The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-07-21
HOST OF BUTCHERS
Goes ON STRIKE
PACKING INDUSTRY Is PARAL-
lied IN MANY CITIES AS RE-
suit OF WAGE DISPUTE.
Thousands Lay Down Their Tools and
Quit Work-Price of Meat Imme-
j diately Advances - Shortage in
Supply Threatened.

chicago, July l3.-Ine great STOCK
yards strike, expected to paralyze the
meat industry for time at least, began
Tuesday. More than 1000 workmen in
the packing houses affected by the strike
quit work by 1880 a. M, anticipating by
an hour the strike order. Up to two
o'clock 1900 employees had quit work.
A dispute over the wages of unskillel
laborers precipitated the trouble.
Dispatches received from Kansas
City announce that 5000 men quit work
in the packing houses there; South
Omaha reports 1000 having laid down
their tools; over 5000 are idle at St.
Joseph, Mo-; 5000 in New York and
Brooklyn; 700 in St. Paul, and 1000 at
Sioux City. The strikers are orderly at
all points. @
Price Of Meat Goes Up.
The effect of the strike upon the food
supply of the country and the rise in
prices of'meats will no doubt be tremen-
dous, and was felt at the very start.
Meat shot up three cents a pound the
minute the men went out. Commission
men telegraphed their customers
throughout the country to cease ship
ping hogs and cattle. The railroad com
panies also notified their agents in every
small town in the country not to accept
cattle for shipment to Chicago and, the
other points where the strike reaches.
The result is, that shippers have ceased
sending cattle to market. Consequently,
unless the packers replace the strikers
with other employees and resume the OPP
Grafton of their plants before long, it
will only be short time before the ma
jority of the people of the land will be
forced to become vegetarians.
Dispatches from Cleveland, New York,
Kansas City, st. Louis, Omaha, st. Paul.
Des Moines and other cities state that
because of the strike prices of meat have
been advanced to figures ranging from
one cent to four cents pound.
Arbitration Plan Rejected.
Chicago, July 16.-Rejection by
strike leaders of proposition laid be-
fore them by the packers at Thursdays
joint conference was the result of a
meeting of President Donnelly, of the
union, and his chief lieutenants Fri
day. The union demanded the REIN
statement Of all the strikers within
three days, and insisted that the men
be paid at the rate provided in the
old agreement, the expiration of which
led to the strike being called. The en-
ployers offered to arbitrate the whole
controversy, covering wages and work.
ing conditions of employees on strike,
both sides to present whatever grew
ances they saw fit and to abide by the
decision of the arbitrators. They also
agreed to reemploy as fast as possible
all men now out, giving preference in
order of application for work, the en-
ployes to be paid the wages they were
being paid when they struck. The
principal objection made by the union
officials to the offer of the packers is
the provision that they twill give pref
erence in order of application for
work, the strike leaders construe this
to mean that each man on strike will
be obliged to make an individual appli-
cation.