The record-union., 1893-10-14
TRANSFERS ON A STRIKE.
They Say that Bates Cut Them Down
to Starvation Rates.
The Men Declare They Cannot Support
Themselves and Teams at the
Twenty-Cent Figures

Eighty teamsters quit work yesterday
on the Y-street leyee, where they had
been working on the contract taken by
George o. Bates. They had been hauling
dirt for upward of a mile, from Mouton
d MilIer's pit. for which Bates paid them
% cents load. In order to make So per
dav for themselves and teams they have
been forced to run their horses from the
dump back to the pit, making 1t very
hard on the teams.
The men felt that they were making lit
tie enough at - cents, but as they were
getting nearer the pit and the haul was
becoming shorter they had calculated on
making up their loss in that way. They
did not dream that the contractor had
also taken this fact into consideration. SO
on Thursday night. when Bates notified
the teamsters that he would pay but 20
cents for hauling to the levee between
Fourth street and the river, the men re-
solved to quit.
Yesterday morning the eighty team
sters drove their wagons in line upon
the levee and informed Bates that they
would not haul for any such sum as ~
cents a load. He refused to yield, how
ever, and after holding the fort' for sew
erale hours and preventing Bates own
teams from working, the men drove
away to the camp.
Bates says the men did not haul full
loads, and those who worked well made
s. q day easily. He swore he would not
raise the price again to twenty-five cents.
= Bates took the contract at very low
figure, and contractors at that time did
not hesitate to say that he would lose
money. 1t is supposed he is trying to
l. ,e,alf l. Il ,iF1rr r1nrar
A large delegation of the teamsters
called at the RECORD UNION office last
night. They stated that the only men who
were able to make s. a day were few
who went to work at daylight and worked
till after dark, and it was impossible for
any man to make over that amount, un-
less he had an extra shoveler to help him.
As for the small loads, they said there
were none hauled until Bates announced
his intention to cut down the prices, and
then few men cut down the size of their
loads.
The men were very moderate in their
language, but declared that Bates had
done them an Injustice. AS one Of them
put it: "If he will turn out himself and
try it he will find that shoveling is hard
work, and we are not as lazy as he thinks.
Thirteen loads day is all that man can
haul, and at 20 cents a load he would get
just 81 90 day for himself and team.
Men cannot live on such earnings and
feed their teams, and we simply won't
try to do it.'
Another said: ''pn guarantee to work
for 81 so day, and that's little enough
for any man, if Bates will feed my horses
and pay for the wear and tear of harness,
wagon and shovels."
Later on another delegation called.
They said they were, like most of the
others, from Yolo.
''Bates told us,'' said Spokesman
Charles Dodge. "that if we would come
over here with our teams he would give
us % cents load clear through. We
hustled up all we could get and came
here-some all the way from Woodland.
Now that we are here, and just when
there is a prospect that we could make
two bits day more than expenses, he
takes advantage of the situation and cuts
us down to 20 cents a load.
There are probably twenty more Yolo
men who were about to come over here
with their teams, but guess they'll turn
and go back when they find out how
things are."
The Yoloites warmly resented the re-
mark credited to Bates, that they were
lazy set, and indeed they did not look
like it. They were all young, Industrious
looking men, and talked as if they were
earnest in their desire to labor for not
only fair but even low wages.