The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1909-04-30

Not since the days of the Paris
| Commune, in 1871, when the civil war
was carried on in the streets, have
the people of the French capital been
so stirred as they have by the strike
of the telegraph and telephone opera
tors and postal employees, which for
| time isloated them from the outside
world, and spread to all parts of the
outlying provinces. In America,
where the lines are controlled by pri-
vate companies, the strike could not
have assumed the political Importance
it has in France, where the lines are
government property and the men
government officials, and the strike
was directed against the minister of
the cabinet in charge of the telegraph
and against the government itself. 1t
thus lost it's aspect as strike against
economic conditions and became a
political one verging on revolution,
for the malcontents were eager to
join with the strikers and upset the
republic.
The trouble arose from the fact that
the government had planned, with the
approval of parliament, to introduce
partial merit system of promotion
to replace the previous system of pro-
motion, which was entirely by senior
ity and was affecting the whole sys-
tenn with dry rot"
The employees wished to stick to the
old plan, and the first riot occurred on
March IA. This was quickly stamped
out, but during the next few days mat
tiers grew worse. Railway mail clerks
refused to go on their trains, tele-
graphers would not send messages,
and here and there throughout the city
people could not get their mail, as the
telegraphers were Joined by the other
postal employees, including the mail
carriers. The telephone service,
every little while was practically out
of commission. A general strike was
declared by the central organization
of postal employees and meetings
were held throughout Paris. Women
took a prominent part in the demon
STATIONS, speaking from chairs and
barrel-heads, on street corners and in
the public squares.
So vehement were their speeches
against the postal department that
over forty of the feminine orators
were taken to the hospitals suffering
from nervous exhaustion. The anger
of the strikers soon centered on NJ.
Simyan, under secretary of posts and
telegraphs, and they made insistent
demands for his removal BY the
10th. foreign calls were answered in
frequently, and the city seemed as if
in a state of siege. No news could be
sent from Paris to London or back.
The bourse had wire between the
two capitals, which it was able to use
for a time. but bankers and brokers
suffered immense losses, not knowing
ANYTHING of the condition of foreign
markets. Messengers were sent by
rail to Havre and then by boat across
the channel to the British telegraph
offices.
BY the 18th Paris was completely
cut off from the outside world, all of
the operators as far north as Havre
and as far south as Lyons having
Joined forces with the Paris strikers.
Mail-bags lay in great heaps at the
stations, as the employees would not
touch them. The government saw that
1t must act at once or revolution
would be the result. NJ. Clemenceau,
the French premier, approved of Sim
vans position. Photographers were
brought in and government business
transacted as best it could be. The
men at the Elysee had struck. These
understand the cipher messages. and
the premier was greatly embarrassed.
as some of them related to the Bal.
kan crisis and the prestige of the
ountry was liable to fall in the eyes
Of the world II it was found to be at
the mercy of the strikers while i'm.
portant diplomatic negotiations in
volving peace and war in Europe were
being carried on. The matter was