The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1906-08-31

AHNN44NAN VI NAAN
American Federation Of Labor, has Is.
sued a circular u the employers ex.
planning the International associa.
tons reasons for agitating for an
eight,hour work day at the present
time. The machinists have voted in
favor of making a general demand for
a shorter work day, but the date for
its introduction has not yet beer
fixed.
A temporary restraining order pro.
hibiting the board of directors of the
Order of Railroad Telegraphers from
proceeding further with the trial of
charges against Lewis X. Mari, OF
Philadelphia, suspended secretary of
the board, and making any disburse.
ments Of the mortuary fund, which
Mari formerly controlled. was issued
by Judge Finkelnburg of the United
States circuit court, at St. Louis. The
charges against Mari are that he at.
tempted to obtain the defeat of the
telegraphers' e~ight-hour law in Mary
land.
The department of Justice at Wash.
ington announced that it has received
a large number of afIidayits from per-
sons residing in Kentucky, Tennessee
and Alabama to the effect that the
Louisville & Nashville railroad, oper-
ating in those states, had discharged
or threatened to discharge employees
because they were members of labor
unions. The department has in.
structed the United States attorneys
in these states to commence proceed
ings against the road under section 10
of the act of 1898. 1t is understood
that the railroad company will raise
the question of the constitutionality
of this section of the act and will
fight the case in the courts.
~Bricklayers' and Masons' Interna.
tional union, which is not affiliated
with the A. f. of L., commends the A.
F. of l.. stand for independent politi.
cal action. Secretary Dobson, in a
letter, says that the union people
should not rely solely upon their own
efforts in the political campaign, but
should endeayOr to interest men who
are not members of unions. The mat.
ter is of great importance to non
union as well as union men. he said,
and the nonunion man should be
brought to see this. He said that it
would be a great mistake If the snion
leaders confined the movement to
thnir nuF,, T,aor1a anI Ala MT rnnpI
out for the votes of the n%onunion men.
Col. Ethelbert Stewart of the feder.
al bureau of labor, in the eleventh spe.
cial report of the commissioner of la.
Dor, which is devoted to Regulation
and Restriction of Output" reports on
the industries of bituminous coal,
machinery, glass, pottery, slaughter.
ing and meat packing, brick making
and printing and publishing. This is
the first official report on the subject
of restriction and regulation Of output
ever prepared in this or any other
country, although the subject has been
discussed so much in the last decade.
Besides its treatment of the question
of restriction, the information en-
bodied in the report throws a great
deal of new light upon the relations
between employers and employees,
compromising reports 70. 80 trades.
These 80 trades are of a rank and i'm
portance that embrace nearly all, If
not all, those which are supposed to
have restriction or regulation of out.
put. 1t is therefore a fairly and fully
representative collection of facts and
"a be considered as inclusive in a
large degree of the conditions relating
to these questions in all industries.
DR.. A. NJ. Sakolski of John Hopkins
university has published a pamphlet
on The Finances of American Trades
Unions" The extent of their re-
sources will amaze the average read.
err" says the Labor Tribune of Pitts
burg. THE history of American trades
unionism has been a slow but steady
progress from normal dues and small
benefits toward the high dues and
large benefits which have long pre-
vailed in the English unions. This has
been accompanied by a slow process
of centralizing union funds, as In the
case of the Iron Molders' union, where
only 7 of the 25 cents weekly dues are
retained by the local. The amounts
handled annually by some Of the ma.
tional or international unions have I
grown to large proportions. The
Mine Workers raised $2,225,-
for the strike of 1902, this be.
ing supplemented by s419,954.14 con-
tributed by other unions and the pub. I
lie. This latter sun, by the way, is I
said to be the largest ever raised for 1
strike purposes outside the trade i'm |
mediately affected. The International /
Typographical union in 1903 raised
80 to 35 cents per month. the l
assessment for its defense fund, d
while in 1904 its convention ordered a
Two thousand gold beaters are on I
strike in New York against the open
shop. Delegate James McCabe of the q
Gold Beaters' union announced that I
the strike affects 80 firms. It was or. :
dered, he said, for the purpose of driv. :,
ing out the middleman or small con. :.
tractors who take contracts from the /
large manufacturers and who employ '
their men on the open shop plan. y
The influence of the labor party in
the British parliament since the elec. ,
ton of SO labor members of the house !
Of commons last spring is reflected by 9
many pieces of Legislation in the In .
.erests of the w~orkingmen. :,
At a meeting Of the Carpenters nNr !.
.rict council, embracing 80 un'.9;is, b
held in Boston, Mass, it was dtsss.a'dfi
assess the 5000 members one'dol e
ar each to be used as a defense fund !
The International Association Of n