Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-10-05
GOMPERS MAKES REPLY
DENIAL OF CHARGES MADE nv
STEEL STRIKE LEADER.
Attitude of the Federation's President
and Mr.. Mitchell of United
Mine Workers.

President Gompers of the American Fed
Grafton Of Labor publishes in the October
issue of the Federationist, the official or
gan of that body, a vigorous and detailed
statement in reply to charges made by
President Shaffer of the Amalgamated AS
ISOLATION of Iron and Steel Workers re-
sarding the attitude of Mr.. Gompers and
PRESIDENT Mitchell of the United Mine
Workers OF America during the recent
steel strike. Mr.. Gompers says:
Mr.. Shaffer says that he especially re-
lied upon the American Federation of La
Dor for financial assistance. / assert that
ne never asked for any. No request, either
written, telegraphic or verbal, was ever
received during the entire strike at the Of
nee OF the American Federation of Labor
from MI. Shaffer or from any other repre-
sentative of the Amalgamated Association
ASKING for financial assistance. Yet, 1 VEN
ture to assert, that nearly every dollar of
financial assistance received at the office
OF the Amalgamated Association came from
unions AFFILIATED with the American Fedora
tlon or Labor, and if the Federation as
such did not give a cent it was because II
was neither directly nor indirectly asked to
do So"
Flat Contradiction.
Regarding Mr.. Skaters statement that
he arranged a meeting between Mr. j. Pier
pont Morgan and Mr.. Gompers, for which,
he alleges, Mr.. Morgan gave up his vaca-
ton, but the meeting was not held because
Mr.. Gompers failed to appear, the latter
says:
Mr.. Shaffer says that which is absolutely
untrue, and he knows it,"
correspondence from Mr.. Shaffer urging
Mr.. Gompers and Secretary Morrison to
come immediately to Pittsburg is publish
ed and after Netailing several interviews
with Mr.. Shaffer and others, Mr.. Gompers
saws:
1T will thus be seen that Mr. Stevenson
(an employer of union labor friendly to
the AmalgaHated Association was to meet
Mr.. Morgan at the very time when Mr.
Easley (of the Civic Federation not Mr.
Shaffer, had arranged for me to meet Mr.
Morgan" Mr.. Gompers says he explained
to Mr.. Shaffer that it was inadvisable to
have too many irons in the fire at the
same time, and that Mr.. Shaffer agreed
with him as to the substitution of Mr.
Stevenson for himself (Gompers) at this
proposed conference, ''all of us being fully
highly recommended by Mr.. Shaffer and
going with the proposition for arbitration
to Mr. Morgan, would be successful
In Parallel Columns.
The terms of the agreement secured by
Mr.. Shaffer, September H. and those Sc
cured by Messrs. Gompers, Mitchell and
others, September 4, are printed in parallel
columns, the former enumerating the Ca
nal, Dover and Demmler mills among those
not included as union mills, and the latter
providing for them as union mills
Mr. Gompers says Mr.. Shaffer now knows
that 1t is unwise for men at the head of
organizations to declare for policies which
the rank and file will not approve, and that
If such common sense is ignored the men
will desert their leader.
Mr.. Gompers says that what Mr.. Shaffer
wanted him to do was to have a general
union strike in aid of the steel strike
This, Mr. Gompers says, he could not do.
Il feel confident" says Mr.. Gompers,
that the executive officers of the trade
unions Of America ought not and would
not violate or break their contracts or
agreements with their employers through
out the country. Hence, there would not
and ought not to be widespread sympa-
thetic strike
Noncompliance of this request. 1t is as
serted, is the basis of the bitter attacks
by MI Shaffer. Mr.. Gompers says Mr..
Mitchell denied to him that he ever had
promised to call out the miners.