The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-10
A DAY OF MACHINES
INTERESTING DISCUSSION AT La
BOR CONVENTION.
USELESS TO FIGHT PROGRESS
EVEN THE LABOR LEADERS HAVE
REALIZED THIS.

Efforts of the Cigar Makers Union
to Condemn the Use of Machines
In the Manufacture of Cigars Is
Defeated-TO Oppose Machines
Would BE Folly, Said Speakers.
Union Labels EndOrsed-MetaI
Trades Organized Into "a Fcdern-
tiOn.
Scranton, Pa, Dec. 9.-The cOnven-
tion of the American Federation of
Labor was in session only two hours
to-day adjournment being taken until
tomorrow morning in order to enable
the several committees to consider the
large number of resolutions still in
their hands. Fifere was lively dis
cussion on the floor of the convention
over the question of boycotting ma
chine-made cigars. 1t is the same ques-
tion that the Cigarmakers' Internation-
al Union has brought up at previous
conventions of the federation, and the
union has always been defeated in its
fight against the introduction of ma
chinery in the cigar trade. At the
present time not a machine made cigar
in the United States, it is said, hears
the label of the Cigarmakers Interna-
tional Union.
The matter came up in the form of a
resolution presented by President
Gompers, John C. Dernell and Thomas
f. Tracy of the Cigarmakers' Union,
and was referred to the Committee on
Labels. 1t denounced a certain COM
pany for making cigars by child la
Dor and machinery, and called upon
the federation to assist in unioniZing
the various plants of the company.
The committee reported the resolution
back with the recommendation that
the word machinery be stricken
out and the resolution adopted. Then
the cigarmakers opened their fight.
They insisted that the term :machin-
ery'' should not be eliminated, and ar
gued that cigars made by machinery
are not as good as those made by
hand, and that the machines drive
hand cigarmakers out of the business
The speakers in opposition to the ci-
| garmakers proposition argued that to
| oppose machinery would be folly. Ma
| chimes are being introduced in many
lines of trade, they said. and the unior
could not successfully fight the law o
/ progress 1t was pointed out to tbs
| ~
was to organize the operators of the
machines and adopt a wage scale, JUS
| as the typographical and other unions
| have done when machinery was intro
| duced in their trades. The discussion
| promised to be very lengthy, but the
moving of the previous question quick
! ly ended the debate and the resolution
| with the word. machinery" stricken
| out, was adopted as recommended
I ~ - he
| Committee on Resolutions reported a
number of resolutions, which were
adopted in every instance, where the
committees brought in favorable rec
ommendation. They were as follows:
Petitioning Congress to amend the
marine laws so that every seaman
shall have the right to quit merchant
vessel on which the service has be-
come obnoxious to him; also to pro-
hibit the towing on the oceans of gt-
gantic RATS.
Question of Labels.
That the federation refuse to recog-
nize labels gotten up by rival unions
of the Tobacco Workers Internation-
al Union; reindorsing the blue label
of the Tobacco Workers Union; that
the federation draw up a form of OBJ
legation that will instruct all new
members 10 uGiidtiO AiAC oiiAcAA A0"NA
wherever they purchase manufactured
goods; indorsing the union stamp of
the Interna tional Union of JoHrneylnen
Horseshoers. and indorsing the label
of the Actors National Protective
Union.
The Metal Trades Federation, after
a series of meetings. finally organized
to-day by electing the following OIL
GERS:
President-E. J. Lynch of New York,
national president of the Metal Polish
ers.
vice President-Robert Kerr, Moline.
ILL.,. national president of the Black
smiths.
Secretary and Treasurer - John
I.OLeary, Worcester, Mass, president
of the Coremakers.
All of the trades in the Metal FEEDER
alton are affiliated with the American
Federation, and the object of the or
panization is to have an association
that can deal directly with the manu-
facturers who are organized under the
| name of the National Metal Trades
AcSociatiOn