The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1892-11-21
HOMESTEADERS' DEFEAT
The Great Strike Formally De-
olared at an End.
CARRIED BY A SMALL MAJORITY.

A Hundred and One of the Strikers
Favored a Surrender. While Ninety
One Opposed It-Only Some Eight
Hundred Can Secure Work.
HOMESTEAD, Pa, Nov. e1.-The great
Homestead strike, or lockout, was
brought to an end yestesday at a meet
ing held in the rink, which was presided
over by Richard Hotchkiss, the new
chairman OF the strikers advisory board.
Secretary Kilgallon, Vice President Car
ney and Treasury Madden, national Off
GERS of the Amalgamated Association,
were present. The lockout had reached
its Hath day. The vote that opened the
Homestead steel works to Amalgamated
men stood 101 ayes to 91 nays. The
meeting was a red hot one all the way
through, and at one time it looked as If
Burgess Hollingshead would have to as
sert his official authority to prevent Sc
rious conflict. Charges and counter
charges We're the order of the day.
According to Superintendent Wood,
of the Homestead works, not more than
800 or 900 of the total number of old
employees will be able to secure employ
ment. Before the break of last Thurs
day there We're left in Homestead about
2.S00 of the original $500 men who were
locked out on the 25th of June. OF these
2,S0O men Z, 200 were mechanics and la
borers, and 600 Amalgamated Associa-
ton men. Up to date / 100 men have
applied for work, and it is estimated that
not more than $50 men have been sup
piled with employment.
The Move to Open the Mills.
The question of declaring the mill
open began to agitate the minds of GER
tain Amalgamated men as sooA as it be-
came apparent that the mechanics in
tended breaking away IN a body Not
only the rank and file, but many of the
leaders recognized that without the
numerical aid of the mechanics and
laborers they could not hope to carry the
day. Money, or lack of it, also became
an important factor. The failure to re-
celye promised money, together with the
imminent OF other promises, all came in
for consideration. They could not sub
sist upon promises, and so told their
leaders, who seeing that it would be
useless to try to hold the men together
longer, took steps to place their brethren
upon equal footing with the mechanics
in the rush for work.
Saturdays meeting was attended ex-
clusively by Analgamated a ssociation
members, much to the chagrin and dis
appointment of the sympathetic me-
chanics, who were turned aside. They
turned to their homes in silence, hope
dead within them. The meeting was
not a large one, and considerable sur
prise attended the announced resigna-
ton of Chairman Crawford. When this
resignation had been accepted, striker
arose and moved that the lockout be de-
alp nt Al. Al
lowed to seek employment in the Home
stead mill Discussion of this question
continued until 9 p. m, when the meet
ing adjourned without result.
The Strike Declared on.
Yesterday the same question was taken
mp, but those for and against such a
move were afraid to force the question
to a vote, so evenly were they divided.
Only about three hundred men attended
yesterdays meeting. Those steel work
ers who have repeatedly stated that they
would prefer nakedness and starvation
rather Than acknowledge defeat, were in
the minority, and they knew it. Yet
they pleaded with their brethren to stand
firm, il for no other reason than to show
to the world that they had not forgotten
the men who were lying in prison cells
awaiting trial. 1t was of no avail. The
question was put, and the vote was u
standing one.
When Vice President Carney an
nounced the result there was no JOYOUS
outburst. There was no demonstration
such as that which followed the standing
vote of the mechanics declaring them
selves independent of the Amalgamated
Association. For few minutes tile
men sat and stared at each other Then
followed angry denuncations. The men
slowly left the hall in twos and threes.
They seemed 10th to leave the building,
the very rafters of which have quivered
with the declarations made thousand
times that victory was theirs if they
would only be patient.
The oft repeated declarations of the
Carnegie officials that the non-union
men will not be displaced to give EN-
ployment to the strikers renders ahso-
lntely no hope in Homestead for 2,OC0 of
the defeated steel workers.
AT no time ASs there been over 1900
new men in the works since the start
was made in'July. Counting every man
employed since the strike the total will
not exceed $500. In prosperous times
there We're employed $500 men. The
nominal number is 5000.