St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-08-24
Whether the Federation Will
Aid the Knights Still Prob
lematical.
Sargent and Other Members
Of the Council Make
Haste Slowly.
Powderly Notified That a Con-
elusion Has Not Yet Been
Reached.
A Committee of Three Men
Has the Whole Matter
in Hand.

TERRE HAUTE, Ind, Aug. 23.-With
closed doors, with Mr.. Hanrahan. of Chi
cago. as inside guard, the council of the
Federation of Railway Employees has
been considering whether or not to
order a general strike Oh the Wander
bilt lines. Promptly the members got
together at their spacious apartments at
the Terre Haute house, Those compos-
ing the council were President Frank
P. Sargent. of the Brotherhood of Loco
motive Firemen: Mr.. Hanrahan, grand
master of the same organization; Mr..
Debs. grand secretary and treasurer OF
the same; G. W. Howard, vice presi-
dent of the council. and grand chief of
the Brotherhood of Conductors; George
Lovejoy, assistant grand chief of
the same order; S. E. Wilkinson.
grand master of the Railway Train
men, with William Sheehan. his
grand secretary and treasurer, and 2.
II. Morrissey, the vice grand master of
the trainmen. The other members of
the council are Frank Sweeney, grand
master; John Downey, vice grand, and
John Hall, grand organizer all of the
Switchmen's Mutual Aid association,
and j. d. Nelson. Lovejoy and Nelson
took the place of the two grand officers
of the conductors association, who,
coming from Los Angeles, CAL, were
delayed. MIR. Howard selected Nelson
and Lovejoy as alternateS. After Chief
Sargent had called the council to order
and the first routine business had been
attended to. the council decided that the
matter of giving
News to the Press
should be placed entirely in the hands
of Mr.. Sargent. 1t was also deemed best
not to give out any OF the deliberations
until the council came to final ad-
journment. ALI day long the corridors
of the hotel were filled. not only with
newspaper men, but railway officials.
Some of the latter were connected with
roads which pass through Terre Haute,
others were from st. Louis and Cincin-
natl. From the last-named city came a
man who was set down as detective.
He kept clear of the members of the
council but buttonholed every one
who he thought might know some
thing. Passes which he accidentally
showed were issued by the Cincinnati,
other railways tributary to Gin
cinnati. The morning session last
ed until 2 p. m., at which time
the council adjourned to the ordinary OF
the hotel and ate substantial lunch.
To all inquiries Mr.. Sargent had
stereotyped reply. 1t was, as indicated,
that no news would be given out until
all the business was ended. To the AS
sociated Press correspondent Mr.. Sar-
gent said that he was ANXIOUS that the
public should be informed; that the
members of the council fully realized
the immense responsibility which they
were carrying. Said he: I'VE all know
that we are at no child's play. l have
presided over the deliberations of this
body for some years, and think l am
In Touch With Every One.
81 know them to be men who will not
act hastily; know that each man of
them will not vote on any proposition
which comes up before fully digesting
it in his own mind; know that they
are cognizant of the fact that the people
of the entire country have their eyes on
them, but, instead of being putfed up
with pride at their importance, they
are trying to subserve not only
the interests of the thousands of men
they represent, but also the interests of
the public" Mr.. Sargent had not fin
ished his report to the council when the
dinner hour came. Of course, the ex-
act wording of his report cannot be
given, but it related chiefly to what he
had learned in the East concerning the
discharge of the two switchmen al Buff
falo. The president also reported his
interviews with Mr.. Powderly and Mr..
visit to Mr.. Webb, of the New York
Central, at the request of the latter,
and told of the evasive replies given by
Mr.. Webb to leading questions. After
Mr.. Sargent was through, Councillors
Howard, Wilkinson and Sweeney made
their reports. These took up the time
until 5 O'Clock. Then a free discus
sion was INDUCED in, every member
of the council taking part, and it
was not until after p. m. that the
councillors adjourned for supper. The
Associated Press correspondent had
chats with Mr.. Sargent, Mr.. Debs ana
Mr.. Hanrahan at this point. The tongues
of them all were loosened a little. Mr..
Debs said plainly that it would be after
midnight before the proceedings could
be brought to a close. Mr.. Sargent CO.
incided in this, and also remarked that
the correspondents might notify their
families that the Sunday roast would
have to be carved by somebody else
than the heads of the respective fami-
lies. Mr.. Hanrahan said that Chicago
would not see him tomorrow. and even
Mr.. Sweeney, quiet as he is, declared
that all important engagement which he
had tomorrow must
Necessarily Go by Default.
The members of the council took
their time about getting together in the
evening. They fraternized with the
newspaper men, and up to certain
point were quite free to express them
selves. But when the pointed question
of "Will there be strike or not?" was
put to them it was the signal for the
cessation of the conversation. As to
the mOmentouS question of peace or
war between the federation and the
Vanderbilt lines there are conflicting
opinions. One can pay his money and
take his choice of the various opinions
which can be and are encountered
at every turn. Mr.. Sargent's posi-
tion is known. He thinks Mr..
Powderly was not treated justly
by Mr.. Webb. He stands in
the council and before the public as the
champion of organized labor. Mr.. Debs
is fully in accord with Mr.. Sargent.
Mr.. Wilkinson. who represents the
comparatively newly formed organiza-
tion of railway conductors, is willing to
bring his hosts into battle array if war
is necessary. The feeling of all the
others is expressed in the reply of Mr..
Sargent to question put to him. Said
he. 81 never saw men in more har-
monious mood than the members of the