Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-02-20
DEFENDS THE COMPANY.

Manager Herring Claims the Adams Ex-
press Messengers Have No Cause for
Complaint-No Necessity for a Brothef-
hood-No Fears of Strike.
John @. A. Herring, manager of the
Adams Express Company for the Eastern
division, and his assistant, ii. M. Forbes, of
Philadelphia. are registered at the Monon-
gahela House. Mr.. Herring said he was
here on one of his regular visits. When
asked if he didn't think it was q hardship to
discharge the messengers the old gentleman
looked over his glasses rather severely, and
entered into lengthy defense of the COM
pany.
'No, sir, he replied, "we have not been
unjust. feel sorry for many of the poor
fellows who thoughtlessly joined the
Brotherhood. Our men have nothing to
complain of, and / can see no necessity
for union. The company has
no objection to an organization
of it's employees for pleasure or mutual
benefit, but we have our business to protect
and won't be coerced. The messengers are
well paid, and if they worked at anything
else, they wouldn't receive half the money.
They are not expert accountants and
wouldn't make clerks"
,,'But the men claim that baggage men,
who do the same work, receive 25 per cent
more in wages" interposed the exporter.
THAT may be true" the manager an
swered. ''We can only pay what our busl-
ness affords If somebody in another line
of trade can pay more to his employees than
we do that is not our fault. When some of
our men are hurt or sick we continue their
wages. 1t is true We don't pay
all of them under such cir
cumstances. We have whole
army of employees, and must discriminate.
Some men, you know, will play off sick, or
go to bed for week when they cut finger
Such men are not deserving. The Adams
Express Company has large number of
pensioners, and the time was when used
to pay the funeral expenses when employees
died. Many of the men are improvident
and never think of looking out for rainy
day. But to meet such emergencies, two in
surance companies were organized for the
benefit of the men, so that there was no
necessity for an organization among the
messengers. The managers of the Adams
Express Company have come up from the
ranks, and they know how to sympathiZe
with the messengers. The company aims
always to be fair and just.
AS for the charge, that messengers were
compelled to pay S15 per year to an insur-
ance company to bond them for $4,000,
don't know anything about it. If such
concern exists, 1t is outside of the company,
and we have nothing to do with it,
Mr.. Herring denied that e1-President
Hoey was organizing another express COM
pany. He said the Adams had a contract
for a long time with the Pennsylvania road,
and the most friendly relations exist be-
tween the two companies. They pay the
railroad large sum of money and the latter
furnishes them with good facilities to
handle the business; they have no COM
plant to make. Mr.. Herring said he had
no fear that the Federation of Railway
Employees would take up the
cudgel for the discharged messengers. The
Federation has no money to spend in such
a cause, and like all large labor combira-
tions has enough to do to take care of ITSELF
Mr.. Herring says the men on the Pennsyl-
vania road are not organized.
All the plans and arrangements for the
new building on Liberty street, near Tenth
street, have been made. The work will be
commenced this spring, in all probability.
1t Will be erected by the railroad