Graham guardian., 1902-05-09
Strike at the Shannon

Saturday night, and 5 inday even
ing AT q ok the men walked
out. AloIta week ago some of
the employees made protest over
the proposition of joining the G if
ton Accident Benevolent society.
Heretofore the men have been pay
ing S1.O0 per month, which en-
titled them to doctor and medi
cines, but not insurance and hos
pital privileges. The shannon
management recently arranged
with the Clifton Acc dent Renevo
lent Society for the admis ion of
their men as members. The prin-
cipal object of the society is its
insurance feature, which guarantees
the men certain amounts in case of
accident, and also provides for
doctors and medicines, but not for
free care in the hospital except in
case of accidents. However, mem
bers of the society, when sick are
treated in the hospital for 81 rs
per day, while those who are not
members are charged $3.50 per day
for the same service. The EN-
ployes Of the A. G. company, for
whose benefit the society was
formed, were taxed 81 per month
for the first year or more, but the
charge has now been reduced to
81 so, which just about pays ex
penses. In addition TO the charges
against the men, the a. G. com.
pany contributes 25 per cent Of the
amount collected from the men for
The hospital and accident fund, and
the Shannon company comes in on
the same rate.
The society has fund of sever
al thousand dollars on hand, be
sides good hospital. The board
Of directors of the society did not
think it fair to the old members to
take in q lot Of new men to share
in the benefits Of their savings o
the past two years, except at the
same rate which was at first paic
by the old members. In taking
in these new men it would, in the
opinion Of the directors, be neccs
sary to add to the hospital here
and also to erect new hospital "a
Metcalf, where the Shannon peopl,
are now employing more than twC
hundred miners. For these rca
sons the directors decided that the
Shannon men should be taxed S:
per month for the first year, ant
alter that time they would be ad
mitted into the full fellowship o
the society on the same monthly
charge as the older members. Tn,
Shannon men claimed that they
should not be taxed more than the
employees Of the A. G.. company
and they also made some objections
to the rules governing the society
They wanted to cut loose fir, m Tn,
A G. company and have an asso
citation and hospital Of their own
but the management of the com
pany did not think it advisabl,
while the company was employing
so few men, to II tempt to establish
"a hospital Of their own. The mel
appolnted committee to notify
the management thai they woulc
not submit t. the 81 rate. Sunday
Mr.. Wiseman, the general manage
Of the company, notified the mel
in person that the company woult
expect them to join the society oi
the first of May, and he would con
slider it ii favor by those who I'll,
not wish to do so to notify him t.
that effect, SO that he could ar
range to fill their places. lndi
rectly the management learned
that the men were going to quit u
6 o'clock, and therefore ordered
the fires drawn and the furnace
blown out. When the night fore
came on they joined with the da.
force, and all went out. Ther
was no disorder of any kind, AM
the men conducted thomselve
with propriety around the works
and also in town.
Since then some of the men, ir
cluding carpenters, machinist;
furnacemen, c., have returned t
work, and furnace was blown i
to day.-Era.