The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1899-10-20
BOYCOTT SWEAT SHOPS
Consumers League Movement
Reaches Wisconsin.
SOME MEMORIES OF GEORGE SMITH.

Made Millions in Real Estate and Rail-
ways-Only Worthy Boys Can Get
Foothold on the st. Paul System-Yale
Men in Wisconsin-Curfew in Racine
400 Carloads of Cheese from Monroe
County.
Madison, Wis, Oct. 17.-There is one
boycott that finds good many worthy
upholders. 1t is the policy of the
Consumers league, which is to patron
iZe merchants who are good to their
employees, and to shun others. 1t is
to buy goods made under sanitary con-
ditiOns and to decline to purchase
sweat-shop products. Milwaukee is to
initiate Chicago and eastern cities by
forming a league. the Social Econom-
les club and the Milwaukee branch of
the Collegiate Alumnae having taken
up the matter.
The ladies Interested report that al
though the condition of the shop girl
in Milwaukee is not so deplOrable as
it is elsewhere still she suffers from
many an injustice which the white
list would remedy.
The white list" consists of a direc-
tory Of those stores and shops at
which the girls and women employed
receive fair treatment as regards the
length Of their working days, half hOli-
days and vacations, pay for overtime
and the doing away with fines. 1t also
insists upon shop girls being provided
with seats and being allowed to use
them when not engaged in waiting
upon a customer. Through the Ma.
tional league, clothing that is not
sweat shop made is marked with a
label and members of the branch
leagues everywhere pledge themselves
to purchase and wear only such gar
mentS. The WOmen's clubs take up
the matter at Eau Claire, Oct 1926.
Mrs. Florence Kelley, former factory
inspector Of Illinois and now general
secretary of the National Consumers
league, is to speak at Eau Claire.
Brains in Railroading.
High railroad officials are among the
most interesting men to thoughtful
people. They lack the grand-stand ele-
ment and cannot make speeches, and
are not much in the public view. But
they. are almost invariably strong,
forceful personalities, who have won
their way by force of merit.
/ never see the engineer of a fast
express, leaning from his cab window,
throttle in hand. and with a keen,
watchful eye on the track, regardless
of the crowds at the station, without
feeling like taking my hat off. There
is something in working about metals
that brings out manhood.
A Railway Presidents Sense.
These higher officials are men of
power in every sense. [ remember q
New Haven citizen meeting called to
arrange the details Of reception of
Blaine's pan-American visitors. The
city hall council room was crowded
with politicians, lawyers, business men
"a hundred leading citizens. They
succeeded in SO entangling things with
their multiplicity of suggestions, plans
and parliamentary bubbles that no
one knew whether the swarthy sons Of
the south would first be shown a slaugh-
ter house or taken to Savin rock for a
swim. 1t is strange how sensible men
will tie themselves up in a public
meeting of that sort.
At the moment of despair Charles p.
Clark, president of the New York and
New Haven road, was sighted in the
rear of the hall, having just come in
and mOdestly keeping in the back
ground. He was called to the front
and in few words to the point laid
out full programme, so that every
committee knew just what to do. It
was child's play to him. accustomed to
keep 200 trains on the tracks every
day and to oversee the work of per-
haps 10000 men.
Will Get the b. s. O." Right.
All this is suggested by the leaving
of the Milwaukee road by J. n. Barr,
superintendent of motive power, to go
to the Baltimore and Ohio system.
That road has been so poor since it's
financial breakdown that at one time
it's equipment got bad, accidents were
frequent and people were afraid to
ride on the trains. Mr.. Barr has bet
ter conditions now to work under.
In the year 1888, Mr.. Barr was
called from the Pennsylvania shops at
Altoona Pa, to this city by Sherburne
S. Merrill, then general manager of
the Milwaukee road. A graduate of
Lehigh university, Pennsylvania, he
entered the shops of the Pennsylvania
road at Altoona and began at the very
LOWEST HUGH Ill uoCudulcdI CO0SCruC-
ton.
Sometime ago some of us applied to
get young man into the West Mil
waukee shops. We were told that it
would be necessary for Mr.. Barr to
meet, talk with and approve the appli-
cant.
But you employ 5000 men about
this big plant. Surely Mr. Barr doesn't
care to see them all?'
"This young man wants to become
an apprentice, he hopes some day to
hold a position of responsibility. The
ST. Paul road starts no young men up
that ladder unless the superintendent
of motive power approves him."
The boy is now busy at railroading.
But how different railroading from
the public service!
The Curfew in Racine.
One of the Racine papers having
cast some reflections on the working
Of tho ms noo,' IN bo