The Portland daily press., 1900-03-01
Strike is For Higher
Wages.
Manufacturers Have Big Con.
tracts on Hand.

dustry Of New England whfon mas made
many localities famous the country over
and which gives employment TO fully
eight thousand journey men cutters will
be at a standstill tomorrow because Of 9
wsge contention tetwesn the manufact-
urers and the national cutters union.
The strike, It appears, will be general,
although there are some Indications that
individual settlements Win be reached
quickly so that business In such cases
will hardly be disturbed. The strike will
be due to an article In the constitution
and bylaws of the national cutters
union, which says. that the new scale OF
wages on March l shall be s. a day, and
eight hours"
Tonight the New England States as q
whole face what may result in the
longest, costliest labor contest for years.
The men who are ready to strike are
among the best paid artisans in the east.
and the sum total of the wages they will
lose II the strike Is protracted one, will
be exceedingly large. Granite Manu-
featuring Is widely distributed. for
quarries creep out at all parts Of the APP
palachian In this corner of the Union.
each locality having Its own particular
gIsde. or color Of granite.
At Quincy, Mass. there IL much monu-
mental work; at Concord. n. H., and
Barre. VT, fine building stone, while the
guarriss on the islands along the Maine
coast and at points not far inland, yield
material which enters into some of the
most I'm posing structures In the country.
Tomorrow. at the call OF the national
union, most Of These qusrries will be de-
serted by the cutters, and the frat step
will have been taken to enforce de-
mand. The grievance of the cutters Is
that their time and wage schedules have
not been uniform. Manufacturers hereto
fore. have governed their price lists to
cutters on individual ability Of the en-
ploye. The demand Of So per day has been
paid to skillsd cutters, but they object to
the demand that that figure be minimum
price paid. The eight hour demand.
while objected to in many instances, has
not been the chief question, as mos
qusrries have long worked on the nine
hour schedule. The strike viii not be a
nasty one on the part of the cutters, nor
a surprise to the manufacturers.
This latter were given ample notice OF
the Unions Intentions and the past few
weeks have seen much Of the material
worked into finished product. 1t Is q re-
markabls feature that the granie bust
ness has been very brisk all winter and
cutters have had little or NO dull time.
The union men, accordingly. are in good
shape for a strike, but they claim that
manufacturers have contracts on hand
representing millions Of dollars.
The New England Granite Manufact-
urers' as ISOLATION, which represents ma
iority OF the quaTries. replied to the cut
ters' notice that 1t was not possible to
grant the request as the margins OF
profit on contracts already on hand would
not allow readjustment Of wages and
hours. Contrary to the general aspect of
strikes. this one will begin with very
little preliminary debate between employ
err and employe evinoing the belief of the
national union that the manufacturers
will aoosde to the demand with little de-
lay.
The cutters employed In local shops.
about $50 In number, decided at IS meet
ing tonight that in view of the fart that
existing contracts did not expire until
April Isl, they would walt until that
date before insisting upon their demands
for an average rats of IS cents an hour
and an eight-hour day.