The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1886-02-25
THE HUNGARIAN COOKERS.
Something About the Connelisyille Region
and Its Nine Thousand Strikers.

1h0 Ass ANiic SlTtkeTS.
A Mt. Pleasant, Pa. correspondent
writes: The Connellsville coke region.
where nine thousand men are striking
for increased wages, and where a small
army of deputy sheriffs and detectives
are stationed to protect property, is COM
paratively little known outside of west
ern Pennsylvania.
The first Hungarian labor in the coke
region arrived at the Morewood works
in the spring of 1880. 1t consisted of
five families. They were ignorant, filthy,
and apparently semi-barbarous. They
were domiciled in a long, lcw she'd on
the hillside above the Morewood ovens,
and here they lived until provided with
frame houses by the company. The wo-
men dressed then as they do now, in
short blue drilling skirt, top boots, and
gaudy bodice and kerchief 1t was a
picturesque costume, barring the dirt.
Shortly after the arrival of the first
families little child died. Nothing was
said about the matter until the superin-
tendent of the mines happened into their
abode on business. He found the par
ents preparing TO bury the infant in a
raisin-box Last week the wife of a
hungarian laborer died at one of the
stations on the Baltimore and Ohio
road. The body was placed in coffin,
and, accompanied by the husband, taken
by train TO Suter station. There it was
taken from the baggage-car and placed
on the depot platform. just as the west
bound train pulled out, the eastern train
halted; the Hungarian leaped aboard
and went back to his work, leaving the
corpse behind. Itwas buried by some
people in the neighborhood who wit
messed the occurrence. In defense of his
action the man said he was afraid of
losing his job if he waited to bury his
wife
No class of people, except, perhaps,
the Chinese, are so grasping in the mat
ter of money. Their purchases at the
company or ''pluck-me' stores are con-
fined to the cOmmonest necessaries of
life, such as bacon, flour, and potatoes.
They indulge in no luxuries, except
whisky that cuts like rip-saw With
the assistance of his wife and half
grown son, one Hungarian in three
years, at McClure's works, saved 81, 900,
and went home to live like a prince.
Occasionally a family will 90 west to
live on farm, but this is the exception.
AT Morewood the Hungarians violate
the revenue and license laws by selling
liquor to friends and neighbors The
same is true at Alice, Bessemer, and
other places where they are employed.
When fired with whisky they are reck-
less, vicious, and revengeful, using knife
and bludgeon indiscriminately. Over
one-half of the criminal business trans
acted by the local justices here and at
Scottdale and Connellsville comes from
the Hungarian and Polish contingent in
the region.
There are exceptions to this, however.
Here and there home will be found
that will compare in cleanliness and ap-
parent thrift with any American citi-
zen's, but such persons get away from
the coke country as fast as they can,
There is one feature of the strike at
Morewood and Standard that has not
been spoken of. In the background and
out OF harm S way when danger threat
ened, were native American miners,
urging on the lawless demonstrations of
the Magyars. The English, Irish, and
American coke-workers hate the Hun
garians. The English and Irish had
the places of the strikers five years ago,
and were the club which the operators
used to subjugate the home talent. The
object of the mining leaders is to urge
the Hungarians to deeds of violence and
so stimulate public feeling against them
that their own success and interest will
drive them from the region. Out of the
eighteen or twenty prisoners in jail at
Greensburg charged with riot it is no
tlceable that not more than two or three
are natives.
Regarding the justice Of the present
demand of the miners and coke-draw-
erS, there is something to be said. When
the last cut in wages was made two
years ago, coke was selling at 80 cents.
Coke is now at least S1.l5 on the aver
age, while furnace coke brings as high
as S1.25. There has been an advance
OF from 20 to 80 cents on coke, but no
improvement in the wages of the miners
and burners. The operators say they
can not pay the advance because they
ran their works at loss for two years
just to give employment to men and
keep things moving around the mines.
They are just getting out of the snap,
and as soon as coke gets up to better
figure, which it will do shortly, they
will give their men the benefit of it. In
the past. however, such promises have
not been carried out. The cokers were
always compelled to strike or threaten
strike before they received an advance.