The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-18

Sailor Boarding House Mas
tiers Take a Hand In
the Fight.
MUST PAY Or GO TO WORK.
The Mcguire Act Will Cut an I'm
portant Figure In the
Strike.

4 new element has cropped I'D In the
fight between the Sailors Union and the
ship-owners and the signs point TO the be-
ginning OF the end. The men who are
most concerned now are the coasting
clearinghouse masters. They are the
men who are perforce taking the greater
chances in the struggle. They furnish the
key 10 the situation, for they have the
sailors on hand. The sailors demand S35
q month and the ship-owners refuse to give
more than So. In the meantime the
sailors must eat and live and sleep,
and the clearinghouse men have to pro-
vide the necessities Of life.
The Mcguire act, which was passed BY
the last Congress, prevents the seaman s
landlord from holding q sailors Kit for
his board bill. The landlord argues that
this gives the sailors everything and the
landlord no protection. A meeting of the
coast seamen landlords was held at the
Finland Hotel yesterday afternoon, at
which the situation was discussed at con-
siderable length. While nothing was given
out for publication II was pretty generally
understood along the water front that the
conclusion reached ends IN the nature OF q
compromise between the sailors and ship
owners without the knowledge OF either
party.
One OF the boarding house masters ex-
planned the situation after the meeting as
follows:
If the ship-owners want men they must
come TO rs. II the sailors want ships they
must get them through us We do not
propose 10 support men and then have
them beat rs out Of our money. We can
not collect bill unless q sailor is inclined
10 be honest, for after q man STAYS with rs
a week under the Mcguire act ne can take
his kit and tell Us TO whistle for our money.
v mat we propose TO do Is TO protect our
selves We think that sailor will be
satisfied TO take $50 a month rfid the
ma j0rity OF ship-owners are willing 10 nav
that price. Il the latter viii consent TO pay
$50 we VIII come pretty near providing
them with al the men they want The men
VINO refuse 10 snip for that amount can
stay with Us as long as their board bills are
secured, but as soon as this possibility be-
comes doubt they viii have to shift for
themselves.
The Sailors Union has not been con
suited II regard TO this new movement.
the boarding house men expressing them
selves as being inclined TO cut adrift from
the union. 1t Is rumOrcd that the union
viii put up Tor the board and lodging OF
their men. but the report was not con
hrmed. This means an outlay OF $1,000 q
week, as II Is claimed that there are 600
union men on the beach.
Patrolman Thomas Finnerty of the
Sailors Union had narrow escape from
going to sea on the schooner Laura Pike
yesterday morning. Scouts for the ship
owners are getting from 50 to s. 80 Tor
every man shipped, and Finnerty thrust
himself IN the way OF one OF the scouts.
After an hilarious night ashore Finnerty
found himsehon board the schooner yestsr-
day morning. The vessel was ali ready 10 20
TO sea and the patrolman was tried OUT
as s2iior. He had not been to sea for
many years and he got mixed up on the
wheel between port and starboaTd The
captain told him 10 go ashore. Finnerty
took boat and thought he had another
April fool" joke to tell TO the union when