The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-03-15
LABOR BATTLE IN PROSPECT.

for More Wages-The situation on tho
Toledo, Ann Arbor & Northern Michigan
Line.
CHICAGO, March 10-Without a dis
senting vote the general managers OF
the railroads entering Chicago deter
mined at their meeting last evening TO
refuse any demands of the Switchmen's
Mutual association. An answer was
sent to the switchmen by the general
managers Of the thirty-two roads CEN
tering in Chicago declining to grant any
increase over the present schedule OF
rates and enclosing the following res
olution, which was passed unanimously
at the meeting:
Resolved That this association has carefully
examined the schedule OF wages PAID by tne
Chicago roads TO foremen andhelpers In sWltch.
ing service and that It finds that the scale OF
wages paid on the Chicago lines Is practically
uniform; and we find that the switchmen OF
Chicago and vicinity are now paid the hlghest
rate ever paid for a similar service ana hlgher
than is paid in many localities
Further, That the revenue from freight ana
passenger traflc has constantly deereaseu anu
the cost Of the service has constantly increaseu
| TO the extent that no advance In wages can DC
| granted and that no change can DO naue holi
| the present schedules OF rates anecung tno
compensation OF men engaged in this service
This answer was sent to the ofhcers
of the switchmen's association yester-
dav afternoon and ends the trouble SO
far as the managers are concerned. Inc
switchmen have not yet determined
what course they will pursue and OIL
GERS OF the association decline to discuss
the situation.
II they should decide to strike, the
fight against them would be a bitter
one, as the general managers OF the
thirty-two roads have determined to
act as a unit and fight the men as one
road. A still more significant deter
mination reached by the general man
agers is an agreement to discharge all
union men on their lines in case the
roads should be crippled by strike oi
switchmen. This viii apply to engi-
neers, conductors, firemen and in fact
all branches Of organized railroad labor
The general managers say they Will
not pay union men for doing nothing
! when their idleness is enforced by
strikers to whom they are giving ana
/ and encouragement In the event oi a
, general dismissal of union men the va
, cancies are TO be filed as rapidly as
possiblv with non-union men, the roads
q 10 act in concert in securing new men
, and TO distribute them according to the
!, needs Of the individual roads Chief oi
, Police McClaughey was present Mt th'
h general managers meeting and prom
ised all aid in his power to enforce or
der in event of strike.
ToLEDo, O., March 1O-When th'
= Ann Arbor engineers and hremen wen
out Wednesday, they left the engine
n and loaded freight trains where the.
n happened to be on the road and the ney
e hands have had all they could do haul
4 ing dead engines back to the roun'
d houses and clearing the main tracks o
d freight cars The Ann Arbor official
& claim 10 have more than enough neN
men TO fill all the places vacated an
T. they sent out circulars to their conneC
% tions saying as much and stating tina
d they would receive freight as usua
'. To a reporter General Manager Ash
o lev said: "0ur line Is principally
y freight line. We pay little attention
,r passenger business and 90 per cent
d the men are In the freight service W
l. pay our freig ht engineers clio cents
N mile. The Lake Shore pays old me
q but 1.l0 of q cent more and It's new me
$40 less We pay lilo OF a cent p'
mile more than the Ohio Central lint
and pay more than any other Michign
ct road with the exception Of one. 1t
s- unfair TO say that we don't pay hone
re wages As soon as our new organic
ID tion is in working order we viii! run Il
IL principal passenger trains and will p'
IN on four freight trains Immediately"
ig The ditching of No 4, the mail trai
sc at Ann Arbor, Wednesday night, w
OF not the work Of strikers The accide,
nr was caused by washout The engil
MT was run by regular man who hi
been on it for ten years, so 1t cannot
10 laid TO an inexperienced new hand.
re The Ann Arbor has offered no freig
AZ to any road as yet although it
na claimed that it has plenty of men
RI run its business. This is looked up
IS MS evidence that such a proceedii
would precipitate general upheav
he on all connecting lines here, of viii
he there are ten or more, including t
ID Wabash, Clover Leaf, Ohio Centr
.ra Wheeling Sc Lake Erie, PennsylvaI
IN and Cincinnati jackson & Mnckina
~ and II possible II is desired TO ward
l;c such a catastrophe. Hence both SIC
m. are laying back and watching for
ali openinQ. The crisis Is awaited with
te- little anxiety.
bi 1t can be positively asserted that
me trunk lines OF the country have
ng couraged the commencement OF I
Iay contest, and have guaranteed the A
,de Arbor liue financial and moral suppo
tu- It is an experiment, and II success
es- general war will be declared on
Brotherhood Of Locomotive Enginee
the most powerful Of labor societ
", and the backbone Of trainmen's org
izations.
Two trains are the sum total
81 freight movement on the Toledo a
~ ~ Arbor & North Michigan railroad Thu
. day. The first was sent out at s:SS
ro the morning and the second reacl
". here last night ut 1880. This latter
M n considerable freight for the Lake Sh
ea M and Wheeling & Lake Erie roads, VIII
49,. was promptly accepted by those lii
M oMus Passenger traffic Is moving as us'
mes Chief Arthur has left town and Is
on placed by his assistant, A. b. Yongs
'ru- Chief Sargent u directing the frem