Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-08-03
OFFICIALS SILENT.
Refuse to Discuss the Printing
Office Controversy
Another Miller Protest Filed vi h
Public Printer.
Office May Be Put Under Control Of
Secretary cortelyou. 80

Washington, Aug. 2.-Matters at the
government printing Office have
reached a point where no ofncial will
talk of the Miller controversy or ven
ture to express an opinion as to the
final outcome of the perplexing prob
lem that is confronting the public
printer and the entire force Of the
Office. The bookbinders' arbitration
committee again called upon Mr..
Palmer, this morning with an addition
to the protest against continuing in the
bindery the assistant foreman, but just
what was the nature OF those charges.
the head of the Office would not dis
close. In fact, he went so far as to
say that he had not read them and had
formed no idea when he would take
them up, either in their entirety or
seriatim.
Considerable weight is given to the
rumor that this case will beget gen.
eral investigation Of the methods IN
vogue in the entire printing Office, and
a congressional investigation may not
be a far cry from the present subdued
excitement that has been caused by the
action of the bookbinders in protesting
against the retention Of Miller. That
Secretary Cortelyou has been In
frequent conference with Public Printer
Palmer on the subject is assurance
enough that the matter Is felt by the
heads of the two offices to be of too
great importance for hasty decision,
and that the President at this moment
has copies of the bookbinders protest
and charges, is equally certain. What
ever action is taken over the signature
of the public printer will come after
careful deliberation by that official and
in accordance with the advice and
suggestion Of a much higher power,
The printing Office proper has now
become involved in the disturbed at
mosphere, and the question has been
brought up whether the government
can longer afford to keep out typeset-
ting machines from the great workshop.
There are about 1900 employees carried
on the rolls of the printing Office and
the claim of the would-be reformers Is
that typesetting machines could do
many times the amount of work now
done in the office. The claim Is that the
machines have been kept out Of the
Office by the power of the unions and
that their introduction would necessi-
tate a heavy reduction in the force.
This applies to the composing rooms,
of course, and not to the bindery.
Members of the bookbinders' union
have never, according to both their
own assertions and that of the officials
connected with the office, entered the
slightest complaint against the intro
duction of machinery in their work.
To-, vnopNhQr Of tho
bookbinders' union said. today, that
every machine that could in any way
be of assistance in the work had been
tried, and If found efficient, installed.
The work that is being done there at
this time is said to be as good as can
be turned out at any shop in the world,
and the claim is made that the rate of
production is as high as anywhere.
Expert bookbinders are said to have
come to the government bindery and
to have resigned when they saw the
size of the days task that was expect
ed of them. and the assertion is made
by members Of the union that with
several pieces Of work, such as the
Smithsonian report and the Official
Gazette, no man has ever yet been able
to do in the day Of eight hours what
was set before him as his task. .o,
So heavy is the task. the men say.
that new employees are allowed a week
within which to attain the requisite
speed for the work. Under
these conditions" said a member of the
arbitration committee, 1T is unreason-
able to suppose that man could be-
come so expert that he could do his
days. task by noon" Il
These are the views Of the union men
in refutation of the criticisme that
they have easy berths and that the
rate of pay and the amount Of labor
required of them are entirely dispro-
portionate and at variance with exist
conditions in shops outside Of the gov
eminent service. The object of. the
government is to get the highest class
of workmen for all of its various work
shops, and to pay for their labor the
highest market rate. 49,
The bookbinders are paid at the rate
Of SO cents an, hour, but they must COM
plete a certain amount of work WITHIN
the eight-hour day or they would soon
find themselves deficient and room
would be made for a man who could
keep up with the task set. 90
This task is said by Miller to be too
small for good workmen and he would
dispose of the system and get from the
men all they were capable Of doing
This would, he says. result in an inn
mense saving to the government and
would weed out the drones and keep
for service the highest class OF work.
men. At this time, he says, slow men
are kept there by virtue of their menu
bership in the union and not because
of their ability as bookbinders.
Every one of these assertions is dis
puted by the union men in their protest
against his retention, and statements
are made which. binders say, cannot
but result in his dismissal.
In contradiction. OF the contention OF
the bookbinders that the work at the
government shop Is Of the highest class
and at a fair cost for production is the
story that when Gov. Merriam was at
the head of the census bureau he asked
for estimates for binding the work of
that office from firm in New York.
not knowing that the work. by con-
gressional act had to be done at the