United labor bulletin., 1910-05-05
Made Splendid Talk Before Large Audi
ence of Quarry Workers.
10 EVANS HERE.

Last Friday night word came that 10
Evans, the popular national president Of
the General Union Stonecutters, was
coming out and would speak before the
striking stoneworkers Saturday after
noon. Needless to say practically every
man of them was out and followed the
band to the top of the Salt Creek Hill,
and from there back to the Red Mems
hail. where, for over an hour, that mag
netic freshman thrilled them with encour-
agement, logic and timely suggestion, in
terspersed with an occasional bit of
barney or joke on some mick told as
only one of the sons of the 'ould sod can
tell it.
Mr. Evans touched lightly on his ex-
tensive travels in his official capacity,
and with genuine and unconcealed pleas
ure stated that it was the first time in
his life he had ever been met by band.
MIR. James Chalmers of Bedford, local
president of the G, u, who accompanied
Mr. Evans from Bedford, pleased the
audience with an excellent rendition of
Mr.. Evans song. The Tool Box"
The fact is that 10 is a Welshman by
birth, and as he quantity expressed it, an
freshman by marriage, having acquired a
bit of a brougue in that way
10 is doing yeoman service for the
Stone Cutters Association in the great
stone belt, and throughout the country
for the past six months being mostly all
the time on the road. He is bringing
about an amalgamation of the stone cut
tiers on the Continent into one organiza-
ton, and has succeeded wonderfully in
his work, having as his worthy colleague
James f. McHugh, general secretary
treasurer who is an Irishman also.
10 says that the work of organization
in the stone belt is something miracu-
ous as up to five months ago there was
no union amongst the stone workers, ex-
cept that old standby, the Journeymen
Stone Cutters of North America At that
time a determined effort was made by
the Cut Stone Contractors association to
drive the union stone cutters from the
field To that end strikebreakers were
imported, injunctons obtained, militia de-
manded and a general reign of terror in
augurated Then the stone cutters de-
termined to unionize the entire belt, and,
after five months of effort, have sue
ceeded in adding to the A. F. of l..
unions representing every division of Ia
=
Brass Band alluded to in the clipping is
not two months old. and is composed OF
men whose musical accomplishments up
to that time were confined to the Jews
harp; but 10 says that after hearing the
Marine Band of Washington. Sousas,
Gilmore's and other famous bands, he
never heard such inspiring strains as
was produced by those untutored union
Hoosiers, whose uniforms were home
spun, but whose hearts were right.
Following the band came a procession
of workers. each carrying an American
flag and the only incident to mar the
occasion was when the flags were taken,
the hands of nine of the workers and
handouts substituted, and they were
marched to Jail for an alleged violation
of an injunction, which is such a curios-
ity in its line that it is framed and ex-
hibited in the general Office of the Stone
Cutters organization in Washington.
notwithstanding this, and that the in
junction covers 10 in particular, he says
that the work will be carried to sue
cessful termination, and the attempt to
throttle free speech and organization will
fail in the stone belt, as it will else
where, and looking closely at 10. we be-
lieve it will.