The Portland daily press., 1896-05-30
THE MILWAUKEE BOYCOTT.
Entire CITY Paraiyzed by the Action
of the Street Car Men.

Merchants Te rorized by Strikers and Their
sympathizer-Nobody Can Ride on a
Car without mourning the Risk of Sc.
rious Damage to His Business.
(New York Times.
Milwaukee, May S6-The manner in
which the business interests OF the city
of Milwaukee are being held in a state of
paralysis through the means of the boy
colt by the striking street CIR men and
their friends is probably without paral-
lei in this or any other country. The
boycott has continued over week and is
today stronger than ever. The city is
in worse state than it was during the
panic of 1893. No one ventures to predict
where the trouble will end. In fact, it
begins to look as though the great strug-
gle was yet to come.
The business mon of the city are rest
less under the despotism of the railroad
men. The produce commission men of
the city have moved in the matter al
ready and joined in an agreement that
they will sell to anyone they see cit and
ride on street cars RS much as they like.
This declaration Of independence has
been the means of awakening the mer-
chants Of the city to sense of their own
moral cowardioe in allowing set of
irresponsible persons to dictate to them
with whom they shall trade and what
they shall do.
Still. for all that, the boycott is at pres
ent ID full force. The street cars continue
to run with few passengers, because
people fear for their property as well as
their persons. Symptoms of violence
have disappeared, except for occasional
outbreaks where few stones are thrown
by hoodiums. who almost always manage
to escape under cover of the darkness
The strikers and their friends depend on
the boycott as the weapon to win the
strike. Not man can ride on Car to-
day without danger of ruin to his bust
ness II it is of kind that the unions can
reach.
Stories of the tyranny of the boycott
are cropping out every day. One of the
most pitiful is that of widow who has
family of three children. She has lit
tie bakery, and by this and her reputa-
ton as breadmaksr has managed to
keep the wolf from the door. When the
strike opened she was engaged to make
bread for the new men, who had to he
quartered by the company at the barns.
The strikers heard of it and notified
her that if she persisted in baking for the
| company they would boycott her place.
Frightened at the threat, she gave up the
| contract The strikers, a few days later,
found that nephew Of the widow was
acting as motorman on one of the street
cars A committee waited on her and
told her that she must use her influence
with her nephew to get him to quit the
company's service. 1t was in vain she
protested she had no influence over him.
The committee ooolly informed her that
she would have to find some way in
which she could get her nephew to give
up his place, as otherwise they would
place boycott on her bakery. This
meant ruin to her and her family.
Half crazed with terror at the thought,
the poor woman made her way to the Car
stables, and had an interview with her
relative. She told him of the threats
that had been made, but he was deaf to
all entreaties. He said he had good
job, and was gong to keep it, Sorrow
fully the widow returned to her shop
She did not have to wait long for the
vengeance Of the strikers. The boycott
was declared, as threatened, and now the
poor woman is shut off from her means
of livelihood because her nephew would
not give up his job at the command of
the boycotters.
| To person who has no direct interest
in the matter, it is almost ludicrous to see
the manner in which the strikers and
their sympathizsrs 80 on tieing up one
place after another in the vain hope that
| by so doing they will be able to force the
people of the city to take sides in their
favor, and Is turn force the street rail
way company to come to the terms of the
| strikers.
here?' asked a travelling man who
topped up to the coulter of the Pfster
| Hotel today.
| "What is the matter?" said the cler k.
"Why, when got off the train l took
car at the station, as always have
done. hardly had got seated when a
fellow stuck his head in the door and
yelled 'Scab! and several other names
ton generally used in polite society. I
thought was in danger of my life. and
jumped out of the car as fast as could. !"