Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1900-10-15
UNION LABOR ACTION.
Sunday Closing Movement and
Other Questions Before the
Tri-city Congress.
MERCHANTS TO KEEP OPEN SUNDAY
John Fitzpatrick Elected Presi-
dent of the Body-Other
Matters.

ally well attended and the session was
IA long one. The main business was
transacted at the executive session
held after o'clock.
The office of president being va
cant, the vice president, A. X. Clifford,
presided until a new president, in the
person of John Fitzpatrick, of the
Moline Steel Workers union, was
elected. f. C. Berry resigned his po-
sition as financial secretary, claiming
that it interfered with his work in
other capacities. and +. j. NJ. Placek.
of Davenport, was chosen to fill the
Office.
An invitation from the A. +. of l..
to send delegate to the national con-
vention of that body at Detroit, started
a discussion as to the advisability of
the congress longer affiliating with
that organization, and ending in a
unanimous vote to withdraw.
Another communication from the
Allied Printing Trades council, OF
Hammond, Ind. calling attention to
B. Conkey & Co. of that place, was
read. The book is entitled The Sec
ond Battle" and contains extracts
purportirg to have been taken from
speeches of w. j. Bryan, Samuel
Gompers and others. All speakers
quoted have issued statements to the
effect that they are not the authors OF
the statements attributed to them.
1t is claimed the book has been issued
for political effect.
woodmen Printing.
A committee consisting OF John
Fitzpatrick, A. L. Clifford and +. G.
Berry was appointed to 60 before the
executive council of the Modern Wood
men and confer with that body on the
question of employing non-union
shops to do special printing for the
order.
A resolution was adopted thanking
". A. Meese, of Moline. for the sup
port he has given to union labor.
The report of the business agent, +.
c. Berry, containing reference to the
reasons for certain unions withdraw
ing from the congress, was laid over
to the executive session for adoption.
a committee was appointed to wait
upon the molders and carpenters of
Rock Island, with a view Of getting
them back into the congress under
present conditions.
Merchants VIII opsa Sundays.
Another matter carried over TO the
executive session was the proposed
opening of certain stores in Moline
and Davenport on Sunday. A signed
statement from 10 merchants of Mo-
line, to the effect that they will open
up on Sundays, was brought in and
read. 4 Davenport clothing firm had
before the congress
refusing to longer close unless certain
small stores were also shut up. In
executive session it was decided to
interview dissatisfied firms once more, |
and a resolution adopted authorizing |
the placing on the unfair list all firms |
keeping open after 80 days. In addi- |
ton, the following was adopted:
Whereas, The proposal of certain |
business men to open their stores on |
Sunday is injurious to trades union
ism and is strongly opposed by unions |
of the retail clerks; therefore be it
Resolved, That our affiliating unions |
be instructed to observe strictly the
policy of trading only with stores that
keep closed on Sundays, even to the
extent of trading outside their home
city with houses that observe Sunday
closing.
A difficulty in regard to the Daven-
port cigarmakers was also taken up.
A scale of wages Endorsed by the In
Cigarmakers' union has
been adopted over there and of the
shops heretofore union those of AM
brose Fersch, Goetsch Bros. and II. j.
Westphal have refused to sign the
scale. They were declared unfair.