The herald., 1894-07-14
PULLMAN'S TALE OF WOE
The Marquis Makes a Long
Statement.
A Homily on the Injustice of
the Strike.
Criticisms Of the Press and People
Answered.
He Cannot Submit His Case to Arbitrs-
tors Who Might Decide That He
Shall Run His Business
at Loss.

By this Associated Press
New YORK, July 13.-George N. Pull
man has issued q lengthy statement of
the attitude of his company in reference
to the strike, its cause, its merits and its
settlement. He does not declare def
nitely toward submitting to arbitration,
but urges that it would be unbusiness-
like to concede to an arbitration which
might decide that the Pullman works be
operated at loss.
There is hardly anything new to be
said as 10 the position OF the Pullman
company" said Mr.. Pullman this even
ing, "but have 60 many Indications Of
the facility with which my expressions
and those authorized by me have become
distorted and thus misleading to the
public, and of an entire forgetting OF
garment efforts to prevent the strike,
that perhaps it is we'll that should
again make public assurance that the
deplorable events of the last few weeks
have not been caused by the Pullman
company taking an obstinate stand on q
debatable manner and refusing to listen
to reason. The leaders OF disorder have
not hesitated to harass the public by all
means in their power, because as they
say the Pullman company would not
submit to arbitration, and now that dis
order is to be quelled, they are reinforced
in their clamor for arbitration by some
prominent newspapers, but, 30 far as
know, by very few, if any, bueiness men
of the country.
"What is the demand concealed under
the innocently sounding word 'arbirra-
tion?' A little more than a year ago
the shops at Pullman were in prosper
GUS condition; work was plenty wages
were high and the condition of the en-
ployees was indicated by the fact that
the local savings bank had savings de-
posted in it amounting to 10000, of
which nearly all was the property OF the
employees. Our pay rolls for that year
chow an average earning OF over 5000
per annum for every person, man,
woman or youth on. the roll. Then
came the great panic and depression of
last Summer. Many customers stopped
negotiations and cancelled orders and
our working force had to be reduced
from nearly 6000 to 1000 in November,
1898.
The great business depression exist.
ing throughouS the country had ma.
turally resulted in a wage depression
and the only hopes OF getting orders
WAS by bidding for work at prices lower
than could be made by other shops, and
this, of course, necesBitated q reduction
in the wages OF the employees at Pull
man. This was arranged, as l supposed.
and in close competition, disregarding
all account of capital and machinery, l
secured enough Of work to gradually in
crease our force to 1900, the number on
the roll last April. Nine weeks ago the
car shops at Pullman were working at
car building contracts on hand enough
to keep them going for about go days,
and with business forecasts leading to
the belief that new orders could soon be
had. The most important of the work
in hand had been taken by me in COM
petition at prices which were less than
the actual cost to the company of deliv-
ering, without any reckoning for the
use OF capital and plant. This work
was taken to keep the large force OF men
employed and to postpone, and with the
hope of avoiding mum berless embsrrass-
ments to all classes of people at Pull
man and it's vicinity, closing down Of
the works, to prevent which. the COM
pany considered it wins policy to oper-
ate the shops temporarily at an actual
loas.
I'm this condition OF things came the
agitation seeking to create labor organ.
ization embracing all railway employees
and apparently all other industries. In
the early part of May committee OF
the employees demanded q restoration
OF the wages of year ago. l explained
to this committee minutely and labori-
ously the factu, showing that the com.
pany was already paying them more
than it was receiving for the contract
work, and offered them for complete
assurance and to end al question, an
inspection of our books and contracts in
hand. This, and the beginning at once
at Pullman of a promised careful inves-
tigstion of o number of shop complaints,
seemed to end all trouble; but day
later under the excitement OF their re-
cruitlng into a new organization, the
workmen closed the shops, thus them
selves doing what l wss strenuously
trying to prevent being done, and the
employees who.quit their work have de-
prived themselves and their comrades OF
ohthinEb VI MORO tlau POUu.UUU up To
this time. The demand made before
quitting work was that the wages
should be restored to the scale OF last
year, or in effect that the actual outgo.
ing MONEY losses should be increased to
an amount equal to about one-fourth of
tho wages of the employees.
ut must be clear to every business
man, and to every thinking working
man, that no prudent employer should
commit such piece of business folly.
Arbitration always implies acquieaence
in the decision of the arbitrator, whether
favorable or adverse. How could /, as
president of the Pullman company. con-
sent to agree to that ii any body of men
not concerned with the interests of the
company's shareholders should, as RIbi-
traitors, for any reasons seemingly good
to them, decide that l should open the
chops. employ workmen at wages greater
than their work should be settled for,
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