The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1907-08-16

kaSS~-loINN . 49, ~SN~S0 "0~'
Day WOrk-SiX days, eight hours
daily, $50 per week and overtime and
extra at the rate OF 90 cents per hour.
Night WOrk-SiX nights. eight hours, |
$50 per week and overtime and extra
at the rate Of 70 cents per hour.
The vacations to remain as at present |
A proportiOnate increase for chiefs
sub-chief operators.
The telegraphers requested a reply |
by 1880 O'Clock this ,(Monday evening. |
Mr.. Stones reply follows:
New YORK, August II, 1907.
To OleratoTS:
| received this morning a n
cation from a large numDel OF the
operators in the serN ice of the AsSOci-
atef Press asking for a changed scale
Of wages Il hours, and requesi ing d
reply by half past seven O'Clock this
evening.
The changes involved are 50 T;rdlca!
in their nature L. to add over two hun
drcd thousand dollars d year, and prob
ably more 20 the expense OF this OIg1--t
iLdtlCu- i lit -ApSL$ILI-N l. 80 AS
in its character. makes no profits and
las no surplus fund out OF which sue
\ sum could be paid. Any such in
crease must necessarily be levied b4ch
upon the as a part Of their
weekly assessment, AS general mana
ger. | AVE no power to make such IA
increase either in salaries or assess
ments without -authOriy from the boa &
Of directors and it is obviously impOs-
sibIe to call this board together within
the time named. The board consists
of fifteen members scattered through
ONT the entire ~Dolntrv.
At the same Time. acting under an
th0rity heretofore granted me by the
board OF directors, | shall be very 2lal
gt apy tjmp;to meet a committee of Our
own oraratOrs. and confer with them
resnectinp bours of service and .crm-
pensation with: view to making some
recommendation to the next meeting
of the board OF directors which sk all
meet anv foir or lust eXpectatlons of
those in nrr. GENERATING service.
Even were I free to act, l think you
must agrt,s~with me that a question of
this MAGNITUDE should not be pressel
70 a conclusion within the limits Of a
faw hours and without any Opportunity
for consideration between myself and
re~presentativ es of our operatin forces.
(Cionad) MELVILLE F. STONE.
General Manager.
Charlotte. n. c.. August 12.-The
Western Union operators here, about
thirty in number, walked out at 6
O'clock.
jacksonville, Fla, August 12.-All
Western Union and Postal telegraph
operators walked out at 4 o'clock this
AFTERNOON. Affects some sixty Western
Union and ten Postal operators.
WASHINGTON. August 12.-At $50 all
the Western Union operators walked
out and were greeted by loud cheers
nv the striking Postal generators. who
were lined uD in front Of the Western
Union building ONLY chief operators
and a few wire men remained on duty.
The Western Union people claimed to
be doing business as usual in this city
and to have all the help needed. In
fact they said that they could not use
all the men seeking employment. On
the other hand. the union men claim
that very few competent men were
working and that the company was
being tied.
The Postal people claim to have 35
0ut of a force of about 800 working to-
night and that they were doing bust
ness without serious delay. To this
the strikers replied that the Postal had
not more than II operators at work.
The strike against the Associated