The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1909-07-09
THREAT TO CRUSH
Z. UNION FULFILLED
J. P. Morgan Made Vow Against
Amalgamated Association-Hsnd.
\ ful OF Men Push Fight.
BY HUGH ALLEN.

PITTSBURG. july S.-Nine years
ago this coming fall j. +. Morgan
faced Theodore Shaner. then presidvn,
OF the Amalgamaied Association OF
iron. Steel ana Tin Workers. Ia the
Morgan Offices In New York. They
were settling the great steel strike OF
1901. Morgan. white with rage. turn
ed 10 Shatrer and sa'd:
IN smash your union for this Z
will take ne just tour years AZ tho
end OF shat time you'll not have "a
iGnion man al work IN the mills OF my
combine
That was "a October, 1901. Thurs
day, July /. Morgan made good his
word. But Il had taken him nearly
nine Years Instead OF four.
There isn't union man 2: WORK
today H. the mills of the steel trust.
which employs 10000 TO 10000 skill
ed workers IN making iron and steel
and til, and turning out bridges ana
the skeletons OF steel buildings, AMI
everythiuS from a big armor plate 10
! the wire screens you see in your win
dows IN fy time. On that morning
lof JUL I. 5000 sheet and tin mill
workers struck against the order or
4 the American Sheet and Tinplate Co.,
"A branch OF the trust In this strike
the old Amslgamated association IS
making its last stand against utter
determination in the trust mills.
Handful Of 5000 Men.
This handful Of 5000 Amalgamated
men is all that are left OF the 10000
men that entered the first strike
against Morgan iron hand II they
lose there will be no more union
mills in the trust.
For the latter-day policy OF the steel
trust is not 10 bring strikebreakers
into a null and Try 10 operate IL in
the face OF the strikers pickets, but 10
let il stand idle. and push some non
union plant beyond its capacity until
the strikers are tired ont and give up,
the struggle.
President f. NJ Pargny or the
American Sheet Steel Co, boasts tnat
his company has nc union mills,
but h. is not trying 10 start any o.
the Ia that were tied up last weCN
when the Amalsamated men walked
out These mills are standing idle
while the plants from which the union
was driven years ago are being push
ed double-turn 10 bring the average
output up as high as possible.
IL IS an easy way 10 break strike.
But before the day o: trusts the manu-
fao,u~e. with one. or even two or
three mills, couldn't 90 il. He hadn't
mills enough.
For nearly nine years the Amaiga-
mated association has hung on In TINS
losing battle Cling concession AFTER
concession. rather than fight power
that even the United States govern
ment has sometimes seemed 10 rear.
But the end came a month ago. when
the trust refused to sign another an
nual scale with the Amalgamated, an
nounCed its own scale with reduc-
ton OF about S per cent IN wages. aho
Dosted a notice declaring thar the -
nlants in which the union still retain
cd a fCothold would run. after jug
as open shops in which union
men and non.union men alike cou!d
get employment
The Amalgamated men had mad
taste OF the open shop" in the frust.
omen shop" mills always bar known
union mon after six months or year.
National President p. }. McArdle
said
They are loyal to a man. "a |
knew they would he. And every strik-
or this year is a hero. He knows
what he is fighting We did every
thing to avoid this, but the trust mas
thrown down the gauntlet We would
be towards five didn't fight.
These 5000 men started their fight
we'll. Out Of Ave sheet steel plants
and ten tnplate plants where the
"open shop" order was posted j
have been idle since July /. In one
plant. the sheet mill az Cambridge
O. a part OF the men reported Tor
work and are operating about third
OF the mill.
The battle IS not being fought out
In pittsburg. Every trust mill In TINS
ri,v was non-unionizcd years ago
These towns are the battle-ground
New Castle Pa. $500 men sharon.
pa 200 men: Wheeling. 400 men
,iartin's gerry and Bridgeport. o. ?.
go mon. ElWoos. Anderson and Gas
CITY md. 100 men, PiqHa ana
Struthers o. 900 mcr.
ANY 81 the OH veterans around
the Offices Of me AmagamStsd asso-
cistiou In this city IAN tell lou how
The trouble started Morgan formed
bis stacl trust I'm 1904 Back In lss-
-lla Homestead strike Mad resulted IN
driving ~ union rom he mills Of
tie Cqrresis steel CO.-but that Is
another story. II 1874 the manutac-
lures OF tine Kls.dTinetss valley had
lrivc1 'Ae uaion out OF their mills
That. too. . 2 c,iaptcr by itself. When
~. tive cane 20 Sigh the 1901 wage
7eeie fc. me JH.on mills OF the Am
.n,icar Sfcet steel Co. the American
'Tinriat, Co. tee National Tube Co,
tie american steel G. Wire Co. me
American Bridge CO. and the Amer
lean steel Hoop Co. he Amaigamated
found t.7sls face - face with Morgan
He had organized all taese companies
into the trust.
The Aina'gamated president was
Theodore Shancr. retired Methodist
PREACHER !ic gave tho trust this ultl-
matun
we will sign no WACO scale for
1ar- of the mills Of the trust. You
must slgr the scale for all mills. ana
must withdraw your order In The
non-nEIou mills which forbids men
ioininz tie union The men in those
mills must be free % join the union
or not. as they wish"
The first gun OF that strike was fret