The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1892-07-22
STRIKERS CONFIDENT.
Amalgamated Association Leaders CT q
to Hold the Winning Hand.

Amalgamated Association Leaders Cla
to Hold the Winning Hand.
HOMESTEAD, Pa, July 18.-The sit
uation here is on the eve of its crisis.
The Carnegie company will endeavor to
begin repairing operations preliminary
to reopening the mills, and it has asked
the workmen, mechanics and repairing
force to return to their old places These
workmen have met and decided to re-
main out. 1t has also given public no.
tlce that such CORNER employees of the
Homestead plant who are satisfactory
to the company may file applications for
employment by 6 o'clock on Thursday
evening. These offers foreshadow
change i'll the situation for they show
the determination of the company to
start its mills, and are believed to be pre-
hminary only to the employment of nom
union men if they fail to have the effect
intended. When the offers became
known the news created the greatest ex-
citement among the locked out workers.
but In outward appearance the men
were unlnfiuenced by them in their de-
termination to
Fight the Battle to the Bitter End.
1t is claimed by the leaders of the
strikers that the Amalgamated associa-
lions holds the winning hand, no mat
ter what may happen. If the mills are
started by non-union men they contend
that the mistakes that will occur and the
heavy financial losses consequent to
them, will cause the company to shut
down the mills in sheer self-interest. The
quality of the produce turned out by
the unskilled labor will be SO inferior.
say the leaders, that it cannot find
market. If the produce is ready for
shipping, it is claimed that a greater
difficulty will confront the company in
the refusal of railroad men in handling
any material turned out in the Carnegie
works. Even if this fail the locked out
workers claim they have another trump
card to play. This is the action of
unions OF carpenters and many organ
lzations composed of men engaged in
the construction of buildings and other
structures in refusing not 70 perform
work on any erection on which products
from the Carnegie mills are used. With
these and other circumstances to support
them the locked out workmen of Home
stead, with strong financial backing.
hope to bring the Carnegie company to
the terms dictated by the Amaigsmated
association.
Cost of the Strike.
Both sides admit that there is no i'm
mediate prospect of settlement of the
strike, and already the cost is consider
ably more than 100000 Every day
that the works are idle it costs the Car
negie company $4,000. It is nineteen
days since the workmen went out and
the wheels stopped moving. That means
a loss of S95O,00O to the company. The
military have been under arms a week,
and at $50, 900 per day have cost the state
of Pennsylvania $4,000. The cost to
the company and the state now foots up
100000, and is piling up at the rate
OF S7O,OO0 day. In addition to all this
the workmen lose their wages and ten
men have lost their lives The destruc-
ton OF property has not been great, as
the barges burned were inexpensive. A
question of inquiry on the lips of the
people is how long will the Carnegie
company hold out and how long will the
taxpayers Of the state remain quiet and
permit the cost of the strike to swell.