Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-01
REDUCTION OF FORCE
Many Navy Yard Employees to
Be FurIoughed.
THE ORDER ISSUED TODAY
Calls for Cutting Down of Expenses
About IS Per Cent
TRANSFER TELEPHONE SYSTEM.
Shops Operated by Electric Power
From New Plant and Steam
Power Abolished
TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

Orders just received at the Washington
navy yard from the Secretary of the Navy.
and which are being put into effect today,
have resulted in something OF a sensation
among the thousands Of employees of the
great government gun-making plant. These
orders. calling for a reduction In the force,
formed the sole topic of conversation among
the men today, and when a Star reporter
visited the yard at noon he found groups of
anxious workmen standing about discussing
the situation and wondering on whose neck
the official would first fall.
An official of the navy yard informed
the reporter that large number of work.
men would necessarily be furloughed, pur-
suant to the order of Secretary Bonaparte,
which calls for a reduction in the forces
OF the several shops and departments of
from 8 to 80 per cent Of the total number
employed. The work of reduction was be-
gun today. 1t was said, and will be con-
tinued until the order is fully complied
With. The reductions were made necessary,
the official added, because Of the failure of
Congress to pass the deficiency bill.
The order calls for the cutting down of
expenses Of about % per cent from July last
to July, 1906. and. as 1t is retroactive the
future reductions will necessarily be more
heavy than the per cent named. 1t is said.
A Ray of Hope.
The employees have, however. found
leaven of hope in Secretary Bonaparts's
decision that, instead of discharging the
employees outright, as had been the prac-
tice heretofore when there was a deli
cheney. to furlough them until July / next,
when the new funds will be available, or
to call them back sooner II a deficiency
bill IS passed IN the meantime.
The order as to furioughing instead OF
Gischarging is declared to be favorable 20
the employees, owing to the fact that many
of them are not veteran soldiers or sailors,
who are given the preference. Were such
non-soldiers and sailors discharged they
would be compelled to re-register at the
bottom of the list of applicants. and as
there is a long list Of preferred soldiers
and sailors at the head of the list some
of the old men might never be called back.
officials say.
Transferred to c. and P. Co.
Another important happening at the navy
yard Is the complete transfer OF the control
of the telephone system of the establish
ment to the Chesapeake and Potomac Tele-
phone Company involving more than 100
government telephones. This system has
been in charge of the navy yard officials
and employees but is said to have been un-
satisfactory, the system being obsolete By
the new arrangement calls can be sent to
any part of the District or elsewhere over
the ng-distance phones from any of the
numerous instruments in the yard. This
could not be done heretofore.
On the government phones, too, 1t was
necessary to ring call bell in. order to
reach the central in the navy yard which
is operated by members of the Marine
Corps. This will be obviated. as the latest
patent telephones will be installed and GEN.
trail can be called by merely raising the re-
ceiver from it's hanging place.
The announcement was also made today
that the shops are now operated by cleo
trio power from the new power plant, and
that steam power in the yard is thing of
the past.
Information received by the navy yard
officials today is to the effect that the cleo
trio plant at the Charleston navy yard is
practically shut down, and that all the
yards are largely affected by the order re-
quiring cut in expenses of about % per
cent until July next.
Some apprehension is felt by the clerks
at the Washington navy yard that some of
them will be included in the reduction of
force order.