The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-08-27
RAILROAD NEWS.
Strike ON Santa Fe Gulf Lines
Declared Off.
Has Involved 500 Men for Over
a Month.
Z = = = = = = . Is
A BITTER STRUGGLE
Much Amnesty Between Men
and Railroad officials.
Many Men at Cleburne to rake
Strikers Places.

Galveston. Tex, Aug. 27.-Genera1
Manager Nixon of the Gulf. Colorado
& Santa Fee states that the strike IN
the company's shops at Cleburne and
other points has been declared off. About
700 men are involved.
The strike of the machinists on the
Gulf Colorado & Santa Fe lines was
inaugurated July g. The trouble start
ed at Cleburne, Tex, where the main
shops of the Gulf road are located, but
it spread all over that part of the sys-
tem--as far north as Purcell, /. T., and
east to Beaumont. The difficulty arose
over Charles Hess, machiniSt and
member of the. grievance committee or
the machinists' union. Hess, SO the
company official claimed, had been lay
ing off a great deal; and as his machine
was a planer which it was difficult for
the company to have standing idle, the
foreman asked him to take another
machine. This was refused; and in
little over an hour after his refusal. so
the company men say, the whole SnOp
force walked out. They were followed at
various times within the next week by
the boilermakers, blacksmiths, car ana
coach painters and in fact all of the
workers except the car men. The strike
came just as the executive OF the car
mems union was in session with the
officials of the mechanical department
in Topeka and it required extraordinary
efforts on the part of this committee to
prevent the other tradesmen from join
ing in the walk-out.
At a number of times the machinists
have issued statements regarding the
trouble, claiming that they had bee1i
misused by the officials. Two of these
manifestos are lengthy and have an ex-
preston Of the keeneSt bitterness
against the company representatives on
that part of the road. Superintendent
of Motive Power Henderson was at the
scene of the difficulty soon after 1t nap
pened along with General Manager
Niv0n plans Immediately MADE
for continuing the work in the shops
and to that end a great many eastern
men were employed. So many men or
different trades were shipped in there
that the company had to call a halt;
there were more in sight than could be
given work. Last Sunday night Az arrived
in Cleburne. Boarding cars were ntted
up in shops district and the men were
auartered in a part of the town ada
cent to the railroad property. GUARDS
were stationed and no one was al
lowed through the shops except those
who were able to get past the guards.
For some weeks there have been ru-
mors that the strike would soon be set
tied Superintendent of Motive Power
Henderson went down to Cleburne last
week and it is believed that he and Mr..
Nixon were able to arrange matters
which terminated the strike. Mr.. Hen
derson left Texas Monday night for Col
orado where he will spend a short time
resting after which he is expected to
IL
The following is the statement of the
trouble made by Mechanical Superin-
tendent SymOnS:
1.-The difficulty was brought about on
account of the company declining to the
shopmen to dictate as to where any
certain mechanic shall be assigned to
work. The particular case in question
being one wherein one of our mach1n-
lists. who has been running machine
has been absent from the shops great
many times. and on account of hiseab-
sence the company being required to
either allow the machine to stand idle
or assign a strange man to the work
This being repeated so often as to cause
US a great deal of Inconvenience and
annoyance, we were finally compelled to
assign a man to the machine who would
work regularly, and in turn assign the
mechanic to work at the same rate OF
pay and under precisely the same con-
ditions where he may lay off or be alb
sent from the shop if necessary without
in any manner embarrassing the COM
pany or interfering with the progress
of the work in the shops.
1.-The employee in question refused to
perform the work in question assigned
to him: the men demanded that he be
placed at such work as they prescribe.
He was not dismissed or in any man
ner prevented from resuming his duties
as machinist on his return from work.
We could not, however, accede to their
demands that he or shop committees
should be allowed to dictate to US Just
where he should work. 1t being abso-
lutely essential to the proper operation
of the plant that the companys officers
and foremen in charge shotZd not only
lay out the work but assign the men
to 1t.
1.-The company regrets very much
that the men should have taken this
very hasty and what appears to US ILL
advised and unwarranted action, as we
had no desire to create any friction
whatever among our employees, but
must insist that the management of the
company's property shall be vested in
the officers and foremen employed for
that dutysand not, delegated to an indi-
vidual employee or a committee
(Signed) "W. E. SYMONS,
Mechanical superintendent"