The Mobridge news. [volume] (Mobridge, Walworth Co., S.D.) 190?-1917, 1910-07-22

s85, and brakemen from $55 to $50 to
$50.
"On mileage rates conductors of
through trips are 10 be raised from
2.9O to 1886 cents a mile and brakemen
from 100 to 2.25 cents.
When l put this TO the men l said
that If they did not think it salts
factory, | was willing to go to the
arbitration of a board of expert rail
way men as to whether or not the
proposition was fair and would be will
ing to abide by their decision.
But they refused to listen to this"
Trainmen's Position.
Vice President Murdock of the
Brotherhood Of Trainmen said in tx
planning their side Of the case:
We met Mr.. Hays, when he elabOr-
ated somewhat upon his original offer
to the extent of saying he meant by
it the award Of the board of cOncilia-
ton and that the standard wage for
the territory should be adopted by
January 1913.
Mr.. Hays was told that the sub
committee and other officers could not
believe that they had the right to set
aside the strongly expressed position
of the men even if they were inclined
to do so.
Terms Not Satisfactory.
THE committee at a glance found
that it was very far from being any
thing like the boards award and that
in the great majority of cases where
rates had been specified these rates
are very much below those suggested
by the board.
For instance, on the Portland Mon
treal runs we find Mr.. Hays offering
1925 per 100 miles to a passenger on
ductor instead of $2.45 $40, as fled
in the boards award; we find in MCh-
trealTorontO passenger runs he .GfIers
conductors 1921 per 10 miles instead
Of the boards $2.45 $40. The mini.
mum standard monthly salary for a
passenger conductor "a the territory is
1925 a month. tho board recommended
$101 a month. Mr.. Hays suggests
very many rms at 500 a month and
some as low as $50 a month. The
minimEm monthly pay for a passenger
brakeman recommended by the board
vas $50, Mr.. Hays offers in many cases
$55, a monthly increase of S. on a $50
salary.
Further in his proposition Mr..
Hays ignored entirely the boards rec
ommendation to standardize conditions
on the Grand Trunk and it's recon-
mendation to put into effect the mile
age basis of pay in either passenger
or local freight service. Instead he
proposes to p~erpetuate existing condi-
tions and in some ways to make them
much more Objectionable, since there
would be greater inequalities than IN
the past.
Therefore we positively refuse to
accept his propositions on behalf of the
men, who had left us our instructions
with power to act. AS a result the
men left the service"
Have Protective Fund.
Asked as to what backing the inter
national unions would have for such
an extensive strike, Mr.. Murdoch
said:
There is a protective fund of ST.
600, 600 back of us now, and there will
be no difficulty in getting $500 0 a
month to keep the strike going. The
full protective features of both the
conductors and trainmen's unions will
be given with payment Of strike pay
of $50 a month to conductors and $35
a month to members of the Brother
hood of Railway Trainmen."
The order closing the shops all
along the line of the Grand Trunk will
affect over 5000 men, of whom about
700 are in Montreal. 1t is understood
that a considerable number will be Of
fered the chances Of taking the places
of striking conductors and trainmen,
some of them being qualified by ex-
perience on the road.
In addition to the Montreal shops
the Grand Trunk has shops at Toron-
to, Stratford, Battle Creek and Port
Huron, Mich, Gorham, Me-, and Port.
land, Me.