The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1904-07-26
ALLIED
TRADES OUT
General Sympathetic Strike Goes
Into Effect at Chicago
Stock Yards.
New Order Involves Cattle Hand
lers, Teamsters and
Mechanical Trades.


pathetic general strike at the stock
yards, predicted by it's leaders to be
the greatest and most expensive this
country has ever known. began at 10
q. m., when thousands of teamsters,
cattle handlers and members of the
mechanical trades quit work and made
grand rush for the gates leading
from the busiest square mile of build
1ngs, yards and pens in the world.
The first big detection came when
700 men, including the scalers and
pen cleaners, employed by the Union
Stock Yards and Transit company, re-
fused to- work further. The first to go
were the handlers and this eliminated
the usefulness of the teamsters and
they followed. AS they passed out of
the big gates at Exchange avenue
they were g.eeted with cheers by the
thousands of strikers gathered in the
vicinity.
Prior to this spectacular exodus
came small strikes in the various
plants, including carpenters, firemen,
elevator men, machinists, etc., but
these did not have the effect of tieing
been anticipated, and as often as a
man or union man who had deserted
his organization was there to take his
place.
Business Agents Call Strike.
The strike, although general, was
conducted without the official authori-
zatiOn by the heads of the various un-
ions, but solely upon the order of bust.
ness agents, who refused to await the
action of the peace conference.
The joint peace conference of the
teamsters and packers at Morris &
Co.'S offices ended about noon without
making much, if any, progress. The
packers demanded that the union men
come to them with a definite PROPOSE
ton. The union committee returned
to headquarters to confer with the
butchers and allied trades in the hope,
it was said, that something definite in
the way of a new proposal could be
decided upon.
One of the labor representatives,
Barney Cohen, president of the State
Federation of Labor, cOntended that
the prospects for the settlement of the
strike were not hopeless. He de-
clared that concessions would yet be
made by both sides. Notwithstanding
President COhen's optimism adjourn
ment of the conference between the
packers and the teamsters' represen-
tativeS gave little hope for a settle
ment of the trouble.
The unions emissaries left the pack
ers with the avowed intention of Sc
curing further instructions from Presi-
dent Donnelly, after which, they said,
they would again call upon the en-
plOyers The packers were in an un-
communicative mood and merely de-
clared that nothing definite had been
accomplished and that no time for a
further conference had been ap-
pointed.
Allowed to Finish Days Work.
After the adjournment of the peace
conference the fact developed that the
sympathetic strike had been declared
officially authorized by the proper
boards of all allied trades at the stock
yards, with the exception of the pack
inghouse teamsters. The engineers
and firemen, to whom word could only
be sent with great difficulty, were al
lowed to stay at their posts until s
p. m. In all other departments the
strike was actually in effect for two
hours or more before the official sane
tion was made public.
1t developed that, learning the ap
parent hopelessness of an agreement,
the representatives of the allied trades,
urged by President Donnelly, adopted
resolutions commanding the chiefs of
all affected unions to enter the yards
and call upon every organization man
to quit and join in general strike 1t
was this condition that the teamsters'
committee of eight found when it's
members returned from Morris & Co. s
Offices at noon. Immediately there was
another conference between the COM
mittee of eight, the allied trades body
and representatives of the Butchers
union It was still the hope that ar
rangements could be made for another
meeting with the packers.
The precipitation Of the sympa-
thetic strike seemingly caused no con-
sternation among the packers. For
days they had been bringing into the
city hundreds of skilled men, many of
whom had been put to work, and 9TH
ers of whom had been held in reserve.
The packers claim that the strike or
der was not generally observed by the
men working at the plants.
* * ,se X 3ss * * ~ ~ ~ IL