The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1899-01-26
LABOR MAKES REPLY
STRIKERS AT THE BADGER SENDS
A COMMUNICATION.
QUESTION OF THEIR WAGES
The Union Men Claim Non-Union Work
men Were offered $2.75 a Day and
Roard-Answers Charges and
Makes Charges.

KonOSha, Jan. Il, 1S99.-Mr~Edlt
We, The undersigned, strikers of the
Badger LampSW would like to ask
Mr.. Williams, superintendent OF said
factory, if he thinks the farmers and
corn huskers meaning the honorable
citizens of Kenosha- (that is what his
foreman, the honorable gentleman, Mr..
Redline, called us the first day he came
to Kenosha), are green end ignorant?
If they are not wise enough to know
that as hard as times are and as low
as wages are getting ,ithat lot of hon
est, hard working men who were laid
off for four months and had sickness in
their families and were deep in debt
would deliberately Igo out on strike
when there were anyschances to earn a
fair days wages, such as So. So and 81
day-as he states,his non union men
are making now at same prices the old
men were getting when working. Now
here is the first little conclusion of the
old men that Mr.. Williams cannot dis
pute. Did he everyday the old men
25c. an hour-day work? NO. But
his statement in the dailyEpapers shows
that he is paying those non union
buffers that now; and if he would pay
them more for day work, he would also
pay them moreifor piece work than the
old men. All that the ,old men ever
got for day work was 223 cents per
hour, and he kicked on paying
that And another thing we would
like to say is thati there. were buffers
who went out on the strike there that
have records and names of being better
mechanics than any buffers or polishers
he has got now.
We would like to ask why do those
non union buffers that Mr.. Redline
brought up from sChicago deny that
they were offered. 1915 ssday and
board by his foreman, when the union
had men in Chicago TOT shadow Mr..
Redline when he wasldOwn there look
ing for men, to hear. the proposition he
would offer men to induce them to come
up here? We also have MCKNIGHT here
in town now working that worked for
Redlne before in Chicago, to whom he
made the same proposition and
came up here,f but they were good,
honest union -men, and when they
found out thes, circumstances they did
not bite at the fiat bait. We also got
five men out Of the shop who came up
and went to work under Mr.. Williams
side of the story, but when they found
out our side of sthe story they stopped
work; they were not.union men either,
but good, honest toilers. They told US
that the piece work prices were higher
than the prices.!we showed them we
got that was submitted to them. How
could the men he has got now swear
that the prices .they are getting now
were the same THAT the old men were
getting; for not one who are now
working in buff room were working
when the ld,men were, or worked on
the new lamp before the strikers. They
would not hear.our side of the story or
let us get within tenGfeet of them to tell
them. Of course they got Mr.. Will
liams' promises of it, amt that all? and
he is noted to Ihaves Christmas tree
full OF promises for anybody that
the occasion requires to hand one down
to, as he handed several to the old
men at different stimes, but they were
made out of glass and were easily
broken.
When the first lot of this years
lamps were turned out we had to work
late every highland Sunday too in or
der to get the orders out to get them
off so they could.reach the ship in time
before it sailed to where they were
going.
There was a move started by men in
other departments to ask for extra pay
for Sundays, and he (Mr. Williams) got
wind of it and came in the buffing room
and stopped all of the machinery,
called the buffers together and asked
us if we intended to ask him extra time
for Sundays. We said we hadn't given
the matter thought yet, so he made
this statement to US: That the Com
| pany were at Dig expense on this hrst
lot of lamps on account that they were
more for an advertisement, and he did
not think it was right for us to charge
him anything extra, as he had always
treated us right and never cut US last
year and didn't intend to this year; so
we told him that we wasn't going to
ask him any extra for Sundays or over
time. We we're receiving 221 cents an
hour, day work then; we were all
working day work, then piece work.
Prices hadn't been set on the new
lamp yet, and when we got through
with that order of new lamps we were
laid off again for two weeks, and when
we started to work again everything
was piece work and prices cut way
down below the old prices on the new
lamp and they were almost half again
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