St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-08-21
SELKIRk IS ECL|PSED.
II. Walter Webb Claims to Be
Monarch Of ALI He Sur
veys.
This Applies to the New York
Central and It's Working
Force.
Powderly's Peace Offering
Scorned by the Mouthpiece
of the VandePbilts.
Now the Knights and Kin
dred Organizations Will
Fight to the Death.

IlKut W Cuo O0dG11s
NEW YORK, Aug. 20.-At 5 o'clock
this afternoon MI. Powderly and Mr..
Devlin. of the general executive board
of the Knights OF Labor, had an inter
view with Vice President Webb, of the
New York Central, and considered the
question of arbitration. Mr.. Toucey
was present. The offer of Mr.. Powderly
to submit the matter to arbitration MIR.
Webb refused, on grounds already pre-
sented. In other words, he said the
company was not jumping on the
Knights of Labor" They did
not discharge men because they
were Knights of Labor, but for good
reasons. Neither Mr.. Depew nor MIR.
Vanderbilt was opposed to the K. OF
L. as an organization, They did not
discharge the men because they were
Knights of Labor, but because they
were not satisfactory. Mr.. Powderly
then suggested that as the matter had
so much publicity. hearing should be
held in Mr.. Webb's Office, at which the
men should be present. This Mr.. Webb
would not hear to, saying that it
was ridiculous. Mr.. Powderly once
more urged that the matter be arbl-
trated, but Mr.. Webb remained firm.
Mr.. Devlin again asked Mr.. Webb II ne
would consent to an investigation OF
the causes surrounding the discharge
of the fifteen men. Mr. Webb reiterated
that there was
Il Nothing to Investigate,
that the railroad company were manag-
ing the road, and he did not see why
their actions should be questioned. Mr..
Devlin asked him If he did not owe the
public and the employees of the road any
duty regarding it's management. IN
which all were more or less interested.
Mr.. Webb did not reply. Mr.. Devlln
then said that there was no use in
further discussing the matter, as
the railroad company had declared
themselves in favor of -an inde--
pendent course. Mr.. Toucey then said
that Master Workman Lee was pri-
marily responsible for the strike. Mr..
Devlin asked Mr.. Toucey if he would
waive the question of Mr.. Lees action,
and consider the discharge OF the other
men. Messrs. Toucey and Webb re-
fused, and that ended the conference.
Mr.. Powderly and Devlin then with
drew without making any threats or In
timating what they intended to do. Mr.
Webb gives this version OF the
interview, and said that the
whole conference was carried
on in most pleasant manner.
Mr.. Webb told Powderly that if the
tO fh0 dpnQndc 0f
the strikers that he would rather be
grand master workman of the Knights
of Labor than president of this road,
because then ne could manage the road
much better in that position than in the
present one. The situation of the strike
at 1880 looked serious. Grand Master
Workman Powderly at that hour said
that the strike was no longer one OF the
local assembly of the Knights OF Labor,
but of the whole organization. Every
resource of the order would be used.
He intimated that the Federation OF
Railway Employees
Would support the Knights
in the fight. Later information makes
possible and true the statement that
Powderly will tomorrow (Thursday)
issue an appeal to the Knights of Labor
in the employ of the Central Hudson
railroad and upon the Vanderbilt con-
meeting lines. In the document he will
state the causes for the strike and the
efforts MADE to obtain peaceable set
tlement of the difficulties, and notify
each and every member OF the inten-
tion of the executive board OF the
Knights of Labor to prosecute the fight
against the Central-HudSOn Railroad
company to the bitter end. AT the same
time it is made known that Grand Mas
fer Sargent has called meeting of the
supreme council of the Federation of
Railway Employees for Saturday, Aug.
23, at @ a. M, in the city of Terre
Haute, Ind. In connection with the
stirring events above outlined, Mir.
Cloud Cloud hotel in this city, gave
out the following statements of the in
terview this afternoon with Vice Presi-
dent Webb and Supt. Toucey. The
statement. as read by A. W. Wright, of
the executive board, reads: ''This
morning Mr.. Powderly and Mr.. Devlin
waited upon Mr.. Toucey at his office,
for the purpose of endeavoring to
bring about settlement of the
trouble. Mr. Toucey absolutely re-
fused to entertain any propo-
sition looking toward arbitration or
an investigation of the causes of
the discharge of the men. During the
afternoon the same gentlemen waited
the executive board of the knights. to
give the company every opportunity to
bring the strike to all end. In the inter-
view they had with the third vice presi-
dent Messrs. Powderly and Devlin re-
heated the offer which the Knights
have made from the beginning, that
they would
Declare the Strike Off
if the company would agree to submit
the cases of the discharged men to the
investigation of uislnterested outside
parties on the understanding that il it
should be shown that if there was no
cause for the discharge OF any men
other than their connection with the
Knights of Labor such men should be
reinstated IN their positions; the repre-
sentatives of the knights of Labor
agreeing to bind themselves to abide
by the decision or finding of the
investigators. Mr.. Webb positively re-
fused to agree to this request in the
interest of peace. Mr.. Powderly even
went SO far as to ask Mr.. Webb in view
of the conflicting statements of the men
and the company's officials if he would
consent to meet the discharged men and
allow him (Powderly) to question them
in Mr.. Webb's presence upon the
charges of the company against
them. Mr.. Webb refused to enter
tain even this proposition. Mr.. Toucey
who came into the room during the in
teryiew reiterated the oft-made state
ment that they would insist upon their
right to discharge any of their employees
without assigning reason for doing so,
and that they would not admit the
right of any labor organization OF