The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-03-04
THEIR DEMANDS REJECTED
Before Acting Ramsey Sought
 Courts Aid.
Sweeping Order Issued by Judge Adams to Prevent Grievance Committee from Interfering
 with Roads Business,


 ed by Judge Adams of the United Statex District Court prevented the culmination today of the threatened strike of tha 1,1O0 fremen and trainmen of the Wabash Railroad for higher wages.
 AS a result of the poll during the past week among the employees over the Ques- tion of striking in case President Ram- say ultimately refused to grant demanded wage concessions on the Wabash east of the Mississippi River, the engineers and conductors refused to participate insa a strike, but the firemen and trainmen fa- vored 1t emphatically. Their committeea yesterday notified President Ramsey that he would be given until today at noon to grant their demands. If, by that time. he still refused, a strike would be imme- Giately called.
 This afternoon President Ramsay re- quested a little more time and the two committees granted him until o'clock to make final reply. Before the allotted time had expired, President Ramsey had secured a restraining order from the court. and it had been served on all the officials of all the orders and members of the grievance committees,
 The injunction was most sweeping in- strument and effectually blockaded any strike proceedings, In part, it reads.
 We, therefore, do strictly command you, until the further order of the court, absolutely to desist and refrain from in any way or manner ordering, coercing, persuading, inducing or otherwise caus- ing, directly or indirectly the employees of the said Wabash Rail way to strike or to quit the service of said company"
 A Sweeping Order.
 The injunction is te nporary and these writs are net made retarnable. The per- puh mi ia ia. sued may appear in court at any time and present plea to havs the injunction dis-, solved, or if no one asks that 1t be dis- solved, it may be made permanent Mean- time the grievance committees had pre- pared and submitted to President Ramsey a letter setting forth the increased con- cessior they desired. It was soon after the delivery of this letter to President Ramsey that the injunction was served.
 Shortly after o'clock two hours after the injunction proceedings. President Ramsey sent to the grievance committees his reply to their letter, practically re- jecting all their demands. Before leav- ing his office to go home, he said he did not believe a strike would be brought about.
 The committees of firemea and trains men met and talked over the situation this evening. and then dispersed for the
 
 Brotherhood of Railway Trainmen said after the meeting tonight:
 Will Make No Move.
 We have decided to make no move url- til after a consultation with our attor- neys. This consultation will be held to- morrow morning."
 SIr. Morrissey in signed statement, said that nothing will be done in violation of the injunction, and that the dissatis- fled employees would. bow in submission to the law.
 Grand Chief P. M Arthur of the Broth- erhood of Locomotive Engineers arrived here today. He asserted that he was en route to Houston, Tex, and had merely stopped off here and had no connection whatever with the Wabash trouble. The signed statement of Mir. Morrissey is in part as follows:
 "The fremen and trainmen employed on the Wabash system by decisive vote the committees representing them and the officers of their organization to declare a strike if the wage scales and other working conditions which they had presented to the management were not granted. This course was decided upon only after every other honorable method to induce the company to give them de- served consideration had failed.
 ''To prevent the men from carrying out their determination to defend their posi- tion in proper and legal way, the applied to and was granted an injunction by Judge Adams of the United States Court for the Eastern District of restraining the organization their officers, the cohmittee and all con- cerned from directly CT indirectly sane tioning the procedure agreed upon by the employees themselves. To this command, as law abiding citizens and organizations we bow in submission. We respect it be- cause We recognize that until it is dis solved, it is the law, and will contest the proceeding to the end.
 After President Ramsey learned that the injunction had been served he said: We will go on dealing with our own employees the same as usual This order will not affect them at all. If strike takes places 1t will be due to outside in- terference. The order is meant to re- strain others on the outside from inter- fering with our employees. or of ordering a strike. It was outside influence that caused dissension. The employees of the Wabash were satisfied and would have remained satisfied if left to their own ac-