The Washington herald., 1907-08-05
STRIKEBEGINSTO-DAY
Employees to Be Taken Off
One Building at a Time.
ALL MEN OUT BY AUGUST 10
Leader TO Take Charge of Fight
for Building Trades Alliance 90
Entirely Perfected, and No State
ment Given TO the Public.

The general strike Of the building trades
will be inaugurated this morning. i'm
mediately following the meeting in Typo
graphical Temple at 10 o'clock, when the
course Of procedure viii be settled.
Ratification Of the resolution passed by
the national and international officers,
representatives, of the local Unions. and
the Central Labor Union Saturday after
noon. declaring FOR a general strike. was
made yesterday Final action has been
taken, and it is probable that, in view Of
the statements made by both sides in the
past, now that the issue has come the
fight viii be TO a finish.
II developed yesterday that the strike
resolution passed contained August 10 as
the date Of the strike. This date, however,
it is said is not the date of the inaugura-
tion, but the dead line. so to speak. when
every job where a n0nunion man is work
ing viii be struck.
In Doubt About Some Buildings.
30 official statement viii be made by
those concerned and it is the general
policy to deny everything, even the fact
that action has been taken. This is ex-
planned by the fact that detailed plans
for the conduct of the strike have not
been perfected
1t is impossible to reach any accurate
estimate of the number OF men to be
affected, but the number is placed at. ap-
proximately, 500. 1t is possible that the
figures may run a great deal higher. II
is likewise impossible 10 reach an ae
curate estimate Of the amount of building
10 be tied up, as local conditions on many
Of the structures involved are not def
nitely known. Reports have been re-
ceived from the business agents Of several
local unions. but these are in most cases
incomplete and the exact status Of a
large amount of work is In doubt.
The mode of procedure will be praCti-
cally identical with that followed by the
executive committee Of the Building
Trades Mechanics Council IN the recent
strikes against the open shop. When it
is learned that there are nonUnion men
on a building. after q conference, the
committee will proceed to the building in
question, and pull all the union men
employed there.
Perfect Plans To-day.
Plans will be perfected this morning.
the election OF a strike committee and a
directing head being the principal busi-
ness 10 come before the convention. It
is expected that the session will be
short one. There are no avowed candl-
dates for the directorship Of the strike.
and it is impossible TO fOretell who viii
be elected
The first builder upon whom the blow
viii fall has already been selected. No
simultaneous strike will be declared. but
each building viii be handled individual
". The committee. it was stated yester-
day, having met with the refusal by the
Employers Association and Master
Builders Association for a conference,
VIII ask each member individually 10
straighten out his work. and upon fail
ure 10 do so will call a strike on all work
for which he has contract. The strike
viii, therefore. string along until Au-
gust 10.
An effort is to be made tomorrow
night 10 have the Central Labor Union,
whose sessions have been public, to go
into executive session. A similar effort
on previous occasion failed. but owing
TO the fact that the proceedings Of the
convention, which have been kept so
secret, will be reported TO the Central
Labor Union, the effort is to be made
again.
Carpenters 10 Affiliate.
A special meeting OF the United Broth
eFhood Of Carpenters and Joiners has
been called for Tuesday night This meet
ing, it is said. viii be for the purpose of
affiliating with Jne Building Trades Me-
chanics' Council and standing with the
other trades in the strike. Heretofore the
Brotherhood of Carpenters has held aIoof.
There was a special meeting of the
executive board of the Bricklayers'
Union at CosteIlo's yesterday morning,
at which the strike was discussed. It was
stated yesterday that final ratification of
the strike declaration was delayed by the
bricSlayers owing 10 the fact that Grand
President Bowen had returned TO New
York The resolution was read to him
over the long-distance telephone, and he
gave it his approval
All the trades viii hold special meet
ings this week 10 appropriate strike bene-
fits and appoint committees to CO.
operate with the central committee.