The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-08-29
Trainmen Will Start Their
Fight in the Northwest.
Santa Fe May Not Become In
vOlved for the Present.
SPRING CONFERENCE.
Stubborn Fight of Santa Fe
Trainmen Was Significant.
Elaborate Campaign Worked
Out by the Brotherhood.

According to the plans of the Broth
erhood of Railroad Trainmen. in so far
as they have been made public, the pro-
posed demand for 20 per cent increase
in wages will not affect the Santa Fe
road for some time. Other Kansas
roads are also likely to escape for the
time being.
The plan of the labor organizations
as gathered by railway officials is COM
prehensive and well constructed. 1t is
the purpose of the labor men to take
the railroads by territorial groups and
compel joint conferences between COM
mittees representing the employees OF
the entire individual groups and OF the
railroads of the group.
1t has been decided that the first
group to be dealt with is composed or
the Northwestern roads. mainly the
Chica-St- Paul roads. These are:
The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; the
Chicago & Northwestern; the Chicago
Rock Island &, Pacific: the Chicago.
Milwaukee & st. Paul: the Chicago
Great Western; the Wisconsin Central;
the Illinois Central lines west of tn"
Mississippi.
1t will be remem bered that last
spring the Santa Fe trainmen made
very determined effort to secure con-
cessions from the Senta Fee, and in view
of recent development. the Importance
of that effort is beginning to be appre-
ciated. 1t is said that the object of the
determined fight was to force the Santa
( 10 DllSn d pTGCcQcHl lOl ing iiSA
wages, and use this as cudgel to beat
the other roads into line The exact re-
suits of the conference with Santa t'e
officials has always been somewhat In
doubt. The men claimed that they Sc
cured very valuable concessions. put
the officials assert that only at few
minor points did they grant the de-
mands of the trainmen.
The contest. however. was long and
stubborn. First the grievance commit
tees presented their case en- masse to
General Manager H. u Nudge, Gen
eral Superintendent Resseguie and Cen
eral Superintendent Hurley. SUISSE
quently Third Vice President j. w.
Kendrick came here from Chicago, and
for several days the committee was i'll
continuous session with the officials
Elaborate stenogra phic reports were
made of all the testimony taken, and
the officials stoutly maintained that the
Santa Fe was already paying as much
as any other western road. Genera1
Manager Nudge stated at the time OF
the conference that If it could be shown
that the trainmen were being paid less
than trainmen of other western roads
the Santa F'e would increase the wages
Assistant Grand Master Lee of the
trainmen'S brotherhood has confirmed
the report that concerted action is to
be taken by the brotherhood to secure
better wages on roads west of the Mis-
sissippi and it is therefore probable
that if the fight in the northwest is
successful, the war will be carried into
become involved.
The movement. which Is well under
way, is one of concerted action for
higher wages for every class of work
men employed in the operation of trains.
1t includes engineers, conductors, train
men. firemen, carmen and switchmen.
Back of the movement will be solid
phalanx of 1,0O0, 900 or J. 10000 working
men bent upon forcing the railroads to
give them what TREY deem to be just
share of the proceeds of the phenomenal
prosperity that has come to the COM
panies.
1t is understood that the demands will
range between 10 and 20 per cent higher
than the present scales of wages. and
that the demand will be made upon GER
tain groups of roads by the middle of
September
The demands will NOT be accompanied
by threats to strike, but of course the
strike specter will from now on be con-
stantly behind the chair of every general
manager in the country. Should a strike
result, it will be the greatest in the
history of railroads and will paralyze
the transportation facilities from one
end of the country to the other.
Beyond the question of a possible gen.
eral strike there is the que stiOn of loss
of revenue involved which is considered
even more serious Should the demands
be met it will mean a yearly increased
cost of operation amounting in the
grand aggregate to many millions of dol
lars.
The first question. which will confront
the railroad arrangements is whether
they shall set precedent by consent
ing to treat with employees n the aggre-
gate, for such a system, once establish
ed, would work a revolution in labor
movements. In the end it would mean
one general committee representing all
the railways and another representing
all the employees of the railways.