Omaha daily bee., 1888-02-27
THE GREAT STRIKE ORDERED.
General Manager Stone Listens to
tho Ultimatum.
DRIVE WHEELS STOP AT FOUR
At the Hour Named sixteen Hundred
Men Will Quit Their Posts
A Long and Bitter Fight
to BE Waged.
The War IL On.

morning was the hour officially announced
to-day as the time for the great strike on the
Chicago, Burlington Il Quincy railroad.
Between II and 12 O'Clock this morning, >.
G.. Hoge. chairman of the grievance commit
tee Of the Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engi-
neers on the Burlington system, and j. h.
Murphy, chairman of the grievance commit
tee of firemen, called on General Manager
Stone at the company's offices and gave him
verbal notice that unless their demands were
acquiesced in the men would strike at
o'clock tomorrow morning. MIR. Hoge
briefly stated what the men wanted.
Mr. Stone heard them through and asked
IL that was the ultimatum. They said 1t was
They told him that they, with Chief Arthur,
could be found at the Grand Pacific hotel
until o'clock in the morning If he desired
to communicate with them.
The interview was over and the committee
men retired.
The grievance committee of the engineers,
of which Mr. Hoge, Of McCook, Ncb., is
chairman, is composed of members of local
divisions of the engineers brotherhood on the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy system. 1t is
a standing committee and has had entire
charge of the negotiations with Mr.. Stone,
general manager Of the railroad. The chair
man saws that the committees direct nego-
tiations failing, Chief Arthur was sent for
and he attempted an adjustment of the diff
Guilty. He also failed. The committee, after
a strike was determined upon, agreed that it
should begin at a. m. At that hour most of
the engineers will be at the end of
their runs, and the fewest trains will
he in motion. All the local divis-
ions, and through them every member
of the order employed on the Chicago, Bur
lington & Quincy system have been notified
not to go to work tomorrow morning unless
specially advised by the chairman of the
grievance committee to report for duty.
Firemen holding positions dependent to
those of engineers have acted with the latter
in everything and upless Mr.. Stone con-
cludes to accede to the terms of the engineers
no engine will be run out by the members OF
either brotherhood tomorrow. Trains on the
road will be run to the ends of the engineers
division and stopped Passenger trains leav-
ing any point before o'clock will be run to
the end of the division and side-tracked.
The immense suburban traffic of the road
threatens to be put to great inconvenience,
that the company will be able to employ
enough outside engineers to run portion OF
these trains during the day.
To representative of the associated press
Mr.. Stone said there were about sixteen
hundred engineers and fremen in their en-
pOy How many of these belong to the
Brotherhood he did not know, but presumed
they all did.
"What is your programme for tomorrow"
asked the reporter.
ave will not attempt to move any freight
trains," he replied. sour object is to run
most Of our suburban and through passenger
trains as usual Our first endeavor will be
to get IN our suburban passenger and take
Nf f,hv unyNtv nec Ia ~ N
by competitors. There are large number
of men in our employ capable of running
engines, in addition to the yard foremen and
road foremen, who nearly all are old
engineers. AT Aurora we have
large number of young men
employed who have all learned the art Of
running locomotives. All these will be
pressed into the service tomorrow"
"How about the report that you are bring
ing on a lot of men from the Reading sys-
tem."
1--WE have no arrangement or contract to
that effect" said Mr.. Stone. But we have
sent east advertisements for competent men,
and we have also received a number of tele-
grams from individuals in Philadelphia and
other Pennsylvania points saying they would
come and bring other engineers with them.
To all these l have replied that we will give
good wages and permanent employment to all
men of good character who are competent to
do the work"
but would you keep these men in case of
settlement with the old men!"
YES SIR" said Mr.. Stone, emphatically.
We want all competent men whom we can
depend upon and they will be retained as
long as am manager Of the road".
In regard to the freight traffic Mr.. Stone
said their first endeavor would be to take care
of it on the same basis that they would
passenger traffic as mentioned above. He
could not tell how they would get on until
they had sized up the situation. II the strike
was SO serious as to stop their traffic they
would have to lay of all their freight
handlers and shop men and number OF
others employed in a similar capacity, num-
bering six or seven times as many as the en-
gineers and tiremen. He does not however,
anticipate any such serious state of affairs.
The managers of the strike were the cool
est men in town to-day, and at seasonabe
hour this evening retired to their rooms. The
officers of the railroad company were acting
with equal deliberation.
During all the weeks of negotiations Mr.
Stone had not been idle. An agent of his
road went to Reading Pa, and employed al
the train men he could who had been recently
thrown out of employment by the strike on the
Philadelphia & Reading lines. Other points
were reached by telegraph offering work tc
idle engineers. Every man in the shops who
could manage an engine was ordered to bI
ready to go out with one, Applicants fol
Jobs as engineers got them in hurry
Early this evening the officers OF the roat
said they had enough men to run three trains
twenty-six such trains daily.
Off the strike assumes the proportions thai
now seem probable about II 900 men will be
involved. This number includes emplOye.
that will be thrown out of employment by
the strike of the engineers and tiremen.
The strike is not likely to involve any other
roads in the opinion of Mr.. Arthur and Mr.
Sargent, though they expressed no opinion
on the contingency that some other company
might endeavor to aid the Burlington
ut is purely our own affair." said Mr.. Sar
gent. mo other road is concerned and nc
order except the engineers and tiremen. The
brakemen and switchmen will remain neu
trail We have not asked them to help us ant
will not. If we are beaten we propose t.
stand it alone"
When told of Mr.. Stones final determine
tion not to yield to the employees Mr. Arthur.
face was clouded for "A moment. He said h,
was sorry; he hated to see strike, but under
the circumstances no other course could b,
taken. The men on the entire system were
unanimous for it. He told them of all tn,
difficulty they would have 10 encounter, bu
they decided to go into it and the order will
do the best it can. When asked
II the company can get enough
good men, Mr.. Arthur said: ''l
Cannot II may employ some men we have
expelled for drunkenness or stealing, but
will such men be safe, Can the road afforc
10 nut passenger trains In the hands of sucl
l,.l l@,..