Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1886-03-12
Capital Ruled by Labor.
The Cause and Development of
the Strike on the Gould
Southwest System.

Wagon and Carriage Makers at
South Bend, Indiana Strike
For Higher Wages.
The Texas Pacific Strike.
THE STIKE ON GOULDS SOUTHWEST
SYSTEM
ST. LOUIS, March 9.-At ten O'Clock
this morning an order was issued by
the executive hoard of the Knights of
Labor district assembly, IN session at
Marshall. Tex, ordering a strike of
the machine shop men employed on
the Missouri Pacific, on the Gould
southwest system of railroad. In
compliance with the order, the men
struck at Sedalia, De Soto and ST.
Louis, and it is expected that like
action will follow at various other
points. Seven hundred men quit
work at the Sedalia shops. $40
at the works at Dssoto and be-
tween 200 and 800 at the shops
in this city. The running force Of the
Gould system, including shopmen,
trackmen, and trainmen, is Is. 600; of
those 1900 are claimed by the knights
of Labor, but up to this afternoon
only those employed in the Madina
shops had struck. 1t is estimated
that at the present time from $500 to
5000 have gone out, but it is thought
ho hIa hnt ,f tho IL
not accede promptly to the de-
mands of the strikers that all the re-
naming Knights on the system will
be ordered out.
THE CAUSE OF THE STRIKE
it has been very difficult to get at,
but the following statement is as com
prehensive and as accurate as any Civ
en- yet. On the Is h, of last month dis
trict assembly number 110 of the
Knights Of Labor held general busl-
ness convention at Marshall, Texas.
Among the delegates to that meeting
was G.. A. Hall, foreman of the wood
workers, of the Texas Pacific car
shops at Marshall. He had secured,
it is alleged his leave of absence for
the purpose of attending the conven-
ton, from his immediate superior J.
A. Crosby the master car build
er. The permission it is said
was witnessed by J. J. McGear
of ST. Louis, and John Thorn burg, of
Desoto, No, who visited the knights
convention with Mr.. Hall as a dele
gate. TIE convention sat four days
and en- the 18Th adjourned. At noon
of that day Hall resumed work as
usual. On quitting his duty in the
evening he received note from Cros-
by stating that his services were
NO LONGER REQUIRED,
and he said, assigning as the cause of
his discharge that he had been absent
from his business without leave. The
local grievance committee of the
Knights at once considered the mat
ter, his reinstatement was demanded
and either refused or neglected. a
strike was then ordered by the local
committee, and upon the failure of the
men to obey orders, a meeting of the ex
ecutivc board of the Knihts was called,
and the executive board ratified the
action of the local committee and
issued general order upon which the
men quit work al Fort Worth, Mar
shall and Dallas. This action of the
executive board it is claimed was not
so much in the interest of one man,
Hall, as striker for the principal in.
volved. One year ago there was an
agreement made between the Knights
and the manager cf the system that
no man should be discharged with
out
DUE NOTICE AND INVESTIGATION.
This contract, the Knights contend,
has been violated in this instance of
Halls discharge. The Texas Pacific
railway is one of the five roads in the
states Of Missouri, Kansas, Texas, Ar
kansas and Iowa which comprises the
southwestern Gould system. The
Knights of Labor employed on these
five roads are under the imme diate di-
rection of district assembly 100. When
the local strike in Texas failed of the
desired results of the executive board
of knights of this southwestern sys-
lem III session at Marshall and in
communication with Receiver Brown
and other officers of the Texas Pacific
railroad since March LIST when the first
lot OF men walked out and asked
an adjustment of their trouble and
the relk statement of Hall and others.
who were subsequently discharged
with this request tie board gave
notice that refusal to comply would
be followed by strike on the Gould
system. the railroad refused to COM
ply to do as desired, and to-day the
executive board gave word for
GENERAL STRIKE.
When master mechanic Bartlett
was informed by committee OF the
order that bad been issued, and that
all the men IN his shop would 90 out
Immediately, ne asked them if
the men we're dissatisfied with
anything, or if they had any griev-
ance; but they would only reply,
We have been ordered to quit work.
and leave the shops" and they obeyed
the order at once, About two hun
dred men we're employed in the shops.
At the office OF the yard superintendent
it was ascertained that some trouble
was anticipated IN the handling of
the engines. The locomotives are
fred and made ready for the road by
shop men aud not touched by the en-
gineer Or fireman until ready to 60
out. 1t was thought probable that il
the strike continued the engines
would have to he run into the round
houses of the other roads, as was done
during the last strike on the Gould
system AID have them got ready for
work in that way.
| THE STRIKE REACHES KANSAS CITY.
KANSAS CITY, March 6.-The men
in the Missouri Pacific Freight yards
quit work today, stopping business
in the yards. About forty men have
gone out. There is no trouble in the
Wshash Yards.