The World. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1891-1896, 1893-02-07
BAD OUTLOOK.
Greatest Railway Strike Of tho
Age Threatened.
The Aim Of It's Promoters. Il IS Said
Is q General Uprising
o. u~norgaalsed workmen-Every Kind ~
support. However, WIN ne Welcomed
"A Great Enort Was Made 20 Keep
the Movement = strict secrst.

h Movement = strict ssorst.
cmIoAeo. Feb IA morning paper
Monday contained the following: Dark
shadows Of nm impending strike IN
lowering like Nightmares over many II
not all the railroad lines entering CHI
cago On authority from several relia-
bio sources Il soemam more than probable
that within ton days d hcrculean ~
tempt will be made 10 tie up cyery loco
motive and car III the city and paralyzo
the traffic on many thousands Of miles
Of track.
80 apprehcnsive have the officials oi
one 81 the eastern trunk lines become
that Il is reliably reported they are ro-
fusing east- bound traffic from wostorn
lines Starting with the u~norgnnixed
sw itchmen tho dissatisfaction has
spread until il Ii claimed tho yariork
branches Of unorganixed employees viii
unite in y Of the most determined
strikes ever known In railroad annals
Tho switchmen Of Chicago have DE-
ctded 10 demand an advance Of 1--WE
cents per hour In their present pay. and
10 strike II they do not get II Thu
important action was taken Sunday nt
a meeting of committees representing
the twcnty-seven railroad yards IN this
city. Tho new scale demands thirty and
thirty-hve cents per hour respectively
for day helpers and foremen and thirty.
five and forty cents per hour respective
" for helpers and foremcn working ~
night
n.y.. - Ian *. ~ . Az
several roads centering here Is soon ~
petitions can be circulated among the
men II the respective yards and ! ma
jority Of the signatures secured.
Tho peculiar feature Of tho movement
Is thnt the regular organizations Of tho
switchmcn are entirely. ignored In the
new move und thRiYit Is i sort Of gone
raj movement on the part Of the men
irrespective Of the old organizations.
One Of the men who are prominent Ii
the new move said; This Is not q new
thing by any means. but We have been
very careful that mr. aims and object
should not become generally known.
N has bcen seriously considered ever
since the failure OK the Buffalo strike.
After that affair the men got to talk.
INK M1a#A& ANtNNEAtEhENN~ SNEAI NLH.ME
i~zations were failures owing Is the
way they were conducted. Strike after
strike proved 10 DO a failure through
MISUNDERSTANDING and mistakes Of tho
head men Of our organization. and Il
became general talk among tho men
that the only way BY which railroad
could ever improve their condition
would be by a popular uprising. We
concluded to make an effort on our own
account without the guidance or aeslst-
Of the unions at all. / don't
to say that individual memhersof
the unions will not support us; on the
contrary, they will help us, but they
will not 20 into the movement a.
members of the unions, MOI will they
out Of IL when ordered 70 do 20 By
the officials Of the unions. In other
words, II II becomes necessary for MS 70
1t will not be done BY the order
Of tho union officials. nor win their
mandate be effective IN determining
such a strike of.
.'The RINK and file OF the men are
heartily sick Of the way strikes have
been managed. and they propose to try
. hand at the problem IN q more demo-
cratic way in the future. We have had
4 little too much union In one direction
and not enough HI the other. There Ii
no lack Of officials drawing salaries.
while a great majority Of tho mon en-
in the various limos arc kept ont
Of the unions because Of the arbitrary
and inea imposed BY these weik
paid officialA The men 10 d man agree
that the wages Of railroad men gener-
ally are too low, and they also express
\ willingness 70 60 into a popular move.
ment TO secure the same and never rive
up until they secure it,
The greatest efforts have been made
TO keep the whole movement 4 secret
and in this tho men have 10 1
great extent been successful, Only Z
few vogue hints leaked out, and these
gave rise 70 all sorts Of rumors, but d
til Sundays meeting nothing really
definite was known regarding the OBJ
ject Of the move.
kilograms from points along the line
Of the Pennsylvania railroad indicate
that company expects trouble 81
early date over tho question Of
wages. as they have refused perishable
at many points destined to Chi
and the Pittsburgh, FL Wayne 4
Chicago railroad officials here have de.
clined TO receive such freight on the
grounds that they expect trouble on the
road with their engineers