The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1894-08-29
WICKES TESTIMONY.
Pullman's Lieutenant Before the
Strike Commission.
THE RAILROAD COMPANIES LOSSES.


sion of the national labor commission
Chairman Wright announced that he had
requested the different railroads center
ing in Chicago TO file statements Of losses
caused by the recent strike The gross
loss on the Alton was estimated S2s6, 800;
c., b. and O., ti15, 600; Lake Shore, &5, iG4.
The loss In earnings was not given, not
having yet been compiled.
Charles K. Webb, chief clerk of Pull
man bank, told new story of the Jennie
Curtis episode, in which it has been al
legged that Miss Curtis was compelled TO
pay rent on a debt owed by her father,
who died in arrears to the company. Mr..
Webb said Miss Curtis offered of her own
accord to discharge the debt.
Vice President Wickes, of the Pullman
company, was recalled and questioned at
length.
Mr.. Wickes said the company lost $751;
600 in trying to give its men work. Dur
Ing this time the men contributed labor
worth 100000. He thought perhaps, as II
has turned out, the better business policy
Of the company would have been to grant
the demands Of the men, but there was a
principle involved which he did not think
could be ignored. II the demands had
been granted there might have been trou-
BILE in future years.
The witness ascribed the Worlds fair
as one of the causes of the strike. He said.
1.-The men were making very large
wages during the fair year, as we let them
do as much over time as they pleased.
suppose they found it very hard, after the
prosperousltimes of the exposition year, to
come down to bed rock prices"
Has the Pullman company ever in
ere lsed wages voluntarilyw
SIT has in the case of some of the shop
men"
"But not as regards any large body of
men"
"No, sir"
Don't you think it would be a good
plan to increase the wages of the men in
prosperous yelrs-in other words, to regu-
late the wages by the amount of business
done by the employers"
'No; do not think that plan would
work well. 1t would have tendency to
slip shod business methods We 20 into
the market for our men just as we do for
our materials. 1t is all regulated by the
law of supply and demand"
Mr.. Wickes thought that if the men of
Pullman had been let alone by outsiders
they would have gone back to work, He,
however, gave Vice President Howard, of
the American Railway union credit for
havins advised the Pullman employees
not to strike. No orders for eviction had
been given out yet, although the en-
ployes owe the company 100000 for back
rents
"Whv were not rents reduced when
wages were cut2n
"rhe q ,esion of rents was an entirely
tla ,f
Only lout one-third of our employees
lived in Pullman. We could not have re
duced any rents for the majority who
lived outside"
The rents were not based on panic con
ditions, were theyY
"Tney were not"
Then why, when the panic conditions
ca ne, would it not have been advisable to
ch lrge lower ratesY
There is no connection between the
Pullman car works and the town of Pull
man. The men don't have to live in Pull
man unless they wish They can move
out without prejudice on the part of the
company"
Mr.. Wickes said the company did,all the
repairing on the houses, although the ten
ants leases provided that they should do
it. He would not express an opinion as
to the justice of this system. The COM
pany did not recognize men as members
of unions, but as individuals. If they
were not able to plead their own case it
was their own misfortune.
"You don't think, then" he was asked,
"that the men have any right to organize
for redress of grievancesW
"No, sir, if they don't want to work at
the wages we offer they have the privilege
of going somewhere else"
Mr.. Wickes stated that few years ago
Mr. Pullman's salary was only Sl0O 900 a
year as president He declined TO state
what it is now, or what that of the other
general officers is None of these had
been reduced during the strike.
Mr.. Wickes said he did not believe that
the principle of arbitration could be ap.
piled to a man in the operation of his own
business A matter of opinion was avail
able to arbitration, but not the matter OF
man running his own business.
General Nelson A. Miles then took the
stand He denied the story that on his
arrival here from Washington he had at
! once consulted with the general managers.
| On July ?, when this conference was said
20 have taken place, he was in Washing
| ton, and he arrived here on July 4. Asked
II II was true tnat ne nad declared JnaU he
had broken the backbone of the strike
| the general said that this was not quite
exact. What he said was that he had
broken the back bone of the opposition to
| the federal troops. The commissioners
, wanted TO know if the troops forced rail.
! road men to work at the point of the bay
! onet General Miles said that while this
| Might have happened in some instances
! he had not been aware of it, and had is
/ sued no orders to that effect. lie said he
/ knew nothing about the strike.
! General Superintendent Sullivan, of the
/ Illinois Central, was the last important
! witness of the day, He declared that
many of the striking railroad men haC
committed acts of violence, and backed
| up his assertions with tangled evidence
Fatal Riot at Chicago.
CHICAGO, Aug. GA desperate fight
! which necessitated the turning in of q
! riot alarm, and the calling out of thre,
| patrol wagons filed with police, occurred
! late last nf0ht in front of 4I17 Ashland