Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1890-02-15
LABOR IN NEW ENGLAND.

A Trades Council was organized in
Fall River two weeks ago. At its first
business M etlug on february |, eleven
organizations wer" represented and SEN
ator Howard occupied the chair, Various
hhor bills now pending in the Massa-
Chusetls Legislature were discussed at
length The advisahilly of asking for
the passage Of 81 hour hill WAS also
considered. Senator Towards eight,
hour bill for city, town. and County
employees was indorsed as a step in the
ngnt direction, A protest WAS made
a-anst all employees, contractors in
particular. who hire scab labor To the
exclusion Of union men, and ii decided
stand is to he taken against them
The meeting Of Steam Railroad Mems
Union No. . in Boston last week was a
lively affair. The laws which railroad
men desired enacted were discussed ar
length. Many shining lights in railroad
circles We're IN attendance. The opinion
Of the speakers WAS that. for the Tres
rnt, it would hc more To the advantage
of the entire people that such laws should
DE enacted a. would lessen the element
of danger in the railroad s,rvice. than
that costly and mnlIlfarous strikes he
engaged in. The attitude of the poili-
clans toward the railroad emplo,es bill
was a subject Of long and serious con.
eIderatiOn. Committees were appointed
to pres- upon the necessity of enacting
such laws rs the rail- Dad employ now
ask for. The committee Is we've instruct
ed not tC indulge in amy threats, but 10
present their reasons IN support of The
desired laws in II manner becoming
men who were in the right,
The principal business under consider.
alton at ii special meeting of the Carpen-
ters' d strict Council in Templar Hail
last week, was the business transacted
at the recent meeting in Philadelphia Of
the seven vice-presidents of The Brother
hood af Carpenters and Joiners OF North
America. Vice-Presdent w. j. Shields
submitted the report He stated that
the r., nrls III that meeting showed that
| the carpenters were rapidly getting into
| condition to lead the eight-huur move
ment May |, 1890; that never in The
| history of the organization had there
| been 80 much enihu-iasm among its
members over any agitation that every
| local UNION in the order had increased
its membr ship during the past TWO
months. He further stated that report
| of the general executive boarI To the
wee president showed that 43 local
unions had been organized during The
past month; that 81 deputy organizers
| had been recently appointed by tie gen
eral executive board, and that the call
for organ zers and lecturers would ne
CtSstare the app' lntmtnt Of at least %
more organizers; that the receipts # the
bro heIlood had exceeded thu expen-
ditures Ivy Tll 800, and THAT So sos had
been paid out in death bnttits. The
| reports OF del cations were Il matter Of
| interest 10 all members of buuding
trades organizations. The chairman OF
each of The 40 Delegations stated that
their employ trS, with hat tN o or hree
exceptions, seemed more disposed 10
grant the eighI.hour day on May l. 1890,
than they had hitherto been dispo Ell 10
grant any desire of their Orkm-n. The
council decided to place "A permanent
organizer in the field. and each local
UNION. through he delegates, gave no.
tice that they would pay their prnpor-
tional part OF the $500 needed to'lay The
organizer IA salary and his EXPENSES until
| the LIST of May. A committee WAS APP
pointed 10 draw up II code of by laws.
Deb gates Cowper of Lynn, and Sauborn
IF Salem were instructed to address
liz.
Once more is heard cry of despair
from He 3 MiHS in Connecticut. This
time it is Myer Slrouse & Co the arch
slave drivers Of New Haven. Two hun
dred and twenty five girls struck against
a reduction of nearly 40 per cent. To
pacify the indignant girls the firm say
they will graciousiy allow the machinery
TO run faster. SO that the girls may turn
out more work. TO enumerate and de-
scribe the impurities pracri>ed IN this
shop wOul require more space han the
ADVOCATE can spare, and even then the
general public would not believe It be-
cause of the revolving nature of the
facts. There are hundreds of people in
New Haven who Con testify that this
firm has developed Such a perfect sys-
tenn of exploitation that girls who have
worked four and five weeks have not
been able TO take home more than tlle
dollar treek ou an average. Four years
ago the X. at L. succeeded in organlz,ng
the girls and things became ntllr less
shocking: but since the lapse of this
1 -
| come uverbeaiIng again and II Is high
time that the girls fall back on their on
| ly safe guard. Organzrd labor Is ready
/ 10 piye Them "A hpIpiuy hand