Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-03-04
Writ Secured by the
Road is the First
of Its Kind.
THE MEN MUST WORK
Big Fight is Like1y--His-
tory Up to
Date.

st. Louis. Mo-, March THE stu
alton on the Wabash is unchanged
this afternoon. At headquarters the
statement is made that men who had
threatened to strike are still at work
and it is not believed they will go out.
An attempt is being made today TO
secure the dissolution of the sweeping
injunction granted yesterday.
St. Louis, March 4.-For the first
time in the history of labor organiza-
tiOns in the United States an injunc-
ton has been granted restraining the
ordering of an original strike. Judge
Elmer b. Adams of the United States
district court yesterday granted the
petition of President Ramsey. of the
Wabash Railway company for an in
junction against the grand officers of
the Brotherhood of Railway Train
men and the grand officers of the
Brotherhood of Railway Firemen and
the committee of Wabash employees
restraining them from ''persuading, or
dering or coereing" the employees of
the Wabash railway from going out
on a strike.
Injunction Secured.
The writ was secured by President
Ramsey Of the Wabash. while the
grievance committee of trainmen and
hremen was awaiting his answer to
their demands. which would if unfa-
vorabIe cause immediate ordering of
strike.
The procedure was so unexpected
and so startling that the grand Off
GERS of the labor organiza tions who
have been directing the negotiations
between President Ramsey and the
wage increase committee of en-
plOyes was unprepared to act. At
torneys of the two great labor organ
izations mentioned are on their way
to St. Louis, and today will ask Judge
Adams to dissolve the injunction.
Novel In Industrial History.
The injunction is novel in American
industrial history. and has aroused
already a deal of discussion. which
promises to continue and intensity.
The committee of the Wabash en-
ployes and the grand officers of the
railway employees organizations were
taken entirely by surprise by Presi-
dent Ramsey's procedure in going in
to the federal court and asking for
service in the afternoon and thereaf-
ter were restrained from discussing
the matter, but they said it IS possi-
BILE the trainmen and firemen may
cease work without any order. having
already voted to strike. They say
they were prepared for President
Ramsey's refusal to make any con-
cessions.
When the strikers committees APP
peared before Mr.. Ramsey yesterday
morning they were told that the Wa
bash had decided not to change its
attitude in the least and that the
road would grant only those conces-
sions which ii was willing TO grant
from the beginning. The committees
then presented general demands to
Mr.. Ramsey and he asked until )
o'clock to consider them. The de
mands embodied all those made here
tofore. and there was added demand
for an increase in wages on the Cana
dian division of the Wabash.
President Ramsey's Statement.
At ) o'clock President Ramsey
made the following reply: "If the
employees of the Wabash 90 out on n
strike l will fill all of their places
within three days" Mr.. Ramsey said
he considered the new demands of the
employees committees to be too alb
surd for further consideration. j. j.
Hannahan. grand master of the
Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen.
said last night: Il do not think that
Judge Adams injunction will hold wa
ter. 1t certainly is a remarkable rul-
| ing. We have tried to avert a strike
and are still trying. We want peace
able solution, but if we go out this
will be a fight to finish and it will
involve not only the Wabash, but all
the Gould lines.
| Il had not heard about the walk
outs at Kansas City and Peru, Ind. If
the men went out at those places to-
day it was mistake. They had voted
to strike if Ramsey rejected our final
demands, but the strike order had not
yet been promulgated"