The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-08-27
e A GREAT STRIKE.
Knights Of Labor Tie-up the
) New York Central.
Thousands Of Men Quit Work,
!. Paralyzing Traffic.

A general strike upon the New York Cen
trail and Hudson River Railroad and the Har-
lem Railroad was ordered during the after
noon by the Executive Board of District 246,
Knights Of Labor, with the authority of
the General Board, and soon after seven
o'clock in the evening ell members of the
Srder, from New York city as far west
as Utica on the Central, left their
places, and traffic upon the great road came
almost to a standstill. The strike had been
foreshadowed for some days, but nobody
expected it to come when it did,
and no preparations had been made for it.
The tie-up in New York city was complete.
The switchmen in the Grand Central yard,
whom the company had relied upon in the
impending trouble, left their posts and it
was impossible to send a train in or out
of the Grand Central Station or
through the tunnel. The effect was
to tie up not only the New
York Central, but the New, Y York, New Haven
and Hartford, and the New York and Har-
lem as well. which also had a strike of
Its own. The railroad officials grappled
their ability, but the embargo was
for the time being almost complete. The
New York, New Haven and Hartford used
the Harlem River station as Its terminus.
The New York. New Haven and Hartford
sent two or three express trains from the
upper side of the Harlem to Boston.
| Exactly at seven o'clock every switchman
and freight handlers and some of the en-.
gineers and fremen employed by the com
pany in New York city left work, and
sF neHd That nto hour ont ns Of Ssss hs esnd
Central station or in the freight yards of the
company, With the single exception Of the
fast mail for the West-the famous "White
Flyer" which carries no passengers-and
which was started as usual at nine o'clock.
Fourteen passenger trains due to reach
New York city before midnight over the
New York Central did not arrive, and seven
passenger trains due to leave the Grand Gen.
trail station during the night failed to
start.
Over the Harlem division six trains were
due to leave, not wheel on any Of which
was turned.
Besides these trains and some twenty New
York Central freight trains that were
stalled all trains on the New York, New
Haven and Hartford road due to leave
from the Grand Central station were
blocked at Harlem, as there were no switch.
men to let them in, and not car of the five
trains that should have left before II o'clock
could get away for the same reason.
L
effects. it was begun without the slightest
demonstration on the part of the men. They
left their work quietly at seven o'clock and
at the same time left the engines and cars
which they were handling just where they
stood.
), Over one hundred switchmen went out in
the yards of the Grand Central Station. The
engineers and fremen in charge of trains,
while not exceptin few cases joining in the
strike, grated out the fires put on their coats
and climbed down from their cabs wherever
they happened to he.
!. The first New York Central train to be
brought to a standstill was the Poughkeepsie
local, due in the Grand Central Station at
TOE. 1t got as far as E:ghty-sixth street in
the tunnel, and there the engineer was noti.
fed that there were no switches set further
down. The switchmen had already put on
their coats and left the yards.
! Half an hour after the trains were blocked
at Eightv-siIth street, the Montreal express,
ten cars all but two of them sleepers, was
halted at Mott Haven. She had nearly 800
passengers on board.
) Not only did the New York Central EN-.
. ployes who are Knights of Labor strike in
New York city, but those at West Albany
went out at the same hour, completely para
lying traffic on the company's lines there
and at Troy.
= Altogether nearly thousand men Joined
In the revolt, and fully twice that number
were thrown out of work temporarily by the
strike
The Knights of Labor intended asking for
an advance of wages, but the direct origin
the trouble arose from the discharge of
certain number of Knights of Labor who
have been in the service of the company for
a number OF years, and the laying off of
other Knights OF Labor.
| The men became convinced that the
knights were being Disseminated against:
COMMITTEES were appointed, who asked
General Manager Toucey to reinstate them,
ibut they were told that inasmuch as these
men had been discharged for cause their re.
quest could not be granted.
Another complaint of tho Knights was
that the men that were laid OF for the dull
season were men who had been long in the
ssrvice instead Of new men. After the inter-
view the committee reported to the District
Assembly and it was decided to strike.