Richmond planet., 1903-10-10
VERY SLOW
TO STRIKR.
Past Grievances Of Govern,
ment Office Typos.
WAS ALWAYS AN OPEN SHOP

CAAAN> 4 y IOO'
WAS ALWAYS AN OPEN SHOP,
NOn-uuIOn Men Have Been EMPLOYED
There Again and Again Without
Causing Walk-OUt, Although Wig
OrOus and Stormy Protests Have
Been Madc-Qdarrel Over the Son Of
Fred Douglass.
| Washington, D. c., Post, Oct 5, 'O3.
President Roosevelt has coined a new
! expression IN connection with the Mil
| ler-labOr union controversy at the Gov
/ ernment Printing Office which will be
| frequently used in the coming campaign.
| In designating the Government Print
| ing Office as an "open shop" the Presi-
! dent has hit upon a happy and at the
| same time catchy phrase, which now
| appears in every discussion of the Miller
! case.
| The Government Printing Office has
been an open shop" ever since it was
| established in 1861. 1t WAS union OF
| flee from the very beginning, although
| non-union men have been employed ther
| from time TO time without causing a
! strike. General Grant was the fFst
| President TO establish the ''open. shop
| policy IN connection with the Govern
| ment Printing Office. In 1867, when A.
Nd. Clapp was the Public Printer, he ap-
| pointed Lewis Douglass, son OF the late
Fred Douglass, the Negro leader. a com
| positor in the printing office. Objection
was at once made against the appoint
ment of Douglass, and he, like Miller,
| became national issue. Under the
| surface the real opposition to Douglass
was race prejudice owing to his color.
The union men in and out of the Gov
! ernment Printing Office charged Doug
lass with being an avowed rat" 1t
was p Veged also that he ksd b,cr a..
| MED admission to the printers c-liSnSNC
his former home in Ohio. Upon arriv
ing in Washington, through the infiu-
ence of his father, he secured a frame
In the composing room at the Govern
ment Printing Office He at once made
application for membership in the print
ers' union of this city, but it was denied
him.
REFUSED TO LEAVE THEIR PLACES.
There was a bitter contest in the local
union over the Douglass case. The en-
ployes of the Government Printing
Office refused TO sacrifice their positions
under the government and go on a strike
on the demand of the less fortunate
printers employed in private establish
ments at the National Capital. Since
the foundation of the Government
Printing office the union men in that
establishment have maintained absolute
control of the local union because they
outnumber all of the downtown" print
erS combined.
A majority of the union men in the
Government Printing Office would have
been glad TO see Douglass removed on
account of his color, but when they
We're brought face co face with q propo-
sition of going on strike or submitting
to the employment of Douglass they
mustered enough votes at the meeting
of the union to prevent strike resolu
tion beng adopted.
The controversy lasted over two years,
and at eachsmeeting of the union the
subject was hotly debated without any
definite result being reached The Gov
ernment Printing Office men were al
ways able to stave off final action.
The Douglass case was carried subse-
quently to the international union held
at Buffalo, n. Y. Delegate John Hal
lock, representing the Washington un-
ion, introduced a resolution condemn
ing Public Printer Clapp for employing
in the Government Printing Office IAN
avowed Negro rat" The resolution oc-
casioned heated debate, and the race
issue became badly confused with labor
unlonism. a general row, which
threatened to terminate in free fight
between the friends and the opponents
of the the resolution, ensued. In the
midst of the excitement veteran print
er, A. L. OaviSS, an Confederate
soldier, arose and brought the conVen-
tion back to reason by saying:
ELEVEN STATES AN EXAMPLE.
CAS- Southern man, / am no lover
OF Negro rats l simply want to re-
mind the convention that only a few
years ago eleven States in this Union
went on a strike against Uncle Sam
We know the result" This brief, but
impressive declaration had the effect of
ending the discussion and defeating the
resolution.
Douglass remained in the Govern
ment Printing Office for several years
until he voluntarily resigned to join his
father in publishing Negro newspaper
in Washington.
There was another instance where
! the ''open shop policy was invoked
! The issue was made on the appointment
| of a copy-holder, French Canadian
named Gervais, who was not practi-
! cal printer. The printers union requir-
ed that copy holders should be practical
printers, The Frenchman was appoint
ed through the influence of member
| of Congress from Minnesota. The un-
ion demanded his removal, but the Pub
lie Printer, John ID. Defrees. backed up
by the administration, refused to yield