Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-04-23
ATTACK BY STRIKERS
Works Of he.American Silk
Company.
MEN ALI DRIVEN OUT
ONE OF THE FIRM WAS BADLY
BEATEN.
Clash With the Police at Paterson,
N. J., Who Shot Into the
Mob.
MEN ALI DRIVEN OUT

PATTERSON, N: J.. April 23.-The strik-
ers held meeting at Riverside this morn
Ing and after 1t was over a large body Of
men marched to Hawthorn, which is just
outside the limits of the city. Here are
located the works of the American Silk
Dyeing and Finishing Company. This
plant was the objective point of the mob
and when they reached there they made
an immediate attack on the works. AS
the plant Is outside the city limits there
was no police guard: The rioters charged
into the mill and drove out all the men at
work.
They turned on the steam and directed it
against the fleeing workmen, a number of
whom were badly scalded George Arnold,
member of the firm, was in his office
when the mob entered the works. He start
ed to see what the trouble was when he was
attacked on all sides and badly beaten. A
Few OF his workmen who had not fled with
the others finally succeeded in getting him
away from the mob
Clash With Police.
Shortly after noon there was a clash be-
tween crowd Of men and the police at
Emil Gerrings dye house. As the en-
ployes OF the dye house left the establish
ment for their luncheon the crowd made a
charge on the building and tried to force
their way through the main entrance. The
police on guard drove back the mob with
their clubs, but there was a second charge,
and this time the attacking party fought so
desperately that the police were compelled
to shoot.
At this the mob broke and fled. During
the fight two policemen were badly injured
on the head by stones The police intended
to fire over the heads of the strikers, but it
Is said one Of the mob was wounded. At
the same time that the attack was made on
Gerring's dye house there was a riotous
demonstration at the dye works Of Knip-
scher & Mas. Here there was hard fight
between a large body of men and the detail
of police. The police had to send for REIN
forcements, and when these arrived the
rioters were dispersed No shots were fired
during the ARRAY.
Rioting Last Evening.
Because Of the rioting last evening which
followed the strike Of dyers' helpers at sew
eral silk dyeing works here the entire po-
lice force is on duty this morning in an
ticipation Of a renewal of the disturbances.
The strikers. however, made no trouble
when the mills opened but it is feared they
may do so later in the day. About 1.6OO
men are reported to be on strike They de-
mand 20 cents an hour and fifty-five hours
work week. They have been getting II
cents an hour.
Charles L. Anger, in whose establish
ment the strike, started said he did not
see how it would be possible to grant the
demand of the .strikers under present con-
ditions. He said heyWas now paying the
helpers from 1914 to 1S1s cents hour and
that was as much as he could afford to
pay. There was plenty of work, he. said,
and the firm was busy, but the prices were
SO low that even With the present scale Of
wages there was only small margin Of
profit.
A strike riot took place in the riverside
section of Paterson last night. The police
reserves were called. Eleven hundred dy-
ers' helpers in the Anger & Simon works
and the Wrightmann dyeing works went
out. The men had been receiving 50 a
week, and ask $11. Those working by the
hour demanded 20 cents instead of II.
A number. Of employees in other silk
plants went on strike, bringing the total
number Of strikers up to between 300 and
1,4U. Violence began at once. One band
went to the Dexter & Lambert mills and
forced an entrance into the works, doing
much damage Charles M Sterrett, man
ager of the works, was hit on the head
with a club while defending the property,
and was taken to hospital unconscious.
The police were called, but by the time the
reserves reached the scene the mob had
dispersed. No arrests occurred there.
Another mob gathered at the Ashley &
Bailey's mills. mfr. Bailey was thrown into
a vat filled with silk and dye He was
somewhat burned by the acids. Watts were
overturned and the stock ruined Again
the mob melted away before the police ar
rived.