Evening star., 1896-01-27
Possibility Of Trouble With Metro
politan Railroad Men.
FORMING A BENEFICIAL ASSOCIATION
President Phillips Position on the
Union Question.
RAILROAD MEN UNEASY

the members of the Street Railway Assem-
bly, of the Knights of Labor, growing out of
notice signed by President Phillips of the
metropolitan Railway Company, and posted
prominently in the conductors and drivers
room at the Office of the company on P
street northwest, in which the employees
are urged to DIN a beneficial company
which 1t Is proposed to form for the men,
under the auspices of the railroad company.
For several months past there have been
rumors among the members of the union
hat there would be an attempt made
when the F street line is ready for opera
tion by electricity, on the part of President
Phillips to break up the union. To do this
Mr.. Phillips, it has been rumored, will i'm
pose conditions that the members Of the
union will not acquiesce In, and that, in
the event of a strike resulting, the places
OF the strikers will be supplied by nom
union men.
Master Workman Lawrence, when spoken
to on the subject by Star reporter, said
he and the members of the union were
Iully aware of what steps were being taken
IN mt TINS sc, direction by President Phillips. and
that the latter and his directors would
nnd that If they ever undertake such
scheme the railway employees are ready to
meet every emergency"
The Former Position.
1t is stated on what appears to be good
authority that the last time, which was
five or six months ago. that there was dis
satisfaction with Mr.. Phillips treatment of
his men in certain particulars, and 4 tie-up
was threatened, some of the leading stock
FOLDERS of the company called On Mr..
Phillips and urged him not to grant an
other concession to the men, but to let the
strike come If the men wished to have 1t
so; also that they had grown tired Of hav-
ing their representatives "bulldozed," and
thought that then was as good a time
any 20 have the question of "bcss-ship"
settled.
Mr.. Phillips, as was stated in The Star
at that time. granted the requests of the
men so far, as stated by him. as was in
his power to do so. Mr.. Phillips also, then
stated to The Star reporter that he cared
nothing as to whether man belonged to
the Railway Union or not; that what he
required and what he had a right to de-
mand was that his employees, whether men,
bers of the union or not, do their duty to
the company.
A Star reporter tried this morning to in
terview President Phillips, in order to ask
him whether or not his views are the same
now in reference to the question Of union
ism as they were on the occasion of the
last conversation between the president and
the reporter, but the effort was fruitless, and
the only topic that Mr.. Phillips would talk
on was regarding the organization of the
proposed beneficial association, concerning
which Mr.. Phillips said:
beneficial Association.
''The position of the Metropolitan Rail-
road Company is this: 1t was represented to
the directors that Some one hundred men of
the F street and seventy of the 9th street
line were anxious to form a relief associa-
ton on the lines of that established by the
Washington and Georgetown Railroad Com
pany in 1856. From reports. it was believed
the Washington and Georgetown Associa-
t1on had been so prosperous as to accumu-
late many thousand dollars, had done much
good IN relieving the employees in cases of
sickness and death in their families and
was very popular. On these statements the
directors expressed the wish to aid the men
in every manner to ameliorate their con-
d1tion, and authorized me to make the state
ment that such an organization met with
their approval, and they would direct con-
tribution of s1,11O to 1t. In the event of it's
succeccful organization, further contribu-
tions may be expected from the company.
LAS the directors understand it, this is to
be an association open to all the employees
without discrimination, and it is their earn
est wish that it may not only do good finan-
cially, but be means of establishing
warmer sympathy and friendship between
the company and its employees.
Other Views.
Superintendent Lowry, who, in the alb
sence of Private Secretary Coleman, who is
said to be detained at his home with an at
tack of measles, IS the personal representa-
tive of Mr.. Phillips, informed The Star re-
porter that Mr.. Phillips is still favorably
disposed toward the union, but that as a
matter of fact he does not care whether
or not his men belong to 1t.
LAS for myself" continued Mr. Lowry,
my views are the same as those of Presi-
dent Phillips, and I will add that whenever
a man in the employ of the Metropolitan
Railroad Company fails to do his duty, he
has got to go, whether he belongs to the
union or not.
Il know that a number of our men, who
were warm supporters Of the union, left
that organization when the latter Joined
the Knights of Labor and the beneficial
as ssociation which has been indorsed by
Mr.. Phillips and the directors of the COM
pany is designed to comply with requests
made by them and other of the employees
Several of the members of the union who
are well informed in matters in general to-
day told a Star reporter that they are not
inclined to view with complacency nor
with a confidence that is "child-like and
bland the efforts of the railway company
to organize any institution whose avowed
object is to benefit the employees exclusive
ly, and they say that there is some other
motive on the part of their employers than
to do good to the men in the scheme.