The Washington times., 1909-06-06

being held at the barn half again a,
long.
A means of arbitrating other differ
! ences.
Scale the Same
As In Other Cities.
| The proposed scale corresponded to
| that in New York and most other large
| cities. The other demands recommended
| themselves to every reader of Philadel-
phia- newspapers
Only the motormen and conductors
directly affected came off at first. THE
more locals you take OF" explained
Pratt when other leaders urged the
need to show our strength 1.-The
more men you take off. the more issues
| you've got to settle. We could have
won our strike in Chicago in six days.
But we had so many other trades in
with US that it took US thirteen days
to get the whole business settled
IE the directing mind of this cam
paign, the successful strike corresponds
with the room in which the inquisition
tortured it's victims by closing in the
walls a little distance each day. He
had two walls closing in already SER
vice which amounted TO only one car
in three, by the claims of the com
pany. and by the checking of the strik-
ers to one car in eight. and a wonder
fully good-natured public support. His
two other walls were the L" road and
the subway as one. and the power
plants as the other.
All through the six days of the strike
Pratt sat with his hand on the levers
that worked those two other planes.
If ne could win without them, so
much the better. But If ne couldn't
win without them he was as Sc
cure against guess work" as TO
the men involved, as he had been in
the case of the trolley men. The L.
would close down, the current would die
in The wires, the lights would go out,
and there would be a tie-up that meant
business.
Finally. there was a still bigger ques-
ton with which he could bring the
whole house down. II was:
Sfan Philadelphia be made a union
town through and through?
Six Steps
In All Such Fights.
Every such fight" explained Pratt,
last Wednesday. lis in six steps Here
you are:
Step 1.-The company says There is
no strike. and the cars will run just as
usual
step 2-The company says The
strikers Will not be taken back; there
will never be any arbitration, and the
fun service is being rapidly restored
''Step 3-The company says There
wouldn't be any strike if il wasn't for
the "Butinskies" that come here from
other cities.
Step 4.-The company says We could
settle this whole matter if we had only
our old men TO deal with
Step 5-The company says Wen ar
bitrate with our own men,
step 6-Settle nent."
The first stGses of this fight in Phila-
delphia came on schedule time. With
each bulletin of the company Pratt
made +, CHECK" on his. program Wed /
nesday night he concluded that a little
pressure would help the remaining
steps along. The following morning IL /
and subway service was crippled, but
not suspended. The remaining men
who constituted this wall of Pratt's I
room were 10 leave their cars that 4
Thursday night But before that was
needed. the great Bnlladelpnla Rapid /
Transit Company, with an influence al l
most equivalent 10 that OF the city
government, had yielded and would 1
meet representatives of the men.
Some one will ask:
Where Is the new force in all that? /
That's only common sense. Besides the /
politicians and a newspaper ended the 4
strike, not Pratt"
The phalanx Of Alexander and the
Vanderbilt combination OF the Hudson /
River, the New York Central, the Lake |
Shore. the Canada Southern, and the 1
Michigan Central were also only com \
mon sense. But there was a new kind
Of strength in that particular expression
Of common sense.
Made New Use
Of Material At Hand.
So it is here. Pratt has made new use
Of the materials at the labor leaders
hand for the Improvement of the work
men. lie has adopted the methods en-
ployed by the great corporations 10 sex-
tend their power-and something more
IiC has had Ia deal with man ~ roaty.