The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-03-28

lace.
 Belt Line. McGehee and Bowdoln.
 Cloverdale. Meadows and Shores.
 Pickett Springs, Lake and Maddox.
 Riverside, Hogshead and Allen,
 Perry Street. Overton and McEntire.
 Electric Park Mann and Andrews.
 Highland Avenue, Hancock and Sny- der.
 Some Ugly Remarks.
 With this number of cars in opera ton, the service of the Traction Com pany continued unmolested throughout the afternoon.
 During the day, the Highland Ave nue car alternated in making trips out Highland Avenue and to the Country Club.
 Though the strike was precfpitated peacefully and, for an hour or more there was no sign of raucor on the part of the union men. as the after noon advanced, it hecame apparent that the car men were trifle ugly in their department.
 They congregated in groups on the square and 1t was not infrequent to hear them give utterance to ugly re- marks upon seeing their places filled by other men, although the remarks were in an undertone and not direct ed personally to the men then in charge of the cars.
 Some Cars with One Man
 Mayor Teague instructed the police Department late yesterday afternoon shouln permit the Traction Comrany to orerate its cars with only one man ta the car.
 This liberal construction of the stat ute forbidding the running of a street car by only one man the Mayor in- tended to apply only where car was being taken to the barn, or where the oonductor wac necessarily removed hV the company.
 In the latter case, Mayor Teague sti- pulated the car could be operated by one man for one trip only, and if as the end of the trip the proper crew was not afforded the car must be taken out Of service.
 The Mayors order followed an inci- dent that caused some little excite ment A car with only the motorman aboard was stopped by a police officer while 1t was crossing Court Square and the motorman wtsN taken in eus- tody on the charge that he had vio- lated the ordinance intended to regu- late the street car trafic. When the incident was reported to Mayor Teague he issued the instructions to the Po- lice Department.
 Arbitration Effort Fails.
 The attempt to have arbitration of the differences between the Traction
 
 futile. The committee representing the interests of the employees asked Mayor Teague at 10 o'clock to mediate, and he accepted, but when President R. D. Apperson heard the overtures of the men expressed by Mayor Teague he declined to respond.
 He was willing, he said, to hear statement by the company, but he re- fused to have any conference or sub init to any preliminary or tentative agreement by the consideration of which the company would seem to recognize the union.
 Motorman G. w. Huc--aby, Conduc- tors Mike Minto, Shep Gardner. Col lins and s. K. Fleming were the coul mittee which appealed to Mayor Teague for intervention, The expression of their demands and grievances was made by MT. Fleming in moderate lan- guage, and without being detailed account of their wishes, set forth full ly their side of the case and their de- sires for arbitration. Mayor Teague consented to be an in- termediary and after the conference with the street car employees was con- cluded talked with President Apper- son. MT, Appersop said that he would consent to an arbitration of differences between the company and the men as individuals, but not as members of the
  would not in any circumstances rec ognize. As the appeal for arbitration had been made by the union, the answer of the president. therefore, concluded ne- gotiations and Mayor Teague advised the committee from the union at noon of the result of his conference with President Apperson. Soon afterwards the strike was on.
 At 6 o'clock yesterday afternoon, the strikers declared that all except sev- en of the motormen and conductors had quit the company, and at that time, five of these men had said they would Join the union at the meeting called for o'clock last night.
 statement by strike Leader.
 According to s. K. Fleming, the To- cal telegrapher who organized the car men, the strike was pr ecipit ates by the refusal of officials of the company. ab the union men.
 While the laying of' Of twenty mon by the corporation because they were union men was q matter of consilera tion. still MT. Fleming saii that the fundamental cause of the strike was long hour and insufficient wages.
 MT Fleming is secretary Of the Cen traI Labor Council of Montgomery and District Organizer of the Amedieah Federation of Labor, besides being vice president of the local telegraphers' un- ion.
 "The fundamental case of the strike" said MT Fleming late yester- day afternoon, 'fs long hours and low scale of wages, and unfair treat meut accorded the men.
 "The company has a scale of four teen, fifteen. sixteen. seventeen and eighteen cents, but they manage to keep a majority of the men on the lowest ring of the ladder, fourteen three or four men getting the mixi- mum scale of eighteen cents, so far as We can ascertain.
 When a man reaches the high scale of eighteen cents an hour, usually some pretext is found upon which to dis charge him or he Is discriminated az ainst in such a manner as to- make him quit the service of his own accord. In such a case, If a man should again apply for work, he would be required to start again at fourteen cents.
 Long Hours for a Day.
 What is known Is the split trick re- duires a man to go on duty at the barn at 80 a. m. and work until noon, when he Is off until 6 p. m, and takes his run again until 12:30 a. m the follow ing day, and he is unable to get home until 1 a. m., thus requiring about 19 and one half hours in which to accom- plish day of twelve hours.
 Most of the split trick men are on q fourteen cent scale. which nets him $1.68 per day.
 "The extra mans life with tie Montgomery Traction Company is ev- a,, vuorsa fha0 of aplft frir {r