The Savannah morning news., 1901-09-02
ATTACKED AGAIN
MOTHER HOT ROAST OF sHAFFER
BY LABOR LEADER.
HARD CHARGES ARE MADE.
uIckEY ARRAIGNs sHAFFER BE-
FORE MILWAUKEE, LODGE.

rresident Of the Amalgamated Asso-
ciation Alleged to Have Misrepre-
scented the Attitude of the Ameri-
can steel Corporations Officers To-
wards Union Labor-offer of Nor
gan Was Most Generous ana
should Have Been Accepted-FOr-
wer Vice President of Association
saws the Strike Is AIrendy Lost.
shafrer Must stand. the Blame.
Milwaukee, Wis, Sept. 1.-Charges
hat the national officers of the Anal
gamated Association had misrepresent-
cd the attitude of the United States
steel Corporation toward organized
labor in order to get the members of
The association out on strike, were
made by ex-Vice President Hickey, at
a meeting of the Bay View Lodge to-
day. -
In a COOL unimpassioned manner,
Mr.. Hickey gave the members of the
lodge the result of his recent trip to
Pittsburg, where he went to investi-
gate the situation in regard to the
steel strike. The situation as summed
I'D by Mr.. Hickey is that it may take
years to repair the damage to the as
sociation which has already been done.
The strike is practically lost. he said.
as 70 per cent. of the mills are work
ing. Mr.. Hickey made no recommen-
dation to the lodge as to it's future
action, but it is believed that his
speech may cause a change in senti-
ment, not only in Bay View, but in
other places in the fourth district.
Nearly all the members of the lodge
were present when the meeting was
called to order. President Joseph Red
fern, of the local lodge, presided, and
when it had concluded he stated that
there had ben no vote taken, although
no one had questioned the accuracy of
Mr. Hickeys statements. That his re-
marks will be reported in full to the
general officers of the organization
and that it may result in bringing AS
sistant Secretary Michael Tighe, or
some other representative of the grand
lodge here again, was the belief of
many.
President Redfern said that so far 1t
appeared to be the opinion of the ma
jcrity that the men should not return
to work until they should be ordered
back by the national officers.
Mr.. Hickey opened his remarks with
a review of the conference with the
representatives of the United States
Steel Corporation preceding the strike,
in which he stated that Messrs. Nor
gan and Schwab outlined their policy
toward organized labor. Mr.. Hickey
went into these details to show that
Secretary Tighe and President Shaffer
had misrepresented the facts when
they appealed to the members of the
association to strike, on the ground
that the steel corporation was deter
mined to crush organization and ruin
the Amalgamation Association. He
maintained that the proposition offer
ed by Mr.. Morgan had been em;nently
fair, and should have been accepted
right there by President Shaffer. if he
had had the interests of his fellow
workers at heart.
Mr.. Hickey reported that Y per cent.
of the mills now are working, and that
in his opinion, the strike is practi-
cally lost
Il obtained these facts from a man
high in Office in the East" said Mr..
Hickey, who was present at the con-
ference, and l afterward confirmed
the statements through members of
the executive board. Judge Gary, for
mer president of the Federal Steel
Company. was present at the confer
ence, and he is now high official of
the United States Steel Corporation.
He, himself, l am informed. was in
favor of signing the scale for all the
mills in the combine, but this did not
1nrfx Il, 4. - - l.
who thought 1t too radical a move.
Morgan's Generous Offer.
"Mr. Morgan then offered Shaffer four
additional mills, for which he was will
ing to sign the scale as an experiment
and then he told Mr.. Shaffer that if the
organization kept faith in these four
mills and lived up to the agreement he
would pledge his word that in two
years every mill in the combine would
be included in the contract with the
Amalganated. This was the most rea-
sonable proposition that has ever been
made to the association and it was
clearly the duty of President Shaffer to
have accepted then and there.
But instead of doing this he turned
1t down fatty, in a speech in which he
said that the scale must be signed for
all or none. He apparently wished to
impress the steel officials with the be-
lief that the association would compel
them to sign for all, whether they
wished to or not. The representatives
OF the corporation. however, would not
be forced or dictated to in this man.
ner, and then broke off the conference.
Since that time there has been no con,
ference or offer of a compromise and
the nearest anyone representing the as
sociation has been able to get to Mr
Morgan or Mr.. Schwab has been by
long distance telephone to their pri-
vate secretaries.
Mr. Hickey accused President Shaffer
Of having printed a constitution of the
Amalgamated Association in which
three important clauses were eliminat-
ed. He said Mr.. Shaffer assumed an
attitude of defiance during the Pitts
burg conference last week, and had
little to say in answer to questions
put to him. The other members of
the executive board, however. semed to
be in accord with. Mr.. Shaffer's views.