The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-03-28
For Increased Pay and a
Shorter Workday.
$1,000 TRAINMEN
Onwestern Railways are Determined
to Enforce Their Demand for a
12Per Cent. Wage Raise.

Chicago. March 2S.--The 45,000
trainmcn of the western railroads
seemed nearer strike last night
than at any time since the negotia-
tions were begun two months ago for
an. increase of IL per cent in wages
ard a workday OF Q hours. The con.
ference Wednesday between the rep
resentatives Of the men and the rail-
road officials lasted for hours, but was
failure in bringing about solution
of the trouble. The railroads offered
the men Increases of Z per cent. to
passenger conductors and 10 per cent.
to brakemen, firemen, baggagemen
and allied workers. When the railroad
officers declared their offer was the
best that could be made the confer
ence came to an end, as the men by
a referendum vote had decided not to
accept anything less than their origi.
nal demands.
Immediately after the joint con.
ference broke up the representatives
of the trainmen met to consider the
advisability. of calling strike In or
der to bring the railroads to terms.
Just what decision was reached Is not
known, as the union men declined to
discuss what had taken place at the
meeting.
They we're a unit, however. In dc.
claring that a peaceable settlement of
the controversy could he reached only
by the general managers offering con
cessions. Another meeting OF the
union men has been scheduled for to.
day and the outlook is that strike
will be called within the next AZ
hours unless the railroads request an
other conference.
p. II. Morrissey. chief Of the Train
mems organization. said: I'VE have
been instructed by the men we repre-
sent to call a strike, unless the offer
OF the roads was satisfactory to us.
The vote by which this attitude was
reached carried the strike proposition
by tremendous majority. We are
not satisfied and the men are not sat.
isfied. We are not going to ask for
any more conferences with the gen.
eral managers. II Is up to them to
prevent the men quitting work and
the only way they can do this is to
accede to our demands"
ductors, also declared that no further
conferences would be held with the
general managers.
After the failure OF opposing inter-
ests to reach a settlement and when
the men were declaring that strike
was inevitable, Secretary Thompson,
OF the General Managers association,
said: 1--WE have not given up hope as
yet of a peaceable adjustment Of the
difficulty. We have conceded great
deal to the men already and 1t would
seem to be but a matter of short
time until the union officials will see
their way clear to accept the general
managers proposal. am of the opin-
ion that the conference will be resum-
ed again within the next few days and
that some sort of an agreement will
be resched."
Arbitration under the Erdmann act
will be asked for by the railroads to
prevent a strike IL the plans for the
general managers as announced last
night do not miscarvy. AS strike OF
the men would interfere with inter.
state commerce, railroad officers be.
l!eve that they can prevent a strike
by. asking the government to step in
and take command OF the situation.
The Erdmann act passed in 1898, pro.
vides for the arbitration of labor die.
ficuties, where interstate commerce
is involved, by the chairman of the
interstate commerce commission and
the commissioner of corporations.