The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-03-27
CRISPINS STRIKE.
A Labor Difficulty on Jes-
sic Street.
SHoEMAKERS ARE ANGRY
Factory Operators Claim That the
Teams Who Turn Out Shoes Are
Skilled Mechanics.

There is trouble in the big shoe factory
at 25 Jessie street, of which William w.
Glanville and the Owen Jones estate are the
reputed owners
The word "reputed" is used adyfsedly.
for Jones died about three weeks ago, and
II is not known what arrangements have
been made for supplying his place in the
Co-partnership.
This is not the cause of the trouble, how
ever. 1t is no less matter than strike,
which may spread by contagion to the other
big shoe factories aud affect many hundreds
Of men. From Third street to Jessie street
Is composed largely Of shoe factories and
small houses tenanted by the operatives, so
that the voice of the people Is pretty loudly
heard there just now.
MI Glauyille was out of town when a
CALL reporter visited his residence at 15i u
Valencia street yesterday. 1t was learned
mat lie had gone on a business trip TO
Shasta County.
Apparently Mr.. Granville did not think
very seriously of the strike, which was
really inaugurated last Monday; but the
Wofkmen are taking q grave view of the
situation, and predict trouble
Here are the simple facts in the case"
said one Of them. There are employed in
the wholesale shoe manufacturing business
number OF men who are called turner's
They are supposed to he experts in their
trade and to be able TO take up the parts of
\ shoe and turn tie thing out complete.
The usual course is for two of them TO work
tgether, forming what is called a team.
Working together in this way the turn
ers. have been accustomed to earn from S25
to $40 week for each man.
Nv hat the Granville & Jones firm now
want IS to TeOrganize this business alto
gether. and instead oil the team of two work
ing together, TO have a laster, stretcher
heeleT and bottom fnisher.
"One result of this change would be to
reduce me wages OF some of the turner's by
nearly $50 week, for men VINO are now
getting from $50 tu $40 a week Will only be-
able to make about SIS week.
Then, too, the firm want 10 have all the
work done on piece al a cut of cents on the
dozen pairs Of shoes.
Aud this IS not all They have intro
duced machine for weting that will re-
place lot OF men who are now doing the
WORK by hand labor"
These are the reasons why the strike was
begun last Monday. There are now thirty
i've men out.
It was ascertained that an effort has been
MADE To compromise the dispute and that
the factory Is still running.
There Is no saying where this thing is
going to end, said a workman In a neigh
boring shoe factory TO the reporter As a
rule strikes In the shoe trade d o not paw and
some OF them have ended very badly for the
strikers, while in other cases factories have
been closed up BY the owners rather than
come 10 terms. The turner's" are skilled
men ana 10 not care about seeing their craft
cut mp ana dlstTlhu;et, as it were, among a
number OF hands, not one of whom could
GO what turner can do. 1t Looks like big
pay Tor man to get from $50 to $40 a week,
but IT takes years Of practice to enable an
operative 10 do what these teams OF turn
ers" can do. The two men really do the
WORK oil -FOUR and 90 II better than four men
ever couIl, because turning is an art in
Itself. II Is as If you tried to run an en-
CINE with four men Instead Of one, each
man having his own idea Of what the result
should be and trying to carry it out in de-
pendenty.
''Supposing you have all the parts of shoe
before You, me uppers, the soles the Nelts
and the musings ready to hand, you could
not 20 10 work and make pair of shoes
without the long years Of practice which
these turner's have given to their work
mat Is the way they look at It a all events.
lhey say that II the cl ange is introduced
into one factory it will go b ough all Of
them, and the long apprenticeship they have
gone through will be all thrown away.
Ihey are not denying that the proprietors
OF business have a right TO conduct il as
they please in a certain sense, but the m en-
OBJECT TO being reduced at one stroke from
skilled artisans to mere drudEes. To cut
up the turner's teams into four and FIVE
branch trades IS to lower the standard Of
Work, cut down wages and inaugurate a
regular Monaghan school Of labor
Il don't know what Mr. Granville is 60
ing 10 DO about IT, but / 40 know that the
other manufacturers are watching things
very closely. II he succeeds ia reducing
the standard of production just for the
sake Of saving a few dollars the other fac
tories will have to follow suit, and II is all
we can do now TO stand against Eastern
competition. When once il comes to cheap,
Inferior goods We are not in it with the
Eastern makers of leather goods. The only
chance for the shoe trade here is to keen up
high standard OF white-labor goods and
depend on our people to support u.s."
we are NOT organized now" said another
operative. ''and the chances are that we
Will have TO make our fight alone. We
used to have White Labor League. but it
broke up about a year and half ago."