Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-12-26
photographers Said to Be Secretly
Keorganizing For Another
WalkOut
CLAIM wAaEs HAVE BEEN CUT
June is Fixed for the Date of the Pro-
posed Standardization Said to Be
to Tie UP Wires on Eve Of Repub-
Iican Convention - Claim Federation
Aid.
Aid.

Chicago, Dec. 26.-Secret plans u
reorganize the commercial telegraphers
with a view to calling another strikl
on the eve of the republican national
convention, which meets here next
June, came to light yesterday. Organ
izers are now at work repairing III"
breaches in the ranks caused by the
strike OF Il few months ago
Photographers Union will be held in
Milwaukee June and, according to
present plans, the strike details will be
completed at that meeting. The repub-
lican national convention meets June
16, and il the telegraphers are sue
cesstul they will tie up the telegraph
facilities or that day.
The telel;raphers say employers are
helping them to reorganiZe by reduc-
ing wages and in this way forcing
men who deserted the union during the
strike to return to the ranks. The
next strike will include all men eln-
ployed by brokers and private con-
Germs, it Isl said, as the brokers nave
reduced wages in spite of the agree
ments entered into during the last
strike.
When the contracts with brokers
We're signed they provided for MIN
imum scale of $50 week. Many OF the
brokers have cut salaries to $25 q
week, and as there are about 700 IDLE
operators in the city, the men at work
have been forced to submit to the cut
rather than throw up their positions
They have not submitted gracefully
however, and declare they are looking
for an opportunity to even up the
score.
While the two commercial telegraph
companies have not made any gener-
al reduction in wages, practically all
the men who went on strike are now
receiving from IS to $40 month less
than they did six months ago because
positions nave been changed. Opera
tors who We're rated at SIS a month
before the strike have been placed on
wires which paid $50 without receiv-
ing the increase which they assert the
position entities them to. The men
who were receiving $50 a month have
been placed in positions which former
ly paid $sS, and in this way the gen.
eral average of wages has materially
been reduced.
Wesley Russell. secretary Of the
Commercial Photographers Union, adj
mitted that a second strike was in
contemplation, and that it would be
called between June 8, when the tele-
graphers convention assemblies, and
the date of the opening of the repub-
lican national convention. He said he
was sorry that the matter had come
out at this time, as it might retard
the work of organization in some cit
les.
G. Dial Jones, one of the leaders Of
the telegraph strike in Chicago, is now
in Harrisburg, Pa, organizing the men
there in preparation for the next
walkout A number of American Fed
GRAFTON Of Labor organizers have been
given instructions to devote all their
energies for the next two months to
building up the ranks Of the telegraph
ers, and they are at work in several
eastern cities.
The next strike, the leaders say, will
be ordered in systematic manner,
and will have the full support of the
American Federation of Labor, which
was denied the telegraphers last time.
The telegraphers were stampeded when
they went on strike last August with
out the consent Of their national Off
GERS and against the advice of the Of
ficials of other national labor organi-
cations.
T. P. Cook, general superintendent
of the Western Union Telegraph COM
pany, said last night that he had not
heard of the plans Of the operators to
call second strike. He said he did
not think it would be possible for them
to tie up the companies during the
republican convention.
81 think it is quite likely that there
are 700 operators out of work in the
city," said Mr.. Cook. "The business
has fallen off to such an extent that
there is no work for them to do. We
have not Disseminated against the
old men: we simply have no positions
open for them
Many of the old employees who have
not done any work since the strike
was declared off say there has been
and they are agitating