The sun., 1893-08-22
400 'LONGSHOREMEN OUT.
THEY WOULD NOT ACCEPT n RE
DUCIION OF FIVE CENTS An HOUR.

DOS11oN Op FAFh ShNAo AN 0OChs
Ward and Mallory Lines Badly Hampered-
Tho Clyde Limo Also AGected-Poiieemen
Disporse strikers Who Gather In the
Street.-The Men Talk OF Organizing.
Tho steam ship lines announced q reduction
OF pay to tho 'longshoremen yesterday. and
as q result about 400 went on strike. Togeth-
er with the strikers between 500 and 600
stevedores and 'longshoromen out OF work
congregated in front Of the saloons in South
street.
1t has been customary to pay 'longshoremen
80 cents an hour for day work and 35 cents an
hour for night work. The day shift goes on
at 7 A. NJ. and tho night shift at 2. NJ. The
companies assert that on account OF the pre-
vaiing dulness in trade their freight traffic
has become so small that these wages cannot
be continued. They therefore reduced the rate
from 80 cents to rs. and from 35 cents to 80
Superintendent Healy OF tho Clyde Steam
ship Company. whose piers are Is. %. 90 33.
and "a East River. called together the long
sheremen who are employed by his line and
told them what had been decided upon. Tho
men. to the number Of about 800 listened to
the announcement and then gathered in
groups to discuss the matter. At first there
was considerable dissatisfaction. but the
CTONu eOOu ulNlueu luLO lWO luCllOub. one OL
which was in favor OF accepting the reduction.
tho other being in favor OF striking. A strike
might have proved a great inconvenience to
the Clyde line. as their steamship Seminole is
now loading at Pier %. under the Brooklyn
Bridge. and is due to sail at 3 o'clock this az
ternoon.
Superintendent Healy explained to the mon
that the reduction would probably not be
permanent. and about one hundred went to
work loading the ship. The others stood
about In South street and talk ed OF the
''scabs" who had submitted to the reduction.
The IonGshoremen have no organization. 80
that It was impossible for them to act as O
body.
The Mallory line. whose pier is at the foot Of
Fulton street. made the same reduction. and
every 'longshoreman in their employ left tho
company's piers There is only one ship. the
Bio Grand. lying there now. and her unload
ing was completed early yesterday morning
There was. therefore. no work for the etave-
Texas and Lam pasas are expected to arrive
within the next two days
port and viii not return for several weeks
The longshoremen fear that the other two
hag hps @ aso ss b Laid t tn snd
Superintendent .Connors could not get work
men Of any kind. and he spent most Of the
bales himself The he strike % on this line throws
about 200 men out Of work.
Ward line piers: Dock sapsrinte aden Mt Gibbs's
office is at pier 1e. foot Of Wall street. and
Who
duty turned, thei backs on him and walked
across the street Mr.; Gibbs did what he could
m man to return. W The Company then got two two
tugs. one Of which was despatehSd to Have
and the other to Hoboken. la "A large
number Of men were reported out Of
that all the men had gone to work again. The
esssfuI s % NM Mr Gibbs. thereiore. found himseif
In z tight place. because the Saratoga was
trucks with m eroha andise to 60 aboard Of her.
The Saratoga is scheduled to sail for Havana
on board each ship that is being loaded there
are nftee1 men en- known ma as hea aeaders They wGrx
the found
he could not secure any 'lonGshoremen he got
The 'longshoremen across the street said un-
pleasant things but offered no Violence
oeosi s Gb
The & M the ia and
Cortright sent Policeman Bowers who dis
persed tho loiterers. But Mr.. Gibb became
to tho police station. Four more policemen
were sent down. The immediate cause of this
last demand was a rather riotous dem onstra-
tion on the part OF the unemployed in front of
When at o'clock 1t became evident that
hundred men would be needed to load the
Saratoga Superintendent Gibbs sent Foremen
Shields, White. and Mulyey across the street
to work. There were fully $50 men In the
group on the corner. and they received the !
foremen with boots and cat calls. The fore |
men made such good argument. however, |
that f1ve 'longshoremen weakened and started |
for the pier. There was an outbreak OF threat
ening language. and the foremen feared that |
the strikers would attemptto interfere with the |
ditional police officers came however. the idle |
men dispersed into the neighhoring saloons
and made n o further demonstration.
:. A clerk employed In the ofice OF the Ward |
line at 1l3 Wall street said last night: Not |
oniylhas the e'longshoremen's pay been reduced. |
but the foremen OF the fRangs. the superin- |
tendenJ Of the docks. and the clerks have had
tn heir salaries docked about ten per cent.
month. Mr.; Booth, the President OF the com
old basis and refund tho money we shall lose
by this whenever business picks UP sufficient
ly to warrant It,"
There has been as yet no trouble at the piers
oi the Spanish line or the hunson line. both OF
which run steamers to southern Cuban ports
They are. to a certain extent rivals Of tho
Ward and Clyde lines. but they have fewer
steamers and pay rates averaging five cents
An hour moro. They have made no reduc-
tion.
The 'lougshoremen at present on strike
number about 400. They are backed up in
their protestations by about as many more
men who are ont Of work. 1t was said yester-
Bhoremen tomorrow night for the purpose of
organizing. either in Pythagoras Hall or In
Alssch's Hall in Pearl street.