The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-11-22
MEN ARE TREATED
MORE LIKE SLAVES
Inspector Finds Deplorable
State of Affairs-Several
From This City.

That a number Of Grand Forks
young men, who left here a few
months ago tor southwestern Canada
to do construction Murk for railways
in the Canadian Rockies, arc not
working under the most pleasant cir
cumstances is evidenced by the report
OF Adrian Ogeltcec, official inspector.
Ogeltree recently visited that Sec
ton of the country, and after making
a thorough investigation of The work
and the conditions under which the
labor, issued n scathing arraign-
ment OF the contracting firms.
The work is being carried on in the
vicinity of the Fraser river, which
has claimed SO many bodies during
the summer. 1t was thought for
awhile that two Grand Forks young
men had been drowned in the river,
but later reports showed that they
were still alive and doing work in
that vicinity. r
THE conditions Of work with Foley
brothers, WEIGH and Stewart, con
tractors of st. Paul, Mimi, are deplor-
able in the EXTREME" said Mr.. Ogel-
tree. Men were sent here during the
summer from Minneapolis, st. Paul,
Bemidji, Crookston, Mimi; Aberdeen,
WATERFOWL. Huron, s. D.; Grand
Forks, Fargo, Devils Lake. N. D.. and
from scores of other places through
kotas, and were forced to work under
conditions that could hardly have
been worse in times of actual slavery.
ION arrival, the men were classified,
separated into gangs, and placed I'M
6oR CONTROL ~ n o~nn.horda Ey{Q rYN1n
is their law, and when they show q
spirit Of rebellion he does not hesitate
to inflict a kind Of punishment that
is quite certain to whip them back
into line again.
Getting an instance in point, of
these herders. being supplied with a
gang Of newly imported men, was ex-
ercising his authority in a particular
ly forbidden way, when suddenly the
decided to run the risk of break
ing their contracts, and whirling on
their heels started to leave the scene.
Fired with anger the .self-appointed
driver Of human :" chattel became
brutal and abusive. Undaunted, the
fleeing men threw sticks and stones
at him and drove him off. He then
secured a rifle and fired volley after
volley at the %retreating workers. One
VI lltO IlkOu .dS I'LL Ia NV 1oS dAA0
carried to the camp hospital
where his leg was amputated.
Employees are assessed q tax on
every conceivable pretext, until at the
end Of the month it is not unusual for
ing the company money for board and
lodging and various other items. A
hospital tax is levied and they must
pay it whether they are i'll or not;
they must get their meals at COM
pany boarding houses, pay excessive
rates on baggage, which frequently
they never see again once it has been
hauled to the labor agents for trans
portation by wagon Or rail; trunks
mos: always go astray, and as the
men are not given checks, it is inn
possible to ever reclaim them. In adj
dition to all those h%ardships they must
pay al assessment for mail delivery
or have it taken u of their wages
ceive a letter, and as though that
were not enough. II any money has
been advanced by the contractors.
which is quite the rule, ten per cent
is charged for interest.
The mails. are irregular and unre-
liable and hundreds of letters pile up
only to be destroyed in the end or sent
haphazard in any fashion possible to
put them into circulation and cause a
semblance Of distribution.
THE number of men drowned in
the Fraser river this past season will
never be known. And even when re-
covered, which is SO seldom as to be
hardly worth recounting, there is no
e of identification. One reason
for this mysterious disappearance of
men by the wholesale is the fact that
they become dissatisfied and in order
to escape quickly and without inter-
ference, they build frail RATS and
start down the t~reacherous rapids to-
ward Fort George. But their d%estina-
ton is never reached. No green hand
ever passed those rapids safely. The
shores are lined with dangerous
sweepers and vet as a rule the mex
perienced rapid-shooters hug the
shore closely. and the instant their
craft strikes a projecting boulder they
are swept. to death. 1t Is impossible
to estimate how many droWnings
have been caused in this way. Only
an occasional body ever comes to the
surface. The water is full of debris
and sand. This sand settles in their
clothing and holds them down. Great
sandbars are always in the process Of
new formations. every moving, ever
changing, and many bodies doubtless
r buried beneath Them.