The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-11-18
Utter Rsck|essntss Has Caused
 R,Vu|sion of Feeling
MANY WANT ID AID WITTE
At a Meeting Last Night One Fiery Speaker Wanted to Continue the Strike Simply as Lesson
 to the Government.

St. Petersburg, November 1s.-u AS a. m) Though according to surface indications yesterday, the outlook for the speedy end ing of the strike was gloomy, the revela- tions made at meeting last night of the council of the workmens delegates showed that large portion of the work men were breaking loose from control of the leaders, and were anxious to return to work, and a plebscite which will be taken in the various factories probably will re- suit in a decision to abandon the strike today.
 At the meeting of the council which was held in the same hall where Father Gapon, Maxim Gorky and other leaders de- nounced the Emperor on the eve of Janu- ary 9 (Red Sunday, delegate after dele gate from different factories arose and re- ported that the workmen under the infiu ence of the ultimatu issued by the em- ployers announcing that the factories would be shut down indefinitely unless work was resumed on Monday, and with the pleading of their wives and of the conservative workmen ringing in their ears. were demanding that the strike should be ended.
 Precipitates Hot Debate.
 This precipitated a hotly contested de- bate between the moderates, who declared that the strike in the first instance was strategical mistake, and that it would be graver error in tactics to attempt to force the men to remain in line by the until the last ditch" faction, especially the unattached delegates who are mem- l.r xtitf,r of4 4hair membership in socialist organiza tions. One fiery speaker, who in order to better be seen and heard mounted the balcony from which Father Gapon in disguise had delivered his last address in that hall. thuuderod his denunciation of those who wished to discontinue the struggle. Even if we cannot continue the strike until the purposes for which 1t was called are attained."i he said, "let us not aban- don it without inflicting a real. blow on the government. A three-day strike is a mere pin prick in the hides of that crafty fox Witte and his followers, so let us keep 1t up for a fortnight. The men in other factories of St. Petersburg are daily joining us, our delegates are closing the pharmacies, and the railroad tle-up Is complete What figure we will cut in the eyes of our brothers outside of St. Pet ersburg if after they accepted our appeal they hear that we have lain down our arms.'
 Workmen Will Decide Today.
 After long discussion a motion to call off the strike was rejected. and it was decided to call meetings of the workmen of the factories today for the purpose of laying the situation before them, and to abide by their decision. The leaders, however, were determined not to permit the strike to die without a final great demonstration of their power to render St. Petersburg a dead city" Af- ter the adoption of the resolution calling for referendum 1t was decided to bend every effort to close every store, market and office, beginning at Il o'clock this morning, and to stop all street car and carriage traffic in the streets so as to bring the life of the Russian capital to complete standstill. The stoppage of the electric plants which the govern ment had succeeded in getting into par tial operation was entrusted to electrical workers in the various districts who were empowered to use any and all means deemed advisable for the injuring of the machinery and the short circuNing of the dynamos, even to the extent of de- stroying the plants. | Men Massed Before Prisons. | Another resolution called for demon- strations to effect the release of the four delegates who had been arrested It was decided to mass 5000 men in front of each prison where the delegates are detained and to hold them there until they are liberated. The prefect of police has published an appeal to the we'll dis nosed classes, warning them that the strike leaders intend to take aggressive action today, and asking them to CO., operate with the police against the agi- tators "who are making life unbearable." :" In the meeting the advocates Of the strike laid stress on encouraging news from the interior which they said they would be able to place before the work men today but last nights dispatches showed little confirmatory evidence of | such news.
 A strike has broken out in the section of the southwestern railroad between Tasaritzyn and Voronesch, in the lower Volga region. but the demands for shorter hours and higher pay are econo- mic and have no connection with the poll tical aims of the St. Petersburg strikers. The news from Moscow is even less encouraging to the socialists. The rail- roads are still running and the telegraph CTS have flatly refused to consider a strike for the political aims of Poland, whose endangered liberties from the os- tensble cause of the strike in St. Peters burg. Work is being refused in Moscow and the news from other sections shows that the call of the St. Petersburg com mittee has awakened little sympathy.
 ReckIessness Causes Revolution. The utterly reckless spirit manifested hv inc reds who engineered the pres ent strike Is producing natural re- vulsion of feeling. which IS shared by ali classes of society The prospect of anarchy and mob rule which would be the logical outcome of the present demor- | alized conditions in both the country dis. tricts and the cities has had sobering | influence
 The lowest classes who are always on | the verge of starvation are growing bit terly angry against the agitators who py these continued strikes are taking the bread from their mouths, and not only without being melted by the police. but in spite of all the authorities the classes are melting reprisals
 | It Is said the middle class. however. is 1 beginning to rally to the support of the | government in its efforts to restore some- | thing like order and public tranquility. Many of the liberals who fought the gov- ernment actively before the proclama-