Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1894-07-13
FRIDAY MORNING, JULY 10. 1894.
THE EVENTS OF THE STRIKE.

THE EVENTS OF THE STRIKE.
To understand the bearing of the strike
which has occupied the attention of the
country for some two weeks, it is well to
go back to the beginning. In the suburbs
OF Chicago the Pullman Car Company has
built a city at which it manufactures sleep
ing and other passenger cars, employing as
high as five thousand men. 1t has been a
prosperous, ideal working community, the
wages of the men have averaged $12 week
and the worl4men had laid aside of their own
savings over half million dollars. which
was deposited i'll the Pullman Savings
Bank, After the busy car building period,
the result of the Worlds Fair, the demand
dropped and the works had to lay off three
fourths Of the employees. Desiring to retain
it's position in the car building market and
to give work to its men, the company made
a proposition to the men through the fore
men that il they would take lower wages,
the company itself would take contracts
for cars at the low rates ruling and give
ND its own profit. Tne men agreed to this:
and by undertaking other firms and taking
work often at a loss, sufficient car building
was gotten to pat the whole force back at
work. Some three weeks ago, though the
prices Of car building had not improved and
though many contracts had Still to be taken
at loss to secure them, the men demanded
a Is PET cent. increase in their wages. The
,f,,c cd 70 II q ND fhQ WOJ! n n
went out. The company refused to
submit to arbitration, saying it
would meet and consult with its
employees if it WAS desired, but il
would consult with no labor union and
submit it's business to no outside arbitra
ton. It would manage it's business it.
self OF let the works stay closed.
At this point a labor union. called the
American Railway Union, of which Eugene
V. Debbs is President, came upon the
field. 1t is strong in the West bnt has not
MANY members in the East and South
DebDs ordered strike Of its members Oh
all railroads that employed Pullman cars.
The order was obeyed and in three days
JnoIc WAS u SGllhS UlilOuSH tllO W ODV oiu
Northwest from Cincinnati to San Fran!
cisco. 1t is claimed that $4,000 men went
off the railroads. This did not include ths
brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers
which does not belong to the Union, nol
did it include the larger number OF thu
FRENCH The railroads therefore with en-
gineers and fremen attempted to go OF
with their business. The city Of Chicago
was made the centre Of the awless demon
STATIONS OF the strikers, and i'll that cit,
nearly q thousand railroad cars were burned
by them, towers destroyed, yards burned.
and a general scene Of violence and deStruc-
tion followed. The Mayor OF Chicago and
the Governor OF Illinois seemed to synp:-
lize with the strikers rather than with
the law, and did nothing.
Here came in the firm viii and strong
hand Of President Cleveland. The striker:
having interfered with the carriage of tiis
mails and violated the Interstate com
merce law by refusing to let trains pro
coed from State to State, he ordered Fed
eral troops to the scene. The anarchistic
Governor Of Illinois, Atgeld, the same Whr
pardoned the anarchists last year, protes
tie against the President sending troops
to Illinois without his asking for thein
The President issued proclamation warn
ing all rioters to cease tIieir work aud se
still more troops to Chicago. Tle day
after this, he issued another proclamation
warning rioters in Dakota, Colorado, Cali
fornia aud other Western States where rio:
ing against railroads had begun, to desist.
He answered Atgeld that he was acting
under the constitution of the Quilted State
and should continue SO to do.
Atgeid WAS forced by the increased riot
ing to call out State troops. These troop
as well as the Z. S. regulars, had some con
fiicts with the people in Chicago and a
Hammond, Ind, in which some eight OF
ten people were shot,
A farce WAS here injected into these tragic
scenes 10y Debs publishing a proclamation
offering to Cleveland the aid of his cR-
burners to keep, the peace! On Tuesday
the U. S. Court at Chicago net and Debs
and three more CT the American Railway
Union leaders were indicted, arrested, and
gave bail to appear for trial for interfering |
with the passage Of the mails and the work
ing OF Interstate railroads. AS reply to |
this, GRIND Master Sovereign, the head OF |
the Knights of Llbor in this country, |
issued All order calling upon all mem bers
Of that order in whatever occupation, to |
strike. The response to this call, SO far,
has not been large
In the mean time strong speeches have
been made in the US. Senate 10y Gen. Cor
don and others supporting President Cleve-
land, and a resolution offered by Senator
Daniel, endorsing his course, has been
adopted. The whole country, without re
gard to party, is endorsing him.
The latest news up to yesterday evening |
an early ending OF the strike:
Chicago was quiet and the trains were
running.
The additional returns Of delegates in
this district show that Bath endorses
Tucker by resolution and sends Tucker
and l Flood delegates. Botetourt endorses
J. II. Fl. Figgatt, and after him the dele
CATION, it is stated, stands Tucker IL,
Flood T. The two Buena Vista delegates
say they are for Shepherd first and Tucker
second.