The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-22
The Late Strike in The Sun ONCE.

! The Late Strike in The Sun ONCE.
At 10 o'clock on Saturday night, August
8. The Suns printers at the order Of the
| Typographical Union, left their work and
went out into the street. They did not want
| to go, but from the orders Of the Union
there is no appeal, even when those orders,
as in this case, violate the Typographical
Unions own laws.
They were ordered to leave work at the
particular hour Of the night which would
| involve the greatest damage to The sun,
preventing its publication, II possible, and
causing it to incur loss Of many thousands
of dollars. THE SUN, thanks to the extraor-
binary and heroic efforts Of its staff, man.
aged to appear; and the next day, gaining
help from all Sides 1t became apparent that
its publication would not be interrupted.
No one disputes the right Of workmen to
leave their employers, but it is the practice
OF the Typographical Union to make the
act OF throwing up employment as destruct-
i've to the employers property as possible.
In this instance the Union sought to sup
, press THE SUN
| Our men who went out, as we have said,
| did not want to go. Ninety per cent. Of
them, as they have since told us, would
have voted to stay in if they had had a
| chance to express their wishes. They were
ordered OUT and they went. 1t was the
belief Of the Union that they would be
asked to come back in half an hour at the
latest. The officers Of the Typographical
Union did not know, and could not believe,
that THE Sun would, if it were necessary,
! suspend publication rather than yield.
The tyranny of the Typographical Union
| in The sun Office had become intolerable.
When we made rules for the guidance Of
| our employees the Union overruled them.
We had no control Of our men. We could
not give an order in our own Office in any
particular that concerned it's management
and have it obeyed unless 1t had the sane
tion of the Union. Money was extorted
from us weekly in large sums for work that
was fictitious. work that was never done.
When we add to this that the Unions
orders were conveyed to us In terms of in
solent cffrontery and despotic brutality 1t
will readily be seen that it had come to pass
that We could no longer continue to con-
duet our business in such condi tions and
maintain our self-respect
We decided some time ago to introduce
typesetting machines in our Office. Every
other newspaper in the country uses
typesetting machines Of certain charac.
ter, very effective machines as to work and
economy; but, for reasons sufficient to us
undesirable for The Suns use. The officers
OF the Typographical Union had urged ue
to introduce this machine, but we failed tc
be persuaded and presently we adopted
another. Thereupon the Union determined
to show its power. Many people remember
the Shoemakers' riots in Massachusetts
over the introduction of machines fol
making shoes. The promoters Of those
machines were supplemented people
There need not have been any riots
The machine which The SUN chose to
adopt consists OF keyboard operated by
n compositor, or by typewriter, or by
anybody Of reasonable intelligence. the &C
ton Of the lettered keys being to make
corresponding perforations in a ribbon Of
paper. This ribbon Of paper. when perfo
rated throughout its length, is affixed tc
what is called a casting machine, which
when put in motion, casts individual type
in even lines. each as long as The Suns
column is wide. The operation Of the cast
ing machine is purely automatic the rib
bon OF paper governs it's action and 6
mechanic looks after it, oiling, adjusting
the parts when required, and taking away
its product when delivered. The relation
to it Of printer, or OF any one else, Other
than a trained mechanic, could be only thai
! OF a spectator
We were peremptorily ordered by the
Union to discharge the mechanics attending
to the casting machines and put printers II
their places. Failure to comply at once
meant that the men would be called out al
the usual critical hour, and that We should b.
compelled to suspend publication until W,
yielded to the Unions orders or succeeded
in getting other men to fill the vacan
I places. AS We have already said, to con
tlnue the publication Of THE SUN under suci
conditions was impossible, and stops were
at once taken to secure force of men wht
would work for The sun and not for any
, one else's bidding.
Although the number Of printers who ar
out OF work ia very large, owing In grea
part to the efficiency OF the officers of tn,
: Typographical Union in introducing type
. setting machines into printing establish
I Ilcuts and throwing men out of work, it Il
t not by any means an easy task to get to
gether on short notice the large number o
l men, some 200. required by THE Sun. In
: timidaton, the fear Of violence, violence it
, sell. and the widespread dread OF the meth
: DDS OF the Union, make 1t a matter Of n,
. small difficulty. THE Sun, however, sue