Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1907-03-07
Fight Now
On Santa Fe
WHETHER BURLINGTON EN-
PLoYEs FAVOR STRIKE WILL BE.
DECIDED TOMORROW

Whether or not the employees OF the
Burlington favor general strike VIII
be decided definitely tomorrow at
Omaha. G. w. Copeland, local chair.
man Of the grievance committee OF
the Brotherhood of Railway Trainmlen
and M. q. Crane. who holds similar
Office with the Order of Railway Con-
ductors, left this afternoon on Bur
lington. No Is for Omaha, where they
will attend a joint general convention
of the two orders of the BurllngteA
road.
representative from each lodge of
the two orders of the Burlington road
will be present at the mearing and the
question will be voted upon These
conventions will be held by the lodges
of each of the farty-two roads west
Of Chicago and the outcome OF the
voting will decide the strike cues
ton.
1T is no secret that the different
lodges are going to submit this ates-
ton to the members said G. w. Cope.
land this morning. "Our organizations
have delivered their ultimatum and
the managers have done the same.
We have each gone as far as we care
to go.
1T is hard to tell what~the outcome
of the polling will be, hut it is very
probable that the vote will be unan1-
nous for general strlka. This doesn't
necessarily mean that we will strike.
The managers have offered us ;!'lGther
conference if the members say to
strike generally The managers still
want to arbitrate but we feel as
though we have nothin;, tn arhitrate
about The strike question duplicates
between 10000 and $4,000 men,
Ali railroad lines controlled by
james A. Hill have granted an in
crease of salaries equivalent to an
eleven per cent raise and withdrawn
from the conference between the ne
getiating committees. The fight now
centers on the Sante Fee road
Increase for Hill Lines.
Chicago, March Anticipating the
result of the vote now being taken by
the trainmen and conductors, as to
what further action on their part will
be taken regarding wages and working
conditions, the James J. Hill system
of railroads has granted what will be
equivalent to II per cent increase OF
wages to their employees. 1t is under
stood the Hill system has withdrawn
from any further negotiations with
the general managers committee and
the chiefs of the two divisions of en-
ployes.
Arbitration was suggested as a
means of settling the dispute between
the men and their employers, but the
advance on the part of the manage
ment Of the Great Northern and North,
erp Pacific, 500 line, and all the roads
centering in st. Paul, will make any
further negotiations unnecessary, az
the employees of these lines will en-
dorse the offer and accept the ad
vance.
Fight centers on Santa Fe.
Reports say that the bitterness oi
the contentious are centering on the
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, and tina,
the men on that system will vote te
strike for the full demands of theil
organizations.
Should the members of the trainmer
and the conductors organizations vote
to accept the advance rendered by the
Hill system, it is expected that tn.
Chicago & Northwestern, Chicago
Milwaukee & ST. Paul, Chicago, Bur
lington & Quincy, and the Illinois Cen
trail railroads will follow with SINH
lar advance. leaving the other line'
to carry on negotiations,
1t is openly asserted that P. H
Morrissey. chief of the Brotherhood o
Railway Trainmen and A. B. Garrett
son. chief OF the Order of Railwa.
Conductors. have shown favoritism tx
the more powerful railway systems
that the possibility of strikes are con
a fined to the roads that are less abb
to stand the financial strain Of label
trouble. j