El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-06-07
CLERKS MEETING.
1t Begins to Look as if Early Closing
Would be Successful.

NOulu De SUCCESSFUL.
n dozen or more of the POO clerks in
town met last evening in the Y. M. c..
A. rooms to talk up the matter of early
evening and Sunday closing of the
stores. Two tnlngs operated against
united actlOn OF the time, viz the fact
that the meeting was held wnere color
mig hL be lent to the charge that it was
church move, aud there are quite a
mum Der OF young men Ia the stores who
are unwilling to work along that line:
ana secondly the way the call for en-
ploy ers TO meet Was drawn up caused
ascension.
Several of the clerks proved to be
good speakers, and ttey claimed that
the way the clerks were treated in Ell
Paso was nothing else than avery.
Tney were req ulred TO be down at the
stores at 600 d. m, there was thirty
to forty minutes for dinner, and there
was no closing up until nine, ten
o'clock or even later. IL was merely
question of how long human nature
could stanO up under such strain, and
one mere haaJ declared that clerks did
not want any rest. 1t was The opinion
thai IL would DO no good 10 inaugut-
ate Sunday closing without the daily
evening closing also, because employers
would require their clerks to come
down Sunday morning and put
! LII d ldIS SHARE VI Tile Jay IN
straig h teniug things out, although the
| doors might De be closed.
Some of the clerks considered the
| lot of the retail CLERK in Ell PasO harder
| than anywhere else, aud that there
were some Ell Paso merchants who if
they had any milk of human kindness
in their make ups had it not only SKIM
| meu, but plentltully cnalked and water
ed. Special and honorable exception
| h.,u do Of ana
merchant who 1T was stated was very
kind and consideIate to his clerks
| Some advocated enforcing the law, and
! one speaker said he had 1t from the at
| tOrney general that if the local officers
did their duty, the Sunday closing law
| could be enforced. Otner speakers
urged patience and tolaration, and the
| treating with the merchants in the
| spirit OF argument and peaceful perSu-
atIoD, expecting that their better
natures would assert themselves, so
that the problem would be solved
peacefully and satisfactorily all around
| Two or turee speakers held that the
| best way would be to educate the pub
lie to cOntine their purchasing time to
daylig hit hours. 1t was very exaspe-
rating to have women come in Just as
the clerks were going home, and after
having them take down d whole shelf
full of goods, say, ''Oh, guess III only
take sample now" A woman came
into a San Antonio street store the
other night at $3.50 from a pray er meet
ing she said, and kept the store open
for some time with her chickering's.
And on recent Sunday two women,
one with bible under her arm, came
into the store after church to do some
shopping. If people will not buy Jig Il is
or on Sunday, employers will not insist
on keeping open at such times, and the
speakers hoped the pastors of the va
rlOus churches would impress that fact
upon the minds of the women of their
congregations. Mechanics when work.
| ed over time are paid for over time,
but clerks in retail stJres are worked
to death, and no extra pay is given
| them. 1t was tune something was
| done.
1t was stated two of the clerks who
had been ound stated that nearly all
of the mere hauts were willing to close
up, put each one did not like to take
the initiative. They recognize the
| harJ ships entaiied upon their clerks,
but at the same time, business is bu-i-
ness and the opportunity to make a
| dollar cannot be neglected.. The gen.
eral opinion was that it would be best
| to ad journ and meet again next Sunday
evening in some other place, where
| the movement will be continued. A
! clerks union was talked of but no step
vas taken at the time. However, tb at
there will be such an organization in
this city is merely a matter of time.
| Mr.. Gilbert, one of the clerks, wish
| es 10 make this statement:
| For the benefit of those business
people who believe that the movement
of the clerks is led by ministers, l
would like to state that they are in
error The clerks themselves realizing
I that they are, under the existing hours,
nothing but beasts of burden, have