The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1904-05-06
10000 MEN ON STRIKE
Trouble Anticipated at Topeka and 1900
Maehilists Locked Out.
MEN ARE READY FOR LONG FIGHT.
Lockout and Strike on the Santa fe System
Railroad Officials Anticipated the Machin.
lists, Who Had Voted to Strike at
O'clock, By Closing the Gates to the Shops
and Ordering Shutdown.

Topeka, Kan. Especially .-When the
1000 Santa Fe machinists and work
men gathered at the big railway shops
in this city Monday to go to work
they found the gates locked. The en-
tire plot of grounl of twenty-five acres
is surnounded with high oak board
fence, with few gates. These gates
were locked and the men without were
told by armed guards that there was
nothing doing"
| The Santa Fe officials asserted that
they were simply anticipating strike
| that would have come. They said
information had come to them that
the men held secret meetings Satur-
day night and Sunday and decided up
on strike at 9 o'clock Monday morn
ing. There was no disturbance, the
majority of the men returning quietly
to their homes.
! At the general offices of the rail
way here it was stated that the order
| to close down was given to every
shop town OH the Santa Fe system
| from Chicago to Albuquerque. 1t is
estimated that nearly 10000 men are
affected.
On March 20, the international As
ISOLATION of Machinists submitted a
| list of twenty rules, which they de-
sired the Santa Fe to contract to OBJ
serve in the management of its ma
chine shops.
The officials asserted that this would
be recognition of the union and would
practically unionize the shops and
take them from under the control of
the company. 1t rejected the de-
mand for contract. The Santa Fe
has sent 200 nonunon machinists to
the coast lines, and say they have
| filled all vacancies and have no further
need of men ON that part OF the
| system. In spite of the protests OF
the strike leaders, it is asserted that
an attempt was made Sunday to dis
able two Santa Fe engines at Arkan-
sas City.
The lockout order was signed by
A. Lowell. 1t does not affect the car
shop men or the roundhouse men,
except at Topeka. Here :te car shops
| and roundhouse are inside the yard
fence, and it was necessary to include
everything inside the fence in the
lockout order.
l. D. Buckalew, third vice-president
of the International Association of
! Machinists, who is in charge of the
strike situation in Topeka, gave out
the following statement;
I'VE called out all the men on all
the lines Of the Santa Fe railway, and,
so far as | know. it is success.
regretted very much to do so, but the
order came from headquarters and
we have to obey"
Chicago, ILL.,, (SpeciaD .-MachiniSts
in two shops of the Atchson, Topeka
and Santa Fe Railroad observed a
strike order is said to have emanated
from Washington. Only few ma
| chinsts are employed in the Chicago
shops.
Washington, (SpeciaD The strike
of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa
Fe Railroad machinists was ordered
on instructions from headquarters
here, after the men along the line
had voted unanimously in favor of the
step.
The machinists are. out all along
the Santa Fe from Chicago to San
Francisco and on its feeder lines.
Mr. O'Connell said that the men
were prepared to continue the strike
indefinitely.