The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-08-23

lSuik put were tol0 rna5 they wer
not needed.
''These are utterly destitute. Tn
relief committee has exhausted its re
sources. IL seems to me your com
pany can not afford to have me appea
10 the charity and humanity Of tn
state to save the lives of your old EN-
ployes. Four-tiths of these peopl
are women and children. No matte
what caused this distress it must bt
met.
"If you will allow me l will max,
this suggestion: If you had shu
down your works last fall when you
say business was poor, you
would not have expected to gel
any rent from your tenants. Now
while a dollar is large sum to these
people all the rent now due is com
paratiyely small matter to you. II
you will cancel all trent to Oct. you
would be as well off as if you haG shu
down. This would enable those who
are at work to meet their most pres
sing wants.
Then, if you cannot give work to
all, work some half time, so all can at
least get something to eat for their
antilles. This will give immediate
ielief to the whole situation
IN this way something like
Ia normal condition could be re-
established at Pullman before winter
and you would not be any worse off
than you would have been had you
shut down year ago"
Mr. Pullman replied at length, max
ing reference to Governor Altgeld's
declination of the escort of Vice Presi-
dent Wickes yesterday, which fact
Mr.. Pullman regretted. Mr.. Pullman
hten continued: "As an indication of
the Importance of the lack of local
knowledge in making essential dis
ordinations, may say to you that I
have the best reason for believing that
the husband of q wife who is published
as representing her family TO you yes
terday as in need of help, drew more
than $1,000 of his savings from
q bank only July for the
purpose, as he said, of buying lots.
While it has not been represented to
the officers of this company by any
persons concerned that there was any
such distress at Pullman as was re-
ported for the first time by the extra
ordinary tone of published telegram
to you in your official capacity, | do
not doubt that there are many cases
of need caused by the refusal of the
employees for more than two and one
half months to earn offered wages of
more than 100000, and that such
cases have been increased and made
more severe by the persistence of more
than 80 per cent of our employees of
whom about $50 live in Pullman in re-
fusing to apply for their places after
the strike was practically over and
after they were publicly invited on
July IS to resume their work, until by
the gradual coming in Of men during
the whole month the works have been
filled and the full force engaged on all
work on hand. AS to those who are
not at work, canceling of their rents is
not question to which mention
should first be- given at the present
juncture if their pressing needs are as
you suppose them to be. Your sug-
gestion that work should be divided
so that a sufficient number of our
present employees should be put on
Ildll Ullu6 Ill give dO lSClob nav
time for all was tried last winter,
The result has been that the gross
earnings of various individuals en-
ployed last winter were so small as to
give an erroneous impression with
reference to the sufficiency of the rate
of wages. The policy of the company
is to employ as many men only as it is
possible to furnish work for on full
time"
To this the governor replied substan-
italy: II see that your cons
pany refuses to do any
thing towards relieving the situation
at Pullman. If you will make
the round made, go into the houses of
these people, meet them face to face
and talk with them, you will be cons
WINGED that none of them had $1,000 or
any other sum of money few weeks
ago. 1t is not my business to fix the
moral responsibility in this case. There
are nearly 5000 people suffering for the
want of food-they were your ems
ployes-four- fifths of them are women
aud children. Some of
these people have worked for
you more than 10 years. l
assume that even if they were wrong
and had been foolish you would not
be willing TO see them perish. l also
assume that as the state had been to
a large expense to protect your prop
erty you would not want to have the
public shoulder the burden of distress
in your town. As you refuse to do
any thing to relieve their suffering in
the case am compelled to appeal to
the humanity Of the people of Illinois
TO do sou