Los Angeles herald., 1907-07-04
BEG CALHOUN TO
RECOGNIZE UNION
PRESIDENT OF ROADS TAKES
FIRM STAND
Labor Leaders Admit That Carmen
Did Wrong in Calling Strike, but
Ask That Organization Be
Treated With
Rr Associated Press.

Rv Associated Press.
SAN FRANCISCO, July S.-After
spending several days in examining the
papers covering the events preceding
the Garments strike, the ways and
means committee of the labor interests
today called upon President Calhoun OF
the United Railroads. AS premise to
| further negotiations the committee ad-
mitted that the carmen had wrongfully
gone on strike. The committee pleaded
| for two hours with Calhoun not to de-
| cree the death of the union by refusing
| it's recognition.
Calhoun told the committee that his
attitude toward the union was un-
changed. The committee threatened
the railroad with a conflict in which all
organized labor would engage. calhoun
replied that he had never sought nor
Stunned a conflict.
| During the meeting some of the COM
mittee which is composed of the lead
| ing labor leaders, eXcoriated the offi-
cials of the Garments union for their
action in calling a strike. p. H. McCar-
thy, in the name of organized labor,
repudiated the action of the carmen
union, vet pleaded that the carmen 5
union must not be destroyed. He ad-
mitted that the union should be pun
ished, but held that death was too Sc
we're for the erring organization. He
asked Caulhoun to take the men back to
work, recognize the union and submit
the question of wages and hours of
work to arbitration.
O. A. TVietmoe, Michael Casey, Will
liam McCabe and Andrew FuruSeth adj
vanced different arguments. Furuseth
I'contended that Calhoun could not af-
ford to wash his hands of the union"
Calhoun told the committee that mas
much as it was the first to admit the
wrongfulness of the carmen's strike, it
should be the last to ask recognition for
such an organization. He ended by tell
ing the committee that he would not
recognize the union nor submit the
question of wages and hours to adbitra-
tion. 1t was after this announcement
that Calhoun was told of the campaign
that would be waged against him.
President Calhoun of the United Rail-
roads tonight issued a statement recit-
ing the proceedings of today's confer
ence. He said the only concession the
company had offered was to give such
of our old employees as promptly apply
for service and were accepted the bene-
fit of the years they had been in the
service of the company, and not to
penalize them because they had struck. "
President Calhoun's statement con-
cludes as follows:
'"These two interviews with leaders
of organized labor have helped to clar-
ify the situation. In spite of the ad-
mission that the carmen's union was
wrong in striking, the United Railroads
is threatened with the opposition of or
ganized labor unless it bows to it's die
tation and again recognizes the car
mems uniOn To force this recOgnitiOn
organized labor threatens, through it's
leaders, to combine it's capitals through
assessments upon the individual MEM
bers of the unions, the skill of it's Lead
ers and the acts of its members, in an
effort to restrain the travel upon the
cars of this company and the trade and
commerce of this community"