Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-08-26
FEDERATION OF
LABOR IS SUED
Action Brought to Restrain it
And Members From Maintain
ing a Boycott.
BY BUCK STOVE & RANGE co.
Head of Company is Also President of
The National Association of
Manufacturers.

New York, Aug. pa. Washington
special TO the Herald says:
Suit TO enjoin the American Fedora
ton of Labor, its officers and its 2oOo,-
600 members from maintaining boy
colt to prevent the sale of the products
of the Buck Stove and Range COM
pany of St. Louis. was filed in the
supreme court of the District of CO.
lumbia by James NJ Beck, former as
sistant attorney general; j. j. Darling
ton of Washington, and Daniel Davef-
port of Bridgeport Conn. The action
marks the beginning of what Will
probably be a decisive legal struggle
Ia determine whether the American
Federation of Labor has the right to
bring the i'll will of the members OF
the unions affiliated with 1t to bear
upon any employer against whom
boycott has been declared as a re-
suit of labor difficulties
The Importance OF the suit is height
eped by the fact that the president OF
the Buck Stove and Range company is
j, S. Van Cleave. who Is also presi-
dent of the National Association OF
Manufacturers. The contentious of the
plaintiff may be said to be fairly rep
resentative of the attitude of American
manufacturers generally toward the
boycott question. AS stated in the pc
tition and by counsel for the Buck
Stove and Rrange company the issue
is this;
AT the convention of the Federation
of Labor at Minneapolis last year the
executive council of the federation was
instructed to place on the unfair list
the Buck Stove and Range company
This was done ostensiby on complaint
of the Brotherhood of Foundry En-
ployes that the company had discrimr
mated against ii by discharging its
members because they belonged to the
union The company declares that IL
never heard of such a union or BROTH
erhood and never discharged any per-
son on such grounds.
The company declares that Samuel
Gompers. president of the federation,
announced later in the Fedsrntionist,
his official organ. that the Buck COM
pany had been placed upon the 'un-
fair list after an attempt mad been
made at settlement.
The executive council of the fedora
ton ordered a boycott, and in March a
circular was sent to all the unions
throughout the country stating that
the Buck Stove and Range company
had been placed on the unfair" list.
The company's petition sets forth that
as a result of the action In more than
100 of the 200 cities where the Buck
company has customers, the local
unions sent committees to threaten
these dealers with loss of patronage If
they persisted in selling products OF
the Buck Stove and Range company.
1t is pointed out that the system by
which these boycotts are maintained is
such that the 2yO0o,0D members of
unions affiliated with the federation
can be brought to bear directly upon
the company engaged in labor dis
pute which has resulted in boycott,
The company's petition raises three
points. They are:
Whether such a boycott is n con-
spiracy in restraint of trade within the
meaning of the Sherman law and
prohibited by 1t?
Whether the American Federation of
Labor is an unlawful organization be-
cause II maintains an unfair list and
brings to bear the hostility of Its af-
filiated unions upon employers in be-
half of any one of its affiliated men,
hers. :,
Whether by false and malicious
action the American Federation Of La
hor shall be permitted 10 destroy the
business of the plaintiff
The petition asks that an injunc-
tion be issued TO restrain Samuel Com
pers. president; Frank Morrison. secre-
tary, and James Duncan. John Mitch
ELL James O'Connell, Max Morris, D..
A. Hayes. Daniel ]. Keefe. William d.
Huber and Joseph Valentine, vice pres
idents and members of the executive
council. from sending out boycott cir
culars directed against the Buck Stove
ana Range company, from publishing
its name on the federation's unfair
list and from sending committees to
customers of the Buck Stove and
Range company 10 intimidate these
customers by threats Of loss of patron
age.