The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-04-19
THE BROKEN STRIKE
BrickIaYers Saying Bitter Things
-General Labor Notes.

4 Just what the out come of the brlck
layers strike in this city will be no one
yet knows positively. The contractors
claim that the difficulty is practically
settled and that the men VINO went .on
| strike are hustling for work, but the
strikers say differently. The contractors
appear willing to take back their old
! men il terms Gun be made that are not
obnoxious, and number of the strikers
who have had life Jobs are almost as
| willin' as was Barkis of Dickens fame.
Still the difficulty is not absolutely
] settled
Fully 100 Of the 200 men who went on
! strike are at WORK today and they are re-
| ceiving. the mon allege, all that was de-
manded In the letter to tho contractors.
| / have had conversations both with
| contractors and with their men on strike,
! and as a sample / can offer that of Mr..
| Wheelihan and his late employees, which
| will, I think, cover the ground. One Of
| bosomed himself to me. He was formerly
connected with No. 8 Engine Company
| at Bergen and Duncan avenues, where he
| made record for bravery and pluck, and
| he has worked for Mr.. Wheelihan good
many years. He is popular resident OF
the old Fifth district.
II am working at the standard rate of
! wages in New York; said he, land not
| one of the men formerly working for Mr..
| Wheelihan Is at present out of employ
| ment. get the union scale of prices, and
| am al thoroughly satisfied with the result
as Mr.. Wheelihan can be. | worged for
him for good many Yeas, on SOME of
| his biggest jobs, and have always given
| satisfaction or / wouldn't have been
hired. Nov. If he is lettering himself by
| engaging the class of men he is sur
rounded with, that Is his business. But
L. al hos ba9
I What Is the quality of the work done?
| He admits himself that he has only two
| men that are capable of doing first class
1 work, and as fast as a man comes along
1 who Announces himself as a brfcklayer,
he is only too glad TO discharge somebody
| to give the stranger a show. Does That
| look as if ne was pleased with the new
men he has got2'
! while you're writing anything about
| the STRIKE said another of WheeHhan's
old men, who said he was considering
| two positions he had been offered, why
| don't you call attention to some facts that
| have never yet been made publics
First, the contractors are trying to
l keep il quiet that Nick Ford in Green
| willie and John Higgins on Water avenue
| are paying the union scale, and that Hig-
| gins has secured some Of Wneelihan's
| best men to 60 TO work for him; and sec
ond. that when Higgins was induced to
| go in with the contractors at the begin
| ming OF the trouble Wheelihan sent three
4 Of the worst men that could be picked up
in days walk to help him out, while on
| the same day contractors themselves took
| off their coats TO help English out on his
sugar house job. That was the day, too,
| Wheelihan said there we're lots of men in
/ town The contractors took off their
| coats for man who is worth $3.50, 900,
but they sighted the poor contractors"
tWill any compromise be made ?" the
men were asked.
"All the compromise that will be made
| is on the back day pay" was the answer.
''That we are willing TO yield, although
there is no sense in contractors holding
back on that"
Contractor Wheelihau and his son
| James hetA claim that the backbone of
the strike Is broken. and so far as they
4 are concerned the difficulty is over. They
admit that they would prefer TO have
| their old men 20 strangers, but they in
| sist that SO far as concerns future work
they are ready to go ahead with new con-
| tracts
| Wheeiihan is endorsed by the other
contractors. The contrac tors assert that
they were shabpily treated by the men in
| the notice sent them of an Impending
| strike. The notice each boss mason re-
ceived was dated January 81, but was
postmarked February 2. The contrac-
! tors intimate that the men who went on
strike knew that most Of the leading
contracts for the year had been made
prior to either date, and that therefore
| the scheme was sample OF sharp prac-
| tice on the partof the men.
| The bod carriers of this city. who have
| one of the strongest unions in the East,
have abandoned all idea of demanding an
| increase OF pay-at least for the present
| from the contractors. The failure of the
| bricklayers TO enforce their demand is the
reason. Had the bricklayers been sue
cessful the hod carriers were prepared to
ask for an increase aud 1t is likely that
their claims would have had 20 be con-
! sidered. A reduction in the force of hod-
! carriers at the big Pennsylvania Railroad
depot Job will be made as soon as the ma :
| sons get work we'll enough under way to
| put in steam elevator which the con-
! tractors have ordered. The standard rate
! of wages for hod-carriers is $3.50 a day.
| Labor Notes.
| The Coach Drivers Association is one
| Of the best equipped labor organizations
in this city. there being now about IS
me mDers The best of feeling exists be-
tween the drivers ard undertakers.
Twelve dollars week is now regarded as
the standard rate OF wages.
Railroad men living in the Ninth pre-.
cinct of the Second istrict, better known
| as the Island" claims that theirs is the
| only Aldermanic precinct in the city that
| has not liquor saloon inside its bound
aries. The Island takes in the round
/ house at the foot of the hill, part OF
| Waldo avenue, part of Pavonia, Chestnut
| and other avenues on the Heights, and is
| made up mainly of engineers, firemen
| ana brakemen. There are about 300 voters
in the precinct.
A splendid opportunity for some enter
| prising lunch man Is presented In the
| vicinity of the Pennsylvania Railroad
round house at the old Point of Rocks, y
| and the railroad men declare that the
man who starts in business there will
| clear fortune in a short time. "We
| want hurry up lunch counter" q
| brakeman said.
| An Nartist" name Jerry Dunn, who
has been painting advertisements on the
rocks on the Hill and on the sides and
| roofs OF houses through the city, met
with stroke OF good luck while at work
on "Bella Vista" park rock ON Thurs
day last. While hunting about for e
prominent place on which to display q
medical advertisement, he stumbled over
some old silver and copper coins that had
evidently once been In u canvas bag long
| since rotted. The silver coins are dollars
| none of which Is dated earlier than 1929
| while the coppers are old fashioned cents
also coined prior to that year. Dunn's
! find amounted to over SIS.
A game of ball between two mines of
young workingmen will be played today
/ at Lewis In Carlgtadt the feama heino