Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1890-05-02
SILENT HAMMERS.
A Dull Nay Day at the Halo
we'll Quarries.
Precipitation Of The First Strike Ever
Witnessed at The BudYel Works.
Two Bundled and Thirty Five Men
Enjoying . Vacation

Enjoying . VScatfo0-
Especial to the Kenneoec Journal
HALLowELL. May i--For the first tin
in the history of the Balloweil Grant,
Works, extending over period Of nearl
twenty years, these yards are silent thi
morning. and the .ro hundred stone eu,
ters vho have 80 long been probably EN-
ployed at these quarries and yards are on
OF work by order of the National Stone
cutters Unio1. an orier which il under
stood u be effective throughout its juris
dic-iop. sbich embraces the United State
and Csnad, Ali day lorg the workmel
have been congrg gated in knats about tb'
streets ard in sileir hall over Gauld's s,ore
quietly discussing the situation, the fxae
conditions OF which but fes seem Il
really unSer.tana.
At the offices Of The company ar INV )n.et
quietness has prevailed throughout the da,
a. though il Was fast" or the clerks wer,
waiting fer something" sail, thsr- hay,
been many callers. and all have been re
ceised with smiles snd cieerfnlaess on tbs
part of the Superintendent, Mr.. j. H. Hunt
and the floors os 'he company Amonl
the callers was journal representative
who vss most cord ally received BY tbs
Treasure, of tire works Col! Charles "
Tilden. The gallant colonel Of the splsn
dla Sixteen h Maine sat at the desk of hi
!rivats Office as the Journal man entered
sereneIy nfii1g at cigar. ard appeared a
und.sturhed as when calling the roll of the
Senate
Wed said the Colonel, 10 snswnr 10
qd. -iion a, 10 ii. condition of things, W.
are disappointed
But Not Surprised.
We had hoped this matter would be mu,
tually arranged, snl that work would &c
on. l, is Irue in this as in other thing,
tha. the unexpected always happens. The
feet is this little episode has been brewing
a good hile and dates back much farther
than est Dee, nber when the committee OF
the Union issued their schedule of prices
to the company, ~ ia the case every yesr,
and which heretofore have always beer
sansiactorillv ADJUSTED Their proposi-
luinr dems ded a day of nine hours at
50 10 per day, aud an advance of ten pei
cent cn All pie 4 work. Heretofore we
have pa d 50 10 per day for ten hours. for
five days in the week, with An eight hour
day Saturdays st full ten hours paw. This
se think is using the men well, and we be-
lieve We have used them well ever since the
company was orgsuized in 1870. Last De-
cemher when the comrittee of the CDion
met us, they gave IA to understand that
unless Their rates were complied with on
May lst a strike would result. And | sup
pose this is what they call strike Well.
sir, We couldn't he b. tier fxed for it Our
work is rc.ty well cl,aned up ard we con
cluded We had better stop now than siz
months from now"
Further conversation with Col. Tiiden
showed that ot late the company has been
at work ou The exts nsion OF the
Massachusetts state House
a 4 upon monumental work. The confrsc.
on the former work is about completed,
and or the latter there are 10 contracts
on hsnd that will suffer by little stay, or
until the company can see what will
be done after the smoke of this first strike
clears away Two hundred workmen are
emp oyed by the company and all are Aout y
At some time in the past as many as three
hundred have been employed. OF these
about 25 per cent are employed at the quar-
ries and the remainder in this city. Fifty
per cert of the men are Italians
They are good workmen ard COED
c,tizeps. many of them owning their
houses ard making good wages Some at
piece WORK. earn ss much as So 80 per day
Il was always Gov. Bcdwells pride tha,
his company used their ~orkmen we'll and
that they wanted 20 stay with them. Col.
rilhen has been treasurer of the company
stree he des,h Of Hon. William Wilson
about two years ago The ray roll the
ps-t winter has been from Sl4 900 10 SIG
900 month Last summer it was much
more than this a. Ia ger force was EN-
ployed.
Supt j. II Hunt. rho has entire over
sigh, and mstagt uent Of the work. NE;
the reporter in most genial manner. His
happy face was aalow with joli,y, and We
wouldn't suspect TO look at him. that there
was strike within = thousard miles of
Halloweil The fact is sad Mr.. Hurt,
"se have fsi'ed to get many of the large r
Jobs during the past year or two, thl' we
have made figures on. becsuse, IN order to
cover the slight advance which the men
have demanded. it brought the prices Of
work too high We figured on the mansion
to be built in New York by Mr.. Hunting-
ton. the California railroad kirg, the total
cost of which vas 10 have been half mil
lion dollars. Had we got that job We
could have employed our entire force here
for wear and half at good wages, say
2S5 men and had job of s225,000 But
We didn't get it. Il has been similar with
Office blocks in New York and elsewhere
The builders liked our stone but the build
ings would come go high they couldn't
rent them for enough to pay, so they built
of cheaper material, sandstone and brick
We are satisfied the
Men Do Not Understand
this. We are willing TO concede them the
nina hour dav, although this was much of q
sacrifice to us. II would delay the delivery
of our contracts, and our machinery cannD!
accomplish as much for US in nine hours as
II will in ten. Sill We said TO our De7
If YOU can support your families o'
nine hours aoor We will cogoede You the
hour. but We cannot give you ten hours
nav for nire hours work. We have seen
this trouble coming for some time and We
could 70, 90 irto new contracts upon Al
uncertainty; tie present state of business
v ould not warrant it. That's just about
the vsy of it," Conversations with othei
officials of the comp,ny oriirmed the
above state ments and showed this to be the
exact condition of things.
The Other Side.
1t has not been 40 easy matter to ge
at the real facts or the other side Ap
parently there is not firm ard settled
feeling smong the members of the Union
This hss beec evident from what has bes'
ov rheard In conversation uron the streets
sI,housh generally me wo-kmen are har'
TO approach and not loqnscicus after on
gets a, them They are under pretty goo
discipline Still, unless appearances ar
very disappointing here is not It'll
ouiet dissatisfaction smoug the men. Tn
lssdsrs seem 10 uaierstand il better. Bu
the men. now that they sre sctusi!y ou- o.
, ".,rike, evidently don't like it From
~ 50 to So 90 is not bad wages With Al
siyht-hour day SATURDAY. now is it? Tn
"S,onseu,ters' National Union" of ~hicl
. branch exists in this cit'. has lis head
or,r.e-s At Barre Vt the chief executiv
af.;eer beirs MIR J. K Dyer. This Cnicl
vas organized sbou, 1874 or rs by the lat
Hon Thompson H. Murch of Rocslsnd
vho w.ss member of the 4t;sh aud All
Congress in 1879 1851. 1t has member
.b;n of sbo1t .ix thonssnd. sni while esc
S,s,e branch can make local terms with il
emplo,ing companies. it is bound by III
o,ae,s of the National Union.
| The Jourrsl representative sought sr ir
,s,xisx with the President of the Hslio re
p,.,ch Mr.. Siiss Fl. Runreils. to1a,