Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1910-03-05
TRANSIT co.
WON'T ARBITRATE
Philadelphia Car Strike Now
Far From Settlement.
OPPOSES THE WHOLE CITY

Declare They Will Not Deal With
Former Employees - General Strike
Seems Certain.
Philadelphia. March 2.-The Rapid
! Transit company refused to accede to
/ arbitration of any kind to end the
| strike of their motOrmen and conduc-
| tors. The company now stands in the
position of opposing the whole city.
The Rapid Transit company has an
nOunced that it viii not deal with its
former employees under any circum-
stances whatever. no matter what the
| consequences may be II the company
| persists in that attitude a general
strike is certain next Saturday. and
/ the Information is that an hour after
/ the big strike goes into effect troop
trains viii start for Philadelphia with
1 regiments OF the National Guard
/ There is less hope for peace at this
! time than for a week past. even when
the worst 81 the rioting was going on.
The impact of public opinion re
| suited in a meeting Of the directors Of
/ the Rapid Transit company. There was
a strong belief when il became known
/ that the directors were 20 meet that
some offer OF arbitration would be en-
| tertained by the company. AS a mat
/ ter OF fact. such a course would have
| been welcome TO a majority OF the
| directors. They are men whose in.
terests are tied up In financial or COM
| mercial enterprises. whose prosperity
| would be greatly reduced IL a general
] strike takes place. They raised their
voices In meeting but they were over.
/ ruled by the determined opposition OF
the city's representatives in the direc-
torate.
! Earle Balks Arbitration.
These messages told exclusively the
other day how George n. Earle baked
single-handed a proposition 20 submit
| the quarrel between the company and
its men 20 a seven-man board of arbi-
| tration. Mr. Earle's pertinaCity was
| manifested no less strongly with
! Reyburn and Carpenter to back him
| up. he resisted AN pacific suggestions
/ The following statement was issued
| AT the conclusion OF an informal
| conference Of the Rapid Transit direc-
/ tors President Kruger stated that the
/ company has not changed and will not
/ change in any manner its attitude In
| respect 10 arbitration already outlined
in its reply 10 the ministers associa-
| ton
The defiance OF tho Rapid Transit
4 company was announced after ten
/ business men representing the big
! downtown stores had called on the "a.
rectors and had talked TO Mr. Earle
II IS known now that the Rapid
/ Transit company does not believe that
/ the union labor men affiliated With the
Central Labor union will dare 10 break
/ existing agreements with EMPLOYERS
I and that the company is depending on
| this one factor 20 maintain its stand
against arbitration
Reyburn Rsbukes Ministers.
Mayor Reyburn after the meeting
/ OF the directors FASTENED into print
/ Tho mayor sconed at the ministers OF
the city. saying that # would be far
/ better If they attended 20 their own
/ affairs. who. he said. are talking
about something they know nothing
| about They do not understand the
situation. IL would be far better n
/ they would preach order and peace TO
| their Practitioners Why do they want
10 support lot OF men I'm the de-
struction of other peoples property
and in murder? why these men they
support would be the first 20 burn
down churches"
The mayor said that councils would
side with the representatives of the
city on the Rapid Transit board OF
| directors against arbitration.
They viii never agree 10 arbitra-
ton said the mayor. II don't know
about a sympathetic strike. aut II il
Is coming. II will have 10 come sun
| pose IL will make more trouble. but we
are better prepared than we were The
| police force Is now like an army that
has gone through a campaign. The
| police have been stoned and hooted at
! and they have got rid Of that feeling
of fellowship between policemen and
| citizens. BY Saturday we viii have
| 1000 additional officers uniformed and
equipped. There will be 200 mounted
men sworn in additionally. These men
! come from a distance Oh. we have
| been preparing for this fight for
months. We won't have trouble get
ting men for duty
! Despite the mayors opinion that the
councils would back up a refusal TO
! dTDlIrdte, IL became practically Ger
tain that a majority of men in the
/ city councils are strongly in favor of
/ preventing a general strike and pos
tible bloodshed and destruction OF
/ property. OF the eighty-six men in
the councils, forty-three in each
| branch. a majority have announced
that they are DESTROYS of taking some
action that will bring about peace.
Senator Jim McNichol and Recorder
| Billy Ware are expected 10 arrive in
Philadelphia within the next day or
two, and the news was that Senator
| Boies Penrose will be heading this
way from Washington in a few hours
to see If he can do something toward
relieving the strain. II is expected
that what viii happen Will be a con
ference between McNichol, Ware, Pen
rose and Wolf, and that out of their