The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1905-02-11
MONTANA IS THE SEAT
Of FRENz|ED POLITICS.
Writer Relates Some Montana
Labor History That Con-
tains a Good Moral.
How Frenzied Financiers Play
Politics and Bluff the
State Government.

Butte, Mont, Feb. 9.-Montana has
been famed for it's mining wars for
the last twenty years. Marcus Daily
and w. A. Clark fought strenuously
for years, and when DAILY sold out and
the Amalgamated Copper company was
organized the war went merrlly on,
W. A. Clark and F. H. Heinze stand
ing together against the new company.
In course Of time Clark made his peace
with the Amalgamated, the price being
admission to the United States senate.
The Standard Oil senators had fired
him out Of the senate in 1898 because
he secured his seat through wholesale
bribery, but two years later on condl-
ton that he be a good boy and leave
the Amalgamated alone they agreed to
close their eyes to his crookedness and
admit him to their august body-the
Millionaires' club.
Now Daily was dead and Clark was
quieted, but still the war went on.
Young Heinze was battling single
handed against the Amalgamated, and
a beautiful article of scrap he put up.
Heinze was fighting the big company
in the courts and had no fewer than
thirty-seven lawyers on his staff at
one time. Not only this, but he was
elecSing the judges and winning vic
tory after victory on the political field.
The Amalgamated Copper company de-
cided to put a stop to Heinze's victo-
rious career. The first move of the
Amalgamated chiefs was to give their
employees in Butte a barbecue in Co.
lumbia gardens, the big pleasure resort
Of Butte October 13, 1908, was the
date set for the feast Seven thousand
men from the mines and smelters of
Butte marched to the trolleys led by
three brass bands, and started in for a
big days fun. Oxen and sheep were
roasted wholesale, a brewery, a distil-
lery and a few cigar factories were to
be had for the asking. Platforms were
erected near the scene of feasting, and
to the assembled Amalgamated en-
ployes this threat was given: 1T will
be bad day for Butte when the Anal
gamated Copper company is forced to
extreme measures to save itself from
the vicious attacks that are being made
upon it, Not much attention was
paid to this by the merry crowd who
were enjoying the $4,000 worth of out
ing, but one week later significance of
the threat was felt when telegram
from H. H. Rogers was received in
Butte ordering the closing down of all
the Amalgamated properties in Mon
tana. Immediately otter the receipt Of
the telegram all the mines owned by
the Amalgamated in Butte were closed
down, likewise the mills and smelters.
Anaconda was shut down as tight as a
drum. Sixty per cent. of Great Falls,
a city of $4,000 inhabitants, was closed
down by the closing Of the great smelt-
ers. Then Hamilton, a lumber town;
next Bonner, also lumber; Belt, a coal
town, followed; then Storrs, a coke
town: then Cokedale. another coal
town. AS all these towns were practi-
cally one-company towns, the result
was, of course, disastrous. Altogether
$4,000 were fired on the order of Rog-
ers
The people then commenced to re-
trench. The farmers could not find a
market for their stuff. The ore trains
were laid off, causing hundreds of men
to be thrown out of work at the begin
ming Of a northern winter Those who
had money fled from the state as from
a plague, while the small business men
pulled down their blinds and went in
to bankruptcy by the hundreds.
How to get the state opened up again
was the next question. Promptly came
the answer from Rogers:
Let Governor TOole call together
the legislature in special session and
let them pass the bills that our lawyers
will present, then when the governor
signs these bills I will open up our
properties
The governor swore that lie would
not be held up in this way, and refused
to call the special session. Week fol-
lowed week. and the people were get
ting hungrier every hour Finally the
governor came off his high horse, called
the special session of the legislature,
and the bill the Amalgamated Copper
company ordered was passed by prac-
tically unanimous vote and then was
signed by the governor.
The shut down of Montana lasted
from October 21 to December 7. Thus
we see how the frenzied financiers play
| frenzied politics. We see what a tre-
mendous power they possess, when
their leader, Mr.. Rogers, at the stroke
! Of pen can throw $4,000 men directly
out of work and then many thousand
more indirectly, SO much so that a
state is practically closed down, its
people starved. it's legislature and gov
ernor held up by the throat. and legis-
lation favorable to the Amalgamated
Copper company forced from the law
makers of the state.
|
| 81. LOUIS. Feb. Sat q meeting Of
| the organized Union Jockey club today,
Capt. P. J. Carmody was elected as dele