The copper era. (Clifton, Graham County, Ariz.) 1899-1911, 1910-07-08
The Cananea Strike.

The Cananea strike; occurring, as
it did, very close to the border line
of the United States, is perhaps the
one Mexican strike of which Ameri-
cans generally have heard. Versions
of the Cananea strike are many. Not
having been a witness, not even hav-
ing been upon the ground, l cannot
write at first hand. But have talk
ed with a number of persons who
we're involved in one way or another
in the affair, and 1 believe that the
essential features of the story as l
give it are correct. My space being
very limited, shall only attempt to
tell the story in outline and, in addi-
tion, to remark upon the more signifi
cant features of it.
Cananea is a copper city of Sonora
and near the border line of Arizona.
1t was established by Col. w. c..
Greene, who was given over four mil
lion acres of land along the border
by the Mexican government. Greene
has since fallen into bad repute with
Diaz, and lost most of his holdings
and the Greene. .Cananea Copper COM
pany is now the property of the Cole
Ryan mining combination.
In the copper mines of Cananea
we're employed seven or eight thous-
and Mexican miners and very much
smaller number of American miners.
Greene paid the Mexican miners just
half as much as he paid the Ameri-
can miners, not because they per-
formed only half as much labor, but
because he was able to secure them
for that price. The Mexicans were
getting big pay-for Mexicans. But
naturally they were dissatisfied and
formed an organization for the pur-
pose of forcing a better bargain out
Of Greene.
Secretly Greene encouraged the
dissatisfaction, not because he want
ID to pay the miners more money,
Jut because he wanted to bring about
strike and thereby depress the
market price of Greene-Cdnanea
opper stock. The mine were a
,aying investment and Greene
/ ,chemed to squeeze out the investors
whose money had made the property
L success, SO that he could hog all
the profits of the bonanza for him
elf. The scheme was practical. 1t
failed to work only because the
strike came off too soon for his cal
culations, thereby dealing him a
boomerang blow from which he never
recovered.
To put his Mexicans in temper to
strike Greene is said to have sub
| jected them to numerous petty an
noyances, ending with the announce
ment made through one of his under
lings that the company had decided
to supercede the system of wage
labor with the system of contract
labor. This brought the strike.
The announcement was made ON
the evening of May 81, 1906, and
shortly afterwards every Mexican
walked out of the mines. Trouble be-
gan in the. morning, when the
strikers, marching about the streets
to call out the day workers, were
sprinkled with water from d hose in
the hands of man named Metcalfe.
manager of the company lumber
yard. The strikers replied with
stones and Metcalfe and his brother
came back with rifles, the result be-
ing that both the Metcalfes and sew
eral strikers we're killed.
A company of Pinkertons in the
employ of Greene coming on the
scene after the fight with the Met
calfes was over, fired many shots into
the crowd and are said to have killed
about a dozen men, three of whom
were mere onlookers. The miners,
wholly unarmed, fed, but they were
shot as they ran. A strike leader,
applying to the chief of police for
arms with which the miners might
protect themselves, was terribly
beaten by the latter, who put his en-
tire force at he service of Greene.
The Jail was filled to Overlooking
! WITH mlQGTS dIIGSlGQ llulSCIlulDdI
Greene and Governor Ysabel of
Sonora put their heads together with
the result that the United States was
asked to protect the American
women and children in Cananea from
massacre by Mexicans. The Ameri'
can newspapers were full of lurid
tales sent out by Greene, none OF
which had any foundation, for the
strikers not only never assumed the
aggressive in the violent acts of Can
anea, but the affair was in no sense
an anti-foreign demonstration. II
was a labor strike pure and simple
and the strike was no sooner called
than the demands for higher wage:
and shorter hours were formulated
for the consideration of the bosses.
While Greene's tales were arousing
the United States, the copper king,
doubtless thinking it necessary tC
create the condition which he wished
the world to believe existed, sent hi,
Pinkertons about town for another