Evening journal., 1900-08-06
PUDDLERS' REPLY
TO MIR. WALLACE
Representative Of Iron
Workers Interested
WAGES SHOULD BIZ HIGHER
Employees Of Diamond Slate Mills GC-
eeiVe From $3.50 70 $3.50
Less Than Others
WAGES SHOULD Be HIGHER

]. H. Carter. OF Pittsburg. Pa, a rep
resentatiVe of the Amalgamated Assoc
iatiOn OF Iron Workers. but not walk
ing delegate for the association, Is inl
wilmington to-day and made the fol-
lowing statement 10 a representative OF
the Evening journal In reply 10 thel
recently published statement OF Presl-
dent II. T Wallace. OF the Diamond state
Steel Company regarding the proposed
reduction In the existing wage scale.
IL Is proposed to cut the rate OF thel
pnddlers wages from 81 10 SO per toni
and the other mill hands wages In pro-
portion I'm reply to Mr.. Wallace $
statement Mr.. Carter says:
Il saw Mr.. Wallace's statement In thel
Evening journal claiming that reduc-l
tion was necessary because OF SINH
lar reduction by his competitors, name
ly the Lebanon and Reading mills.
"Mr Wallace has surely been misin-l
formed concerning a reduction OF wages
In Lebanon, because there are 1900 men
on strike from the various mills in Le-
banon for an advance of so cents per
ton for pudding. The men feel they
are entitled to an advance and not al
reduction.
II think that the oliver Iron Com
pany, of Pittsburg, is one OF the Dia-
mond Steel Company's competitors and
Il pays the $3.50 per ton basis. The
Republic Iron and Steel Company, with
mills throughout Indiana. Ohio. ILL
nois and Missouri. are direct compeu-
tors of the Diamond Steel Company
ahd they pay the $3.50 basis for pud-
ding, and other wages are accordingly
high. At present all the Diamond Steel
Company competitors throughout the
west are paying $3.50 per ton for pud-
ding and have signed the Amalgamated
Association scale on the $3.50 basis and
all other work accordingly We fail TO
see the necessity of a reduction here
The present prices paid by the Dia-
mond Company gives IL an advantage
in the market of $3.50 per ton on pud-
ding alone and all other work Is paid
accordingly low. SO 'tis surely difficult
to see the necessity Of q reduction at
this time.
Il have travelled extensively through
out America and find that Wilmington
offers many advantages over nearly all
other locations for the manufacture OF
merchant iron. and with Wilmington's
great natural advantages one would
think that the Diamond Steel Company
could pay the highest rate of wages and
still defy competition instead of paying
the very lowest rate and still ask 20
per cent reduction, saying that II Is
necessary.
VI have received $3.50 per ton for pud-
ding iron when Muck Bay sold for
S19, $40 and $21 per ton. Now il sells
for S23.50. S24, and S25 per ton and the
Diamond pays S4.0O per ton and claims
it necessary to reduce TO $500 per ton.
Really It reflects badly for Wilmington.
And Wilmington don't deserve IL any
more than the men because as ] stated
above Wilmington certainly is admir-
ably situated for manufacturing pur-
poses as her many industries will tes-
ufy."
On Saturday evening the puddlers
employed by the Diamond State Steel
Company met and discussed the pro-
posed cut in the wages for pudding,
The $50 puddlers employed by the
company were at the meeting, and
there was a general discussion Of the
proposed cut Of 81 a ton, which is to
be made.
The decision was to continue at work
until Saturday next, when the cut goes
into effect. and then to quit work in a
body unless the company agreed 10
make a change in the reduction. The
men do not belong to a union, but
claim they will stick together. and il
is expected the helpers will go out
with them.