Waterbury Democrat., 1901-07-15
GREAT STRIKE BEGUN.
A Struggle For Principle. Not Wages,
 Says Shaffer.

Says Shatfer.
 PITTSBURG, July 15.-From present indications it looks probable that Presl' dent Shaffer's strike order issued to the Amalgamated association members in the employment of the American Steel Hoop company, the American Sheet Steel com pany and the American Tin Plate com pany will be obeyed, and the great strus' gle between the Amalgamated association | and the steel companies will be on ID | earnest.
 In the union mills of the three compa' nies against which strike has been de clared it is predicted that not wheel will turn. An effort will be made also to close down some of the nonunion mills of the companies and to cripple the rest. | The Amalgamated people are very san guine of. success.
 sHThe strike was not of our own seek ing" said President Shaffer. Tt was I forced upon us. We were not contending for wages, but for principle, for self pres ervation. The tin and sheet people will not be able to turn single wheel. We have our forces thoroughly organized, and there will be some surprises in store. have not heard from a single lodge in an- l swer to my strike order, but an answer IS not necessary. The order will be prompt | ly obeyed by all our men. But there will | be no trouble. Labor organizations have l changed. The Amalgamated association 1 is not the association 1t was 70 years ago, nor even five years ago. The men are more readily controlled. In fact, we have | our men under control"
 Developments indicate that Pittsburg | is going to be pretty lively strike center. | The most interest attaches to the Palnt- CTS mill on the south side and to that of | r p- sx, hnray 1 Both mills are controlled. by the Amerl- can Steel Hoop company and have hith- erto been aggressively nonunion, and I much depended upon the action taken by | the men in these plants. The employees 1 of both mills held open meetings yester- | day, and both decided to strike today. The Painter mill employs about 400 men
 and the Lindsay SS McCutcheon mill
 about 300.
 The fight at the Painter mill is to be
 made the fight of the strike. Both sides | will make stubborn resistance. If the
 Amalgamated people can close this mill,
 they believe they will have won the great
 CT part of the strike. The mill is not only
 an important one, but the Steel Hoop 1 company has for years succeeded in
 thwarting the efforts to unionize it.
 President Shaffer was asked if he had
 set a time when, if no settlement having
 been effected, he would extend the strike
 to all the subsidiary steel companies of
 the United States Steel corporation. He
 said he must decline to make his plans
 known at present.
 It may be said, however, on the strength
 of reliable information that the strike
 within it's present limits is intended mere
 ly as q show of strength.
 At the conference last week the repre- 4I,.
 repeatedly. warned that the association
 was much stronger than they knew. They
 were even told of the organization of mills
 of which they had no Knowledge. But the
 steel men would not believe that the asso-
 citation was as strong as it was claimed to
 be- Thus it is believed the first purpose
 of the association is to show its strength
 by confning the strike to three compa.
 nies- When that show of strength has
 been made, whatever it may prove to be
 the association expects the companies tc ask for another conference. If the com panies show no inclination to make set
 clement, the strike will be extended tc
 three more companies. If the trust vii not yield then, the strike will be extended
 to such independent companies as sel their finished products or raw material: to companies against which a strike ha: been declared.
 A report from Newcastle, Pa, says that : fully 4,OO0 men are affected in that city by the Amalgamated strike Of these 1000 are employed in the Shenango plant and 1 400 in the Greer plant of tho American Tin Plate company and 60( l at the steel plant of the National Stee company The men of the latter mil
 were not called out by President Shaffer ! but notices were posted there stating that the plant would be in operation to day The hot mills departments of botl the Greer and Shenango plants are idle
 affecting GOO men at the former and 90l at the latter. These departments ar, manned exclusively by Amalgamatet men. The balance of the employees O.
 both plants are either unorganized o affiliated with the International Pro
 tective Association of Plate Workers The local members of the Amalgamate. association are highly pleased over tn decision to strike. They will stand b. President Shaffer to a man. This morn
 ing not one wheel turned in either tn Greer or Shenango tin mills, the larges
 men are ready for long struggle The.
 have been preparing for this fight fo
 months. Newcastle Is one of the strong i, est union cities In the country. The til ' workers who are not members of tn Amalgamated association also feel vital interest in the present situation n Local men believe this will be tke great f est strike in the history of the country t They will offer no violence
 nI --~-=----.s---