New-York tribune., 1907-08-15

who nterferes wilfully with the trahSiiiiSSloh VI
a message is liable to criminal prosecution IL
we discover any such cases we VIII see that
they are prosecuted
When asked if the report sent out by union
men that women strikebreakers were held pris-
oners at the Western Union Building under the
guard of Pinkertons true, Mr. Brooks
laughed and pronounced the story 'bosh-"
I'VE had $50 men at work to-day he went
on and we cleared up all business as it came
in Tonight we have our full night force
There have been no desertions that know or
and we could. for that matter. spare thirty or
fifty operators right now without being crippled
All Of our go branch offices are open now WIN
the exception of perhaps thirty, that Will De
doing business tomorrow.
Mr. Brooks said he thought the action of the
Chicago Board of Trade and other bodies IN ap-
pealing for help from the federal government
unnecessary. because the strike is wen
under control and we have them skinned to
finish" He also denied that his company has
been employing the help of Boss Farley or
any other strikebreal1er agency in getting
operators
ERIE OPERATORS NOT DISCHARGED-
J. II. Naddy. press representative of the Erie
Railroad. said at the main offices of the COM
pany. No. IL Broadway. that there was no truth
that his five railway telegraphers had been dis
charged from the Erie because they had refused
to take commercial messages. I'VE are having
no trouble of any kind he said. Il have IN
vestigated that story specially. The western
Union expect us to do no more than Is caiieo
for at ordinary times. We have no more IN
terest in this strike than if it a strike OF
the cooks union and not so much. because that
might affect our dining service"
It was reported good authority that the
contract between the Western Union and the
Erie had expired just before the strike ana that
negotiations were still pending for its renewal.
In this way the Erie is ''let outs of any respon-
sfbiIity in taking or sending commercial mes
sages Mr Maddy refused 10 discuss this feat
ure of the situation.
At the New York Central representative OF
the road explained that there was little chance OF
trouble with the Western Union. He pointed out
that the contract between the road and the
company called for the railways operator to re-
ceive and send commercial messages only IN
those towns where the Western Union has no
office Since there was no strike clause in the
contract. this did not compel the railroad to take
or send messages when the Western Union office
had gone out Of business temporarily because of
labor disputes. It was pointed out that in New
York, for instance, the Western Union could not
saddle commercial messages on the railway
operators, but that the railway operator in some
"one-horse town where there was no Western
Union office would be obliged to take the mes
sages from the Western Union operators here
whether not they were union men,
CENTRAL EXPECTS NO TROUBLE.
I'VE are not borrowing trouble" said the Off
cial. ''but If the Western Union should try TO
expand the terms Of its contract there wouia
be a meeting Of executives to decide upon the
roads policy before our men would be under IN
structions as to whether or not we expected
them TO obey. They are working for us and not
for the Western Union in such cases
At the offices of the Postal, Vice-President
Nally sent out by a stenographer reports telling
how well his company was getting on. The
Postal has its wires along the Pennsylvania
system but Mr. Nally did not discuss the atti-
tude his company had taken toward the railway
operators more than represented by his
stenographer, who said she believed there had
been no friction. Mr., Nally also sent out woro
that the company had been gaining all over me
country and that all business was moving wen
between principal points. The thirty-one en-
ployes who had been brought to the main offlos
to help out had returned to their stations he
said and all the branch offices of the company
would he doing business to-day
No confirmation could be obtained of the re-
hire strike breakers. Nevertheless. a dispatch
came from Camden y. J.. last night. to the ef-
feet that ex-operators in that town had received
promises OF Jobs at double pay in the Postafs
New York Office. The Berghof Detective
Agency, Of No. 1881 Broadway, sent the letters
The Associated Press was delivering the
goods last night. and it appeared that the
skilled operators who had remained were salts
fed with their jobs. Men conversant with the
business Of the "A. p" were reckoning how
much money some Of the country operators
would get If the strikers demands were granted
For instance the operator in Syracuse, VINO
now gets S25. would under the readjusted scale
get s4445. The Los Angeles man, who now
draws $40. would under a revised payroll get
the modest sum of $50 40. And so on
MR.. STONES STATEMENT.
In discussing the demands. Melville E. Stone.
general manager Of The Associated Press. said
yesterday:
ITO show what the demands made upon us
would have meant, let me say, first. IT was pro-
posed to put all the operators of The Associated
Press upon uniform salaries and uniform hours
Of work Any one familiar with the practical
onaration Of this organization knows how i'm
possible that would be. There are places where
men work seven nights in the week; other
places Where they "oih SiA' PioO'" "-ON my
work ten hours a day. and places where they
work four hours a day.
Second the cost of living in large city like
New York is clearly greater than in places like
Waterbury. Conn. Lancaster. Penn, yet the
demands made upon were to pay the
rate at Lancaster any other small city that
we paid in New York
Third although already we were paying a
much higher rate than either of the telegraph
companies or the railroad companies pay, and