Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-10-10
IN LABOR CIRCLES
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1
The managers of the Methodist Book
Concern have announced their concession
| OF the principle of the eight hour day for
employees in all departments The new
order will go into effect November l.
| The question OF permanent home for
labor has agitated the members Of the
! Atlanta federation for a number of years.
The federation has a well-organized plan On
foot at the present looking to ways and
means for establishing such place
The beginning Of another year in the
| history of the Amalgamated Association
| of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers is marked
! on the whole by favorable conditions. The
| strike In the eastern district continues and
| new source of trouble has arisen in the
placing of the Mcclure mills at Washing
| ton, Pa on a non-union basis.
The first class in the school Of instruc-
| ton established by local union No 81
| OF the International Brotherhood of Sta
tionary Firemen was formed last week
at headquarters. 21O Ferguson building in
Pittsburg 1t started with an enrolment
number will be increased each meeting
night. Regular sessions will be held every
Monday evening.
At the meeting of the immigration de-
partment of the National Civic Fedora
ton in New York recently John Mitchell,
president of the United Mine Workers,
| declared that something was wrong with
| the immigration system when men who
| wanted to work 300 days year and could
| work only 200.
| Il do not speak as an expert, but as the
representative of 100000 men whose daily
| bread depends on the conditions govern
| ing immigration, said Mr.. Mitchell.
| What would conditions be in a time Of
| business depression when they are so bad
| In a period of prosperity
The strike of licensed deck officers to
| enforce their demand for higher wages on
| the steamers operated by the Baltimore,
| Chesapeake and Atlantic and Maryland.
Virginia and Delaware railroad companies
| caused a complete tie-up in that section.
| The strike particularly Injuries the Mer-
| chants Association and the Fertilizer
Manufacturers Company Of Baltimore.
More than one thousand tons of fertilizer
| is waiting on board the detained steamers.
and it is seed time with the farmers
| Thousands of baskets of tomatoes were
| rotting along the Delaware and Maryland
| waterways.
Warren S. Stone. grand chief engineer
of the Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engi-
neers, in speaking of the affairs of his or
| ganization recently. gave some startling
| statistics on fatalities among the men VINO
| pull the throttles on big locomotives He
said in the past twenty months 3S4 eng1-
neers had been killed outright at their
| post of duty. and that in two years the
Organization had paid 1, 100 death and dis
| ability claims. At the present time the
carving over SS5 600 insurance on its
| members. When Stone became grand chief
three years ago the engineers had mem
bership of about 1900 The membership
today is 5000. and with two or three
minor exceptions the organization has con-
tracts with all the railroads in the coun-
try.
lob unions working together nave
succeeded in inaugurating the eight-hour
workday in eighteen mills. which practi-
cally comprise the entire paper making IN
duStry of the country. 1t Is not proposed,
however to have tn 8 done simultaneously
in all the mills. The change will be made
so gradually that the output will not be
perceptibly decreased nor any change be
apparent in the operation of the plants
One mill each month for one year and a
half will adopt the new system. and so the
entire number will be brought over. The
! unions instrumental in gaining this lmpor,
tant concession were the international
brotherhood of Papermakers, United
Brotherhood of Carpenters and Jolners,
Amalgamated Woodworkers and the inter-
national Association of Machinists. There is
to be no reduction in the pay Of the en-
ployes This is believed to be one of the
most important and. in its application. one
Of the most scientific changes that has
taken place in the labor world FOR some
time.
One of the most important events of the
week was the getting together of the Win
dow glass manufacturers of the country at
a conference held at the Hotel Schenley In
Pittsburg. 1t was the biggest meeting IN
the history Of the trade and was attended
by men representing fully 50 per cent or
the total production. Manufacturers pres
ent represented nearly 2.300 hand Operat-
ing pots The American Window Glass
Company, while not actually participating.
Is ready to cooperate in any plan to put
the industry on a stable basis. When the
conference adjourned 1t was to meet again
on Wednesday next. 1t is now more than
probable that the start-up OF nres FOR the
new season will not take place before No
vember l. A selling agency, by which the
runous competition that has hitherto pre-
vailed in the trade. is practically assured.
The annual report of President James
O'Connell Of the International Association
of Machinists, just issued, is record OF
progress. both from the financial and ma
terial side. The monthly dues of the or
ganization are now 81 per member. The
close of July !. which marks the end Of the
fiscal year, showed balance on hand In
the international treasury Of 1854, 743. 40. The
nine-h hour day has already been introduced
in many cities, with the accompaniment of
a Saturday half holiday. Obedience to the
constitution is urged. especially in the mat
ter Of strikes
During the year there were thirty-eight
new lodges organized. This does not in
clude ten special lodges formed. There
were a dozen lodges ConSoilCAteQ curing the
same period. Strike benefits were paid to
the amount Of s143,o69.5s and death bene.
fits Of s29,375. From the institution of
strike benefits in April, 1891. to the present
time, the grand lodge has paid out 81 .O1s.-
697. 40 and for death benefits since April,
1898, $40, 10.
A :ecent meeting Of leading oculsts and
illuminating engineers shows that bril-
liant electric lights in direct vision are
harmful and that eventually 1t will be
found that glare does not mean beneficial
illumination. The time is coming when
dazzling lights so placed that they strike
the eye directly will be legally prohibited.
There should be just much light as it is
possible to get. but it should be placed so
that its source Is concealed as much as
possible, and neutral colors should be used
on walls and ceilings. A bad coloring on
an object may be hurt by bad coloring of
the background. In oculism subdued light
gave better yesults. The yellow flame is
better than the white. and many people
have gone back 10 gas jets and lamps be-
cause they have found the light more COM
Portable. The heat from incandescents has
a harmful effect in that it dries the eyelids
just as the heat from fire would. This is of