New-York tribune., 1901-08-22
FEAR RIOT IN PITTSBURG.
ATTEMPT TO START IDLE MILLS LIKELY
TO CAUSE TROUBLE.
STRIKE LEADERS TRYING TO PRESERVE ORDER
THEIR FOLLOWERS IN A RESTLESS MOOD.

s-prr,r LEADERS TRYING TO PRESERVE ORDER
THEIR FOLLOWERS IN A RESTLESS MOOD.
rpY TELEGRAPH TO THE TNBUNE.l
Pittsburg Aug. 21.-The strike has Teacheu
the noisy stage in several localities inland about
Fittsburg and the leaders of the Amalgamaueu
Association are kept busy trying TO keep down
s,rnptonns CT disorder. At the Monessen tin
,late works the Painter plant ana the Penn
sv,vania and Continental tube works excite
m mt has been high for the last tWenI-io
hours. but no actual violence has occurred. AT
the Painter plant some OF tfe non-unlon men
through fear have made display OF reNolNers
in the presence Of men they wrongly believed
70 be strikers The result the arrest or the
non-union men, who were fined for their CON
duct. The company paid the fines and had
escorts with the men when they left the police
court. Al the Pennsylvania and Continental
tube plants the disorder was more apparent
than real but a leader for the crowd would
have stirred up a riot in a minute. The six
policemen who were guard were swept here
and there by the crowd, and were useles 10
protect the mill. No one was hurt however
ard when inquiry into the case followed it was
found that the Hungarian and Polish laborers
had mistaken some men for new hands enter
ing the plant, and tried TO drive them away.
These incidents. with those at the Monessen TN
Association officers. and courageous men were
sent into the excited districts TO keep the
strikers away from the mills.
There has been no strong and determined ef-
fort made so far any OF the idle plants. In
spite OF the promises OF the steel corporation
officers here. but when the attempt is MADE
there is every reason now to believe there VIII
be trouble. While the strikers a whole are
keeping away from the mills. every idle plant is
surrounded by pickets. whose lines extend long
distances. The piclxets guard day and
night, and, except at Monessen, the nop-union
men have been unable TO get into the mills
without detection. The belief is that when the
steel corporation tries TO bring in large bodies
OF men. there will be repetition Of Homestead
tactics The strikers will be invisible until the
new men are at hand. Then. at Homestead
they will respond to the signals OF the pickets
and the newcomers will be confronted with
mass OF men apparently coming UP out OF the
ground At some OF the mills the guards are
under cover more or less successfully, while Al
others the patrols are posted openly, watching
every avenue of approach 20 the idle mills.
sHAFFER SAYS STRIKE IS WON.
President Shaffer tonight expressed the opin-
ion that unless something unexpected happens
the strike is won There have been rumors OF
urobab BILE peace through a renewal OF conferences
owing TO the spread OF idleness. but President
sl,affer saws the rumors have foundation in
fact He says that renewal Of conferences
under the present exciting circumstances would
be out Of the question, but he looks for some
thing TO happen before long. when the intensity
of feeling has somewhat subsided. He thinks
There is too much hot blood on both sides for
r,eace talk now but believes present conditions
cannot continue much longer without something
developing % alter the direction Of the strike
He SAYS frankly he expects peace, and believes
il IS not far away, but bases his belief on the
tactical advantages secured by the strikers
Evidently although he did not say SO, ne eX-
poets the Chicago and Duquesne plants 20 be ldle
bv the end Of the week and then hopes thai
the beginning OF the end VIII appear. Since the
discharge of several men at the Duquesne mill
for discussing the strike President Shaffer de-
nies that there are lodges of the Amalgamated
Association in that mill. This however. is simply
TO try 10 protect the members who are unoer
surveillance Another source OF Information
equally trustworthy asserts that there are lodges
in all the departments at Duqueshe' ahQ tla'
there will be a strike when the time arrives
Work is stll being done at the lower Union
mill OF the Carnegie company and the clark,
Painter and Lindsay & McCutcheon plants, but
IN an extremely limited way. A search Is neeoeo
to show men at work, except at the lower Union
mill and that plant was not wholly Idle. at
any time.
The strikers are depending largely on the idle
ness OF the tube. sheet and tin plate plants,
which removes many consumers of biiets
and bars. At the DuQuesne plant, where sheet
and tin plate bars form large proportion OF the
product bllets forming the remainder, the
stocking of sheet and tin plate bars IS going on
at q rapid rate and IL looks If IL was simply
a question Of time until the sheet and tin plate
bar production must be shut OF.
At the same time. the Homestead plant de-
pends so largely the Duquesne mill that
idleness at Duquesne would tend 10 force a sus-
pension in at least some Of the Departments al
Homestead. Duquesne and Braddock the
supply points TO a great extent for the big fin
ishing mills at Homestead, and the upper and
lower Union mills in Pitstburg, and anything
that affects the Duquesne plant Will be reflected
al the other mills II is for this reason that the
An-algamated Association is working hard
at DuQuesne TO bring out the men. 1t will also
within a short time, II is said, force out the
workers at Homestead. and probably the city
plants. for want OF raw and semi-1nished ma
serial