The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-07-19
MAYORDODGE'STUR
City's Chief Execu-
tive Is Not Even
Barred.
LABOR UNIONS AFTER HIM.
Work on the Boycotted
Buildings Still Hummed
Along Yesterday.

When Mayor Rufus B. Dodge, Jr.,
reads The Spy, his morning, he will re-
ceive his first intimation of impending
trouble with the labor unions of this
city.
Through declaring a boycott on Drs.
Kelly and Delehanty, members of the
committee from the Journeymen
Plumbers Union heard something
which whetted their appetitss for big
game.
Rumor had it yesterday that Ashley
& Koran, the plumbing contractors who
have caused Drs. Kelly and Delehanty
to be precipitated into the midst of la
Dor troubles, have been tinkering with
the water pipes at the mayors house,
by order of the chief official of the
city.
One of the physicians dropped the
information, in defending his attitude
in awarding the plumbing contract to
Ashley & Koran, by saying that Ashley
& Horan have been doing the mayor S
plumbing jobs at his home.
| The committee from the Plumbers
Union went scouting at once, and last
night j. D. Pierce, president of the
Massachusetts Federation of Labor,
was allied with them in the discussion
of Mayor Dodge's course in giving work
to a firm known to the Plumbers I'm
ion as one unfair to organized labor.
\ The committee has announced it's in
| tention of visiting him, and ascertain
ing If the words of the boycotted ply
stefan are well founded.
Work on the boycotted building
bummed along yesterday and the doc
| tors kept at work, except when they
were forced into a discussion of the la
! Dor union trouble. Last night the
Building Trades Union voted to fndorse
the action of the Plumbers Union. In
connection with the possibilities of a
general strike of the workmen on the
building, it is a significant fact that
the union voted unanimously to quit
work on the building when ordered to
do so.
DR.. Delehanty talked with Spy man
last night concerning the trouble. He
| said: Words cannot express my feel
| ings when l am reminded of this un-
| pleasant state of affairs. l am be-
tween two fires l cannot stop the
work of Ashley & Koran on the build
! ing without being made the target of
a lawsuit for not abiding by the con-
tract which that firm holds. If / con-
tinue to allow them to work on the
building, l suppose they will persist
in saying DR.. Kelly and myself have
| done wrong
This is my last building venture.
We have tried to have everything sat
| 1Sfactory to the labor unions Many
builders who have not acted as fairly
as we, have escaped this, and it seems
strange why l should be selected as
the butt of their attack. am hearth
ly sick of this whole proceeding, but
work on the building will progress. ]
| nave consulted my lawyer, John B.
Ratigan, and he has told me that ]
am in duty bound to live up to the
contract? What else can l DOR
The Carpenters Union had a session
until nearly midnight, and President
Keefe announced that it had been
voted to observe strict secrecy as tc
the business which was brought before
| the meeting. 1t was announced that
the Carpenters Union Endorsed the ac-
ton Of the Plumbers Union, and would
| support the plumbers in the event Of q
general strike. 1t was stated on re.
liable authority last night that there
was but one hitch to be overcome be-
Tore general strike is ordered
Members of the committee told The
spy man last night that the action
| against Drs. Delehanty and Kelly
would be pressed until one side yields
The following statement relative to the
action of the union was given:
DR.. Delehanty is quoted In The Spy
Yesterday as saying that the owners
had tried to be fair with labor unions
since the beginning of the trouble
When the block first started the Build
| ing Trades Council found it necessary
| TO send committee to straighten out
the stone work, which was being done
by non-union stone masons Next came
the carpenters, and another committee
was compelled to visit the doctors to
protest against non-union men. This
committee came away with the promise
that the non-union men would be dis
charged, which promise was kept only
"a hours, when they were again put at
work, and have remained there since
Then came the question of the
| plumbers, which has led UP to the pres
ent trouble. So much for what the doc
| tors have done for organized labor.
They appear to be worried because
| Mayor Dodge has not been consulted.
| We have simply to say that the doctors
| need lose no sleep over that question.
If the facts as stated are true, the union
will take care Of that with many thanks
for the information. In regard to DIR.
Delehanty consulting a lawyer, we WISH
to state that the Plumbers union is
best informed as to who are it's mem
bers and who are not.
I'm the present matter the firm Of
Ashley e. Horan are the ones who have
broken the contract, and we fail to see
| how the doctors can be made to pay any
costs which might accrue through a
lawsuit The affair looks like another
case OF trying to dodge the issue. In re-
gard to what Ashley e. Koran claim. we
do not see ut to deny their statements,
except to say that they will be a union
Arm when they have complied with the
rules and regulations of the Plumbers
union, and not before.
"Our attention is also called to the
fact that Col. Samuel e. Winslow Is
behind this deal. We are sorry to learn
this. but as we sometimes have to hit a
friend in order to reach an enemy, we
may yet find II necessary to visit the
colonel We feel perfectly secure In the
} justice of our case, and feel that before
we are through the doctors will frankly
acknowledge that they have been mis-
led by a non-union firm.
COMMITTEE"
The Central Labor union Will take vi
the matter Of ordering a general strike
at Its meeting tonight. Delegates from
all the unions represented In the cen.
trail body have been notified 70 attend