The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-07-21
Proposal Comes From Ottawa
That Effort viii Be Made
at Mediation
SERIOUS PROBLEMS NOW
CONFRONT THE RAILROAD
PerishnbIe Freight is Lying on Side
trucks in the Cars and Traffic is
Badly Congested at Many
Places on the Line.

Montreal, July 20.-The news out of
ottawa that the minister of commerce
and labor was trying to get both sides
of the Grand Trunk strike together on
a basis of arbitration provoked Vice
President Murdock of the unonists to
a sharp retort tonight
Arbitration" said he, 'is out of the
question. AS far as we are concerned
there will be arbitration. The conf
pany did not talk arbitration until they
had nagged the men to a finish Now
they want It, We will have none of
It,"
There is no milk or meat famine
here. The fruit business has suffered
slightly.
| With its more important passenger
chedules fairly well maintained, the
pressing problem confronting the Grand
Trunk railway lies in the continued
and apparently complete paralysis of lis
freight traffic This condition, the
striking conductors and tralnmen de-
clare to have been precisely their OBJ
jective, when to the number of 5000
or more they left their various POSI-
tions on the company's system from
Portland. Me-, to Detroit and In New
England Monday night.
Car loads of pershable freight are
standing on sidings far and near, and
unless II is possible to begin to turn the
wheels soon the property loss will DE
large. Food supply. and crop trans
portation are vitality involved. 1t is
stated.
| A generally expressed opinion at
m nd
Trunk is that the strikers will be able
to continue the freight train hold up
two or three days longer at least
Conductors and yardmen in the em-
| ploy of the Wabash on the tracks that
| road leases from the Grand Trunk
| between Niagara Falls, Ontaria and
Windsor. ont, opposite Detroit, have
gone out and result the Wabash
is having considerable trouble in fnov-
ing it's passenger trains over that di-
vision. No attempt is being made to
| touch the freight.
| . Freedom from serious disorder con-
tinues to characterize conditions. Only
at two points has trouble been re-
ported. Strike sympathizers roughly
handled two railroad employees at Mag
ara Falls and late last night at Sheer
brook Quebec, an acting conductor of
a Montreal bound train was attacked
by a crowd. Two policemen and tho
station agent finally got him to his
train, which then proceeded.
Both the Grand Trunk and the Wabash
are recruiting men. Vice President Fitz-
hugh. who is in charge for the company,
said today he expected partial resumption
| of freight operations before night, but
that any widespread movement of freight
cars could not be expected for a few
| days.
| The congestion of westbound freight
the docks at Montreal harbor is increas-
| ing, while shipping companies say six
| locean-going steamers which leave this
port Friday and Saturday for Europe
will go out with no more than half loads
because of delay of incoming freights
from the west.
One Slight Outbreak.
Boston, Mass. July 20.-One slight out
break between strike sympathizers at
Island Pond VT, the closing of a mill
at Monson, Mass. because of lack OF
supplies and the resumption of the COM
plete passenger schedules on almost
every line, marked the second day of the
strike on the Grand Trunk and Central
Vermont railroad systems In New Eng
land today A few freight cars were
moved at isolated points, and one train
of 20 cars, bound from Montreal to Port
land, passed Island Pond tonight. but
with this exception the cessation of the
freight trafrlo seemed as complete as II
was yesterday.
The trouble at Island Pond, VT.
the cause of some discontinue to the
railroad officials, and they asked Gov
George H. Prouty for protection of the
railroad property and their working en-
ployes The governor went at once to
| island Pond with nearly 50 armed depu-
ties Investigation showed that a crowd
| or vounp neople had thrown coal bad
ssgs etc at a train loaded with strike
hreakers. breaking car windows and
s.s 49, s,,,,.cbos hod hesn snsSSH
I'D nacp,no removed The strikers dis-
claimed ALL knowledge of the trouble -
dec1ared thew were anxious that peace Be