The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-07-09
WAR IN THE
LAUNDR|ES
Chinese Union
After Celestial
"Scabs."
POLICE PROTECT
A WASH HOUSE
Late Development of American
Labor Methods in Celestial
Wash Houses.

War between the union and nom
union Chinese laundrymen began yes
terday morning at Iwilei, requiring the
presence of several police officers under
the command of Deputy Sheriff Chill
lingworth to prevent bloodshed For
three hours the police officers stood
guard in front of a Chinese laundry,
armed with sticks and clubs of any kind
that were handy
The demonstration of the union laun-
drymen against the ''scabs'' continued
until the middle of the afternoon, when
several arrests for assault and battery
were made by the Deputy Sheriff. Upon
their return to the police station, two
dozen or more Celestials, bosses and
employees, assembled in the corridor
leading to the Deputy Sheriffs office,
waiting to swear to warrants for ar
rest of certain of their countrymen
whom they accused of violence. Occa
sionally Chinese of the union and the
non-union organizations passed each
other with hard looks.
The trouble dates back TO the time
when the laundrymen of Honolulu
struck for higher wages and fewer
hours. They wanted an advance of 81
week in the various grades of work
and a shortening of the days work,
which averaged fifteen hours. The
bosses failed to accede to the demands
of the laundrymen until last week,
when several of the wash houses capt.
ulated. In the district of Iwilei are a
number of such places. The men who
had formerly worked in the wash
houses were barred, as their bosses had
secured other men, or "non-unions," as
the Chinese have learned to call them.
These men were continued on in the
work until the union became angry and
threatened their bosses with trouble if
they did not turn out the "non-unions'
and take the unions back at the adj
vanced rate.
Yesterday morning trouble was scent
ed in the district. Numbers of unions
who are idle proceeded toward the
wash house which still used the mon
unions" Demands were made for their
removal, followed by blows. For ten
or fifteen minutes fists and anything
else that could be used as a weapon
was applied with telling effect on pig
ldllSU neduS several men were WOu1lu-
ed. A telephone message was sent to
the police station and the Deputy Sher-
if and several officers hurried to the
scene of conflict. There they found at
least 100 Chinese gathered near the
laundry making angry demonstrations
toward the inmates The Deputy Sher-
iff ordered them to dispense. The Chi
nese held their ground and then the Of
60 o11o
the non union men to go back to work
and stood guard while they did So By
| 2 o'clock a crowd of nearly 300 Chinese
gathered in the vicinity but did not
dare to make a Representation. At last,
firing of the waiting tactics, the Dep
uty Sheriff ordered several men under
arrest. Warrants were sworn to at the
police station charging ringleaders with
assault and battery
There was a well-attended meeting
last evening at the See Yup headquar-
tiers. on King street beyond Beretania,
which. though called for the purpose of
arriving at some settlement Of the dis
Eputed questions. was without effect. The
See Yups own about three-fourths OF
the laundries of the city and they have
a complete organization The strikers
thought that there would be no Difficult
ty in coming together An invitation
had been sent to the men who went out
to get together a committee to present
the case to the owners of the laundries
and there was some time wasted IL
waiting fol such representatives. Bu
they never came.
The meeting then resolved itself int
one for the consideration of ways ant
means. There was a full discussion o
the whole matter, the burden of tn
speeches, which were we'll received be
ing that there should be every effor
made to get a compromise through, s.
as not to risk the breaking up of tn
general laundry business and the Civ
ing of it over to the japanese and Por
tuguese. The meeting was most excel
lently conducted, there being only on
disturbing element, and that but for
moment, when one Chinese insisted tina
the speaking should be done in Englis
so that all present could understand.
At the conclusion of several ad
dresses motion made by Yung Leon
Chun that a committee of three be sen
to the strikers to make an inquiry a
to the reason for the stoppage Of wor
was carried and the chairman name
the following: Wo Chung, Ham Ke
and Ng Ying. These are leaders of tn
society and they will report as soon a
they find any basis which may perm
all to come together.