Evening star., 1901-08-12
Hard to Tell Who Has Advantage
in Steel Strike.
WESTERN MEN DID NOT STRIKE
Some of the Men in Carnegie
Mills Quit, However.
MON ASKS FOR AID

P1TTSBURG, Pa, August 12--Out OF the
chaos and uncertainty of the strike situa-
ton today a few facts have materialized
bearing with Importance upon the progress
of the strike and the outlook for the future.
Ffrst-In this initial trial of strength the
Amalgamated Association proves it does
not possess the power it claimed.
Second-A partial tie-up of industries,
such as now exists. contains more possi-
bilities of friction and disturbances than
would a complete shut down all along the
line.
Third-The struggle will now be concen-
trated in the Pittsburg district, where the
AmaIgamated will make it's last stand for
life.
When the tin plate, steel hoop and sheet
steel mills of the United States Steel Cor
poration went on strike several weeks ago
because of failure to agree upon terms
favorable to the extension of the union in
the mills of the steel trust, only portion
of the workmen employed by the great steel
trust were affected. There remained at
work 12.OO0 men in the mills of the Fed
eral Steel Company. component part OF
the steel trust and several thousand men
in the National Steel Company, likewise
part of the trust. together with about 5000
, men in the National tube works, also con-
trolled by the trust. The Federal and Ma
tional steel mills were organized by the
Amalgamated Association, the National
tube works were only partially organized.
Bear in mind, the Federal Steel the Ma
tional steel and the National tube work
men had no grievances. They had signed
the scale and were under contract to labor
for one year upon certain specified terms.
Trouhle Over Other Mills,
Then came the final failure of Shaffer to
arrange a scale for the tin plate, hoop and
sheet steel mills, already on strike. Shaffer
said he would tie up every mill owned by
the steel trust and he called upon every
member of the Amalgamated Association
and every friend of labor in those mills to
go on strike last Saturday night. He fore
saw the objection likely to be urged, name
ly, that the Federal Steel men and others
were working under contracts previously
signed. So in his call for the general
strike issued August T. he said You will
be told that you have signed contracts, but
you never agreed to surrender those con-
tracts to the United States Steel Corpora
tion. Its officers think you were sold to
them, just as the mills were, contracts and
ALL Remember, before you agreed to any
contract, you took an obligation to the
Amagamated Association. 1t now calls
you to help in this hour of need"
The Federal Steel men yesterday decided
they would not strike. Twelve thousand
members of the Amalgamated Association
refused to break their contracts in order
to help the tin plate. sheet and hoop men
make contracts. About one-half the Ma
tional steel and tube men also refused.
The men in the non-union mills Of the steel
trust, consisting principally of the great
Carnegie group, declined to a man to help
the Union workmen in the Amalgamated
Association. So today the strikers find
that their ranks consist of these men:
The original strikers of the tin plate,
sheet steel and hoop men: about $500 men
in the National tube works, about 6,40O
men in the National steel works, making
an estimated total of So 600 idle men, the
most of whom are idle indirectly, not be-
ing members of the Amalgamated
Some VIII BE Forced Out.
This number will be increased within the
next few days by 2,o0O or 3,OO0. Some Of
the National tube men, who refused to
strike will be forced out, because their
mills will shut down for lack of material.
The strikers succeeded in closing three
big mills in Pittsburg, which furnished the
material for the McKeesport tube mills.
That source is now exhausted. and as soon
as the supply now on hand Is used up the
tube mills will be forced to shut down, and
the Mckeesport workers will be idle.
1t is true that fifty odd thousand of the
trusts men are idle and the plants shut
down, but that is a bagatelle compared
TO the fact that the Amalgamated Associa-
ton is divided against itself. The union
men are at odds with each other, and in
such state cannot, it is claimed, invoke
the sympathy of nOn-union workers nor
draw the Federation of Labor into the
quarrel The one object of the steel trust
Is said to be TO smash the union. 1t is
claimed that the entering wedge was
driven by the Chicago and Milwaukee men
yesterday. When the union is smashed in
this vicinity the trust will go for the Mil
waukee and Chicago organizations The
program for the immediate future will
probably be developed within twenty-four
hours On the part of the trust, it Is un-
derstood, the plan will be to start up the
idle mills with non-union men, especially
those that supply the material to the fin
ishing mills. Therein lies the possibility of
friction and disturbance. 1t may be some
time before the tin plate. sheet and hoop
iiiiAiS SStH pS DIS tHey employ nlSnly
skilled labor that is somewhat scarce But
there will be enough to do for the present
to get the tube mills going again at Nc
keesport, Riverside and Wheeling, and
from all indications it will be lively enough
for while.
This afternoon a movement was set en-
loot, originating among friends of the
Amalgamated Association, outside of the
management Of that body. looking to the
ascertainment of terms upon which the
striking tin plate, hoop and steel men may
finally return to work without impairment
OF the organization.
In other words, 1t is believed by those
men that the steel trust will win in the
end. and that instead of the Amalgamated
Association making a way to extend its
organization, 1t will do well, under the
present prospect, to hold its own The
doubt in their mind is whether any terms
can be made with the trust that do not
require abandonment of the union as a
condition precedent AS stated, this move
ment is now only In an embryo state, and
does not come from the strike managers
I might not be hazarding too much to say