New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-02-26
NOT READY YET TO STRIKE
AN ANSWER MADE TO THE ENGINEalEN
THE BURLINGTON MANAGERS DECLINING 4.
CHANGE THE METHOD OF PAYING wAdEs'
ruY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNkI

THE BURLINGTON MANAGERS DECLINING ~
CHANGE THE METHOD OF PAYING wAdks'
IBr TELEGRAPH TO THE rRIsUSI1
CHICAGO. Feb 26.-The strike Of the engineers
and flremen of the Chicago, Burlington ana quincy
Railroad system has not yet occurred, Du' 'herc
has been no settlement of the trouble Det"ecn
the men and the company ana ths s.r'Ao =
likely to take place at any moment Deies"'os VIZ
| bavs been here presenting the demands OF inc
ao,, 60 .ha of,cers Of the road went home yester-
aav vitbout having accomplished their mission,
| hrt Iefore a strike can occur, their reports Will
| havs to he beard and adopted by the di1erent
| Iodess One of the delegates In from COLORADO
| and will not reach Denver before tonight Id
| officers of the Burlington road have drawn up an
| elaborate reply to the demands, embodylng their
r.osons for refusal the changes asked for by the
| committee and the schedule Of wages paid by the
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy.
Firyt-Pay to be governed solely by miles run,
without regard to other conditions or circum-
stances
Second-An average increase OF pay.
Third-The abolition Of classification based upon
length of service, age, or experience
Fourth-No more examinations or tests except
such agreed upon by the general manager
| and the General Grievance Committee.
| WHY INCREASED PAY SHOULD NOT BE GIVEN.
To these the road replies: That the present
system is in force upon many roads in this country
| and Is preferred because 1t Is the
best one fairly to provide for differences In
| the amount Of labor, time and responsibility re-
| quired by engnemcn upon different runs. The
trip basis in view Of all the varying conditions
| covers value received. An arbitrary mileage basis
disregards the value Of the service rendered, and
in the long run, we fear. would be unsatisfactory
TO the men and to the company For example
| in the Galcsburg division oil the chicago Bur
| lington and Quincy, an engineer In nght pas
senger run of two cars between Bnda ana vermont
| SO and the fireman s74.10 under the schedule
| proposed the engineer would receive 81 1908
| and the fireman 81 OF. "a. number OF examples
are given in the company's answer which then
owing to tho existing State and Interstate
laws poor crops and extremely low rates, as well
| as o great multiplication of new lines, Western
| roads are passing through critical period. IL
is at present impracticable to maintain rates that
| cover the cost of transportation. Railroad con,
| struction has almost entirely ceased The rail-
| mills and other factories find their business dc,
wages are likely to decrease AT TIME
| when wages are tending downward enginemen
cannot expect more pay, unless they are under
paid now In comparison with other working men.
At present we have one rate of pay for engineers
inst promoted from firemen, which continues one
year. In the second year of service; as engineer,
an advance in pay is given On the expiration
of the second year a further advance to full
engineers pay i given. The schedule proposed
ton, and insists upon fun pay for every man MS
soon as he runs an engine Properly to conduct
its business, the company must be the )udee OF
what are the most economical runs Tor ls engines,
and any claim by its employees to decide where
division terminals shall be made cannot be al
lowed. ii.
TO ascertain by whatever examinations 1t may
deem advisable whether its employees OF all classes
are CAPABLE of fulfilling the duties they undertake.,
and the public also demand that the railroad com
pany shall take every precaution to employ only
those men who can safely perform the work en-
In conclusion we would say that while we can
not see our way to accepting your committees
proposals, we expect to pay as much as our nelgh-
bors for similar services, and we are ready AT any
time to take up the question Of wages and adjust
any inequalities in our schedule thdn may may
attempt to adopt basis which says that one
1OOmile run should be paid the same rs another
lOO-mile rum regardless OF the effort and ability
required and the difficulties TO be overcome on
This report is signed by Henry B Stone, general
manager of the Burlington: G H. Hoidrige, gen
eral manager Of the Burlington and Missouri RIVER
road: W. F. Merrill, general manager OF the
Hannibal and ST. Joseph, and by II. D. Judson'
There are about 1000 engineers and firemcn
employed on the Burlington system and should
they quit work, 10000 otler men; conductors,
brakemen and roundhouSe-men Will DE throWh
out of employment.
THE CHIEF ENGINEER sUsTAINs THE MEN.
Chief Engineer Arthur was seen at his hotel
to-day II shall be right here all day. hn said,
glancing from q paper he held, and II the
officers Of the railroad want to see me, they
know where I am"
viii you not call on General Manager Stone
again. ?"
Il will not. 1 made my last call there yes
terday / gave him then to understand what
to expect. l told him 1 had given my consent
to strike to the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
members Of tho Brotherhood Of Engineers. There
would have been O strike long ago but for me.
The men have been entirely LOO anxious to go
gut. They have been waiting !0r my. consent
1t has not been our policy to strike, when there
is any other means available for settling dispute
In this case however being f. practical engineer
myself and knowing what otlIcr companies are
paving, I am satisfied that the demands of the
men are just and for that reason l gave them
my consent to a strike
=" Have you the power to call out the men y
"No, l only give my consent and then they
take a vote. They cannot strike without my
consent and 1t lies with themselves whether or
not they strike after they get it
do you think the men want to strike r
81 tell you they only too anxious