Los Angeles herald., 1906-04-02
MANY FAMILIES STRIKE
: AGAINST HIGHER RENTS
START BY RAISING FUND TO
CARRY ON FIGHT
Tear Down ITO Let" Signs and Put
Up Others Not Encouraging to
Those Who Might Move Into the
Tenements

NEW YORK, April 1.-Seventy
five families that live in the five tene
ment houses at 80 to 100 Cook street,
Brooklyn, have Joined in a rebellion
against the increase in rent by the
landlords. From the way in which the
leaders are conducting the fight, and
have handled the opening skirmishes,
it looks as If this contest would be a
good deal longer and harder than
others of the sort have been.
The trouble started last Thursday,
when the collectors came around for
the March rents. Every tenant found
been made in his bill. A general revo-
luton was organized at once. one and
all they refused to pay the additional
charges. They declared that it was q
clear case of oppression on the part of
the owners, who, the tenants declare,
have raised the rents solely to get a
higher price for the buildings, which
it is said they are trying to sell.
The reply of the landlords was to is
sue dispossess notices to their refrac-
tory dodgers obliging them to pay up
or be elected from the premises next
Tuesday. They also had ITO Let"
signs posted on the houses, but these
were not allowed to stay up more than
five minutes.
The tenants then formed into a sort
of association, with M. l.. Cohen at
the head. To prevent any of the mem
bers showing the white feather at the
last moment each mas had to subscribe
So to a common fund. This money Will
be forfeited by any one who leaves the
ranks in the strike.
All day yesterday the tenements
were decorated with signs of various
shapes and sizes, some on wood some
In cI q
in Yiddish. Some of them were:
Well Fight to the End!
To Hell with the landlords
Don't Try to Rent Rooms Here if
You Know What's Good for You!
Down With the Landlord Trust!
Whenever anybody came along the
street who looked as if he was after
room his attention was called to the
signs, and if he seemed in doubt as to
their meaning it was quickly explained
to him. The presence of "A crowd of
excited looking men and women then
seemed to be enough to send him on
his way.
In the afternoon an indignation
meeting as held in Rubin's American
hall Most of the strikers were pres
ent with their families. Speeches were
made by both men and women. Amid
great excitement Mrs. Nettie Singer,
the chairman, closed the meeting with
these words:
I'VE are all in this fight together. No
one is going to back out now. People
may think we are going to get licked.
but if we all stick together we'll fool
them. On Tuesday every mother here
should bring her children and join in
the procession to the Lee avenue court,
where our dispossess cases are to be
heard.
Remember that any one who backs
out loses the forfeit money. There
should be at least 400 persons in this
procession if you all do your duty.
Don't let the threats of the landlords
frighten you. They can't do what they
say they will. Let our motto be: one
for all: all for one!'"
Mrs. Singer told reporter that the
tenants were confident of winning the
strike, and that none of them would
be turned out. She said they had en-
gagged counsel to argue against the
threatened evictions.
Some of the strikers say that the
landlords played a trick on them by
which they hoped to gain their point
without trouble. They say that when
the receipts for the February rent
were returned to them the amounts
were in every case raised 81 or So and
that the change was not noticed by any
one. Thus, when the March bills were
presented and denounced as excessive
the collectors called for the last re
CENTS for the previous month and said
there had been no change. Thus they
tried to make a man who had only pald
$15 the month before believe that he
had already given up SIS That did not
work, however.