The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1911-01-11
DYNAMITE.

It is understood that the verdict Of
the grand jury which has been inves-
tigating the Los Angeles Times dis
aster will be, Destroyed by dyna-
mite" 1t is probable too, that the
responsibility for the disaster will be
laid at the door of union labor.
The labor situation has long been
strained in Los Angeles, the Mer-
schants & Manufacturers association
having succeeded pretty thoroughly
in keeping down the union movement
In San Francisco, Los Angeles busi-
ness rival and competitor, the unions
have been in absolute control Every
industry is organized in San Francisco
and not only do the unions control
Industry, but politics as well. Form
er Mayor Schmitz and the present
mayor, P. H. Mccarthy, are both I'M
ion labor mayors.
In the steel and iron trades Los
Angeles and San Francisco business
men come into direct competition.
The wage scale in San Francisco be-
dng. dictated by the unions, is much
higher than in Los Angeles, by reason
OF which the Los Angeles firms are
able, to underbid the business men of
San francisco. Los Angeles gets the
business and San Francisco suffers.
Indeed the situation has. become
desperate in the Golden Gate city in
the trades which come into compe-
tition with the "open shops" of Los
Angeles. Disaster has been staring
these manufacturers In the face for
months. A few months ago they CALI
ed their men together and declared
that ruin was confronting them by
reason Of Los Angeles prices and high
local wage scales. Either one situa-
ton or the other must be eliminated
or they would have to go to the
van
So the unions began one last eff
fort to organize the trades Of Los An
geles They were fought at every
turn by the Merchants & Manufacture
ers association, an organization which
controls practically all of the indus
trial wealth Of that city, including
banks newspapers, retailers and
wholesalers. Strikes have been fruit
less and amicable overtures have
been scorned. The accepted theory
is that union organizers having grown
desperate, are now resorting to CO.
ercion and the destruction Of proper
ty to win the fight in Los Angeles
and save the day in San Francisco.
The alleged reason for the attacked
on General Otis and the Los Angeles
Times, is that he claims the credit
for having organized the Merchants &
Manufacturers association. It is said
that when he was confronted with a
labor union organization in his es-
Establishment, he baked. Then he got
together the business interests Of the
city and they formed an association
to fight the organization of unions.
Their next move was to enlist the sup
port Of the bankers, demanding I'M
limited credit to fight strikes, on PEN
atty of a boycott of any bank that re-
fused. The banks acquiesced and
have stood loyalty by their agree
1nent
So 1t is now fight to the bitter
end in Los Angeles and San Fran
cisco wavers in the balance. To the
outsides it looks as If the Merchants
& Manufacturers association had the
best of the argument because of un-
limited capital and an effective or
ganization for skillful fighting. The
whole situation is regrettable, deeply
30. A blight is placed on union labor
and wage earners with families to
support will be the ones to suffer.
Probably all of this trouble might
have been avoided if irresponsible
labor organizers had not sought to
dictate to leaders more versed in
fighting than themselves, policies
which they refused to accept.