The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-01-24

delegate of the Painters Union called upon
me and said that my steps had been painted
at a rate less than the union scale. i told
him / knew nothing about his union scale
and cared less, and showed him out of my
Office Then the Painters Union applied for
boyGof6 ON my me Iaetery dp
Union Of Indianapolis and was sent up 10
President Gompers of the American Fed
Grafton of Labor. Mr.. Gompers came out
to indianapolis TO see my front door steps,
and in a speech there gave forth the star
Ting information that the boycott had
been granted upon the petition of the paint
ers. Thus the Parry Manufacturing Com
pany was to be sacrificed for my personal
act, "A good example of the sense or JUS
tice which animates the strike bosses. Well,
i was bOycotted. The boycott was an ad-
vertfsernent and my business has never
been larger than since it was declared
How about strikes Mr.. Parry? Do they
No was the reply. They do not benefit
the employer. the eIaploye nor the con-
sumner They lessen our respect for the
petuity of our government. Take the an
thracite strike. The mob dominated the
whole mining regions for months and the
whole military power of Pennsylvania
could not or did not maintain law and
order. In that strike IL is estimated that
So, 100000 were lost in wages. L know that
the operators lost enormously, but the loss
of both is nothing in comparison to that
of the consumers. Every householder had
his coal bills almost doubled by that strike
down to the normal figures of before the
strike. The public has already paid mill
lions and it is still paying its tribute to
the organization of United Mine Workers.
S125,OOOOO0 LOST ON COAE
Have you ever estimated the money
cost to the consumers Mr.. Parry?"
Il have tried to-" was the reply. 1--WE
know that it caused a shortage of %. 00O 600
tons of hard coal That much coal was not
| Of tl,a bn
were idle during the four or five months of
the strike. The loss would have been just
the same if the coal had been mined and
dumped into the sea, and putting the price
of the coal at IS per ton it was s125 1000, 600
almost enough TO complete the Panama
canal That shortage raised the prices of
all kinds of fuel and the people had to pay
the bill. The matter was submitted to ar
bitraton, and in its settlement the national
arbitration board stated that the miners
were already receiving wages that compared
/ favorably with those of men in other in
| dustries Nevertheless, they gave them
| an advance of 10 per cent. on their wages,
| and every labOring man of the United
/ States now has to help pay that 10 per cent.
| when he lights his kitchen fire He also
/ pays for il in every bit of manufactured
! goods made with steam. The whole pub
/ lie is taxed by the men working in those
mines. That is one of the beauties OF ar
! bitration."
! Then you don't believe in the law OF
arotra tiOn Mr. Parry?
Il do not. The Constitution of the United
States is good enough law for me. Either
I a man has right to run his own business
| or he has not If ne has not We ought to
| strike the clause referring TO our property
/ rights out of the Constitution. The idea
/ of arbitrating the question whether an en-
| ployer can employ a man who does not
y belong to union is absurd. 1t is revolu-
1 tiOnary 1t means that individual libe. ~
/ is destroyed and that we must bargain
/ with such liberties may be allowed
/ To possess How public men can lend their
\ voices and influence TO arbitration Is be-
/ for it on the theory that they are afraid
/ of their shadows or are willing TO sell their
patriotism for the sake of money and po-
/ litical power.
! STRIKES AND HARD TIMES.
| What do you think of the charge that
/ tho present business depression is caused
| by the demands of organized labor"
81 think 1t is largely So said Mr. Parry.
THE unions have caused the strikes that
| we have had, and the losses arising from
them have become a national disaster.
believe that 1903 will go down in history
as the year when the labor agitstors put a
/ check to a period of unparalleled pros
! perity. The strikes they originated
have caused an enormous loss i'm our
! aggregate production, and you must
! always remember that the consumption is
/ regulated by the amount produced. You