Evening journal., 1901-04-18
Outlook for Settlement Is
Considered Favorable
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TROUBLE BREWING OVER YEAR
Indications That Strike, Ii Made
Will Not Take Place for SeY-
eral Days

Pittsburg, April 1S.-The advisory
beard of tho Amalgamated Association !
adjourned last evening without reach /
ing a decision. ConciliatOry measures !
on the part of the companies of the
great steel combine may avert the i'm !
pending strike that promises to par
slyze the steel and iron industries OF |
the country. Col. G.. Watson French, |
vice president CT the Republic Iron and |
Steel company, is expected to be pres
ent before the final adjournment Of the
advisory board. It is reported that he
Is coming as mediator between that or
ganization and the American Sheet
Steel company. Col French has direct
control of 2s plants of the company,
which employ about $4,000 men, the
majority Of whom are members Of the
Amalgamated Association. All the
mills of the company are operated un-
der the wage agreement of the Anal
gamated Association.
Some of the men in attendance at the
strike meeting at McKeesport yester-
day afternoon reported that Assistant
L. Harrison, of the w. Devices Wood
mill, made them an offer of increased
pay to return to work. They refused
TO go back. and he informed them that
he would put other men in their places.
II was reported that $50 skilled work.
mea have been brought to Pittsburg
from different points.
On the other hand, there Is a new.
move toward Cancellation and arbitra-
tion. which may end the entire con-
troversy in Pittsburg today or may be
carried to New York to be adjusted by
higher powers.
President T. J. Shaffer said last night
that the outlook for settlement is bet
ter than at any time since the Nc
Keesport trouble started He refused
TO explain this statement. Later, 1t il
understood. Mr.. Shaffer heard from
Col FKench at his home in relation to
some action he has taken When the
Amalgamated president was asked to
tell the nature Of Col Frenchs mes
sage he declared that he had nothing
TO say, nor would he deny that he had
received such a message.
A canvass of all parties to the dispute
indicates that the declaration Of a
strike, if made, will not take place for
several days.
The McKeesport trouble is the first
visible eruption Of a condition that has
been developing for over a year, be-
ginning with the formation Of the
American Sheet Steel company. The
individual companies that were absorb
ed had no uniform plan of treating the
workers. Those in the association OF
sheet steel manufacturers employed
and recognized union labor. Those out
side were non-union. The combine took
ia all. When it came to a settlement
of o scale last year the Amalgamated
Association demanded that their scale
be signed for oil mills. This the com.
pany refused. claiming that in som'
mills the non-union men were getting
more than scale rates, and that Il
would be unfair 70 cut them down Il
that of organized labor.
In the meantime. OF on May 1S, th'
non-union men signed an agreemen
not to organize during the year ant
providing that the wages that thei
ruled should continue during the year
The scale controversy, however, con
tinued. and finally ended IN an agree
ment that the scale apply only to tn
union mills. Since then the organiza
tion has been devoting its energies to
ward getting the sheet mill workers 4
the other nOn-union mills organized
and for that purpose has considered tn
matter OF throwing the mills "open.
Mills that are "open" are these
which organized men are permitted [
work with non-union men for thepui
pose of propagating the seeds OF unior
ism.
The formation OF the United State
Steel corporation tended TO oomplicai
matters. II included a number Of col
Germs. non-union and organized, NAL
ing manifold the difficulties OF the Il
Dor leaders. The predominance of Il
Carnegie company influences in Il
new corporation did not tend to NAL
matters easier. The vast interests
the Carnegie company were entire
non-union. and had been since the cos
ly battle at Homestead. IN 1892, b
tween the Amalgamated and the Ca
negie company.