accede to the eight hour de-
mand. The feeling among the contractors and
builders in regard to the eight-hour movement
| is one of uncertainty. They seem to realize
that they are occupying a very peculiar situa-
| tion. On the one hand they say they have la
boring men who demanding eight hours
work and ten hours pay, and on the other hand
arc the owners Of lots, who are anxious to inn
prove them, but who will not expose . plan
\ while the prices Of labor are unsettled. The
| eght-hour movement has taken Hrn hold Of
the men employed in the brass foundries and fn-