Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1894-08-16
PROBING FOR FACTS
First Session Of the National
Strike Commission.
IT GETS PROMPTLY TO IT'S WORK

Vice President Howard, Of the A. r. o.
the Firvt wituess-He Gives . State.
ment OF the Trouble at Pullman and ITS
Development Into . Strike on the Chi
csgo Railways, for Which Latter He
Blames the General Manager.
CHICAGO. Aug. 16-The investigation
into the A. R U. strike against Pullman
has begun before the special commission
appointed by President Cleveland. This
commission is not an arbitration commit
tee at all; its sole object is to find the
causes OF the trouble and the facts of its
progress and report them to the president.
Here its mission ends. The facts OBJ
tanned may or may not be used by the
president to recommend legislation to con-
gress. The commission is composed of
Carroll d. Wright. United States labor
commissioner, chairman; Judge N. E.
Worthington, Of Peoria, Ills, and John
d. Herman, OF New York. There was a
small audience, among those present be-
ing Vice President Howard, of the Amer.
lean Railway Union; Professor Bemis, of
the Chicago university; Ray Goodwin, of
the American Railway Union: President
Sovereign. of the knights of Labor, and
City Statistician Joseph Gruenhut The
solitary lady was Miss Elizabeth AIkofer,
recording secretary Of the Retail Clerks
association.
Howard the First Witness.
Howard Mt first objected that the inves-
tigation was based on the Illinois Central
and Rock Island railways, but Wright
said the investigation would be made sat
isfactory to all parties, and Howard pro-
ceeded to state that the general cause of
the trouble was the declaration Of the
general managers of the railway COM
panies that they would back Pullman in
the stand he had taken against his en-
ployes. This declaration he said was
made through the newspapers and in re-
ply to a question added that the news
paper accounts would be his source of in
formation as to such facts from beginning
to end OF his testimony. He understood
that General Manager ST. John and Mr..
Egan spoke for the railways.
As to the Pullman Strike.
Howard then detailed the progress of
the Pullman trouble. He said the Pull
man employees had decided to strike prior
to their organization into the American
Railway Union. He explained the object
Of the American Railway Union, and
promised to bring the laws of the order to
the commission. Howard said that he
advised Pullman's employees to return to
work, and that they did so because Pull
man had promised that the requests of
the employees should be looked into at
once. Wickes had promised Howard that
the members of the committee which had
waited on Pullman would not be dis
eliminated against by the company, and
yet three Of them were dismissed This
incensed the other employees and they quit
This he said was the beginning of the
Pullman strike.
Attempts at Arbitration.
Howard then told of the various efforts
OF the strikers committee, the American
Railway Cnion people, the civic fedora
ton and the city officials to induce Pull
man to submit the dispute to arbitration,
and how he had uniforml. replied that
he had nothing to arbitrate. Howard
next related how the American Railway
Union convention had agreed to handle
no more Pullman cars after a certain date
unless Pullman would consent to arbitra-
ton. Then the railway managers took
advantage Of the situation by refusing to
run mail trains unless they could haul
Pullmancars also. The men agreed not to
handle Pullman cars then, he said, and be
thought they had right to do this.