New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-03-31
General Manager HedIey Refers
to Grand Chief Stones Agita-
tion as "Dirty Business"
SAYS MEN ARE SATISFIED
Declares Union Leader Has 2
Personal Spite to Settle
for Defeat in 1905
Trouble.

the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engi-
neers contented themselves with issuing
statements only, ended last night with
no appreciable advantage gained or lost.
and the big question "To strike or not
! 10 strike" now facing the motormen,
and which Chief Warren ). Stone by his
tactics has succeeded in putting directly
/ up to the Interborough heads, remained
/ unanswered.
/ Chief Stone made no attempt yesterday
/ TO arrange a conference with the COM
pany. and late in the afternoon hurried
/ from the Grand Central Hotel to the
! Pennsylvania Station, where he took Il
train for Cleveland. He was plainly well
satisfied with the situation, and left be-
! hind him a statement which. although i.
/ sldcstepped the question of a strike, bade
defiance TO the Interborough in its eff
forts to keep unionism out Of its ranks.
| we shall proceed to organize the In
/ terbOrough line said Chief Stone. "and
the lnterborough will discharge men as
/
! the Brotherhood Alhatever steps are
necessary to organize will be taken, and
1t remains to he seen whether the Inter-
| borough can discharge men faster than
we can organize them"
Despite the unyielding policy OF the
company, however, and the humor which
| many Of the Interborough officials pro-
fess To sec in Chief Stones attempt to
! break the Interborough's non-unon rule,
| many neutral organizations regard the
latter's plight as crucial In support of
| their contention they call attention TO
what is apparently the carefully worked
out plan of the unions, laid months ago,
and which. with hardly single mistake,
left them free yesterday with the sign
ing Of the first Brotherhood schedule
with the Hudson & Manhattan Railroad
| Company, 10 focus all their pressure
upon the Interborough.
Stone and Shonts Talk.
Chief Stone said yesterday that on
March Is he had a conference with Aug
ust Belmont, chairman of the board of
directors of the Interborough, and that
! four days later he had another talk with
! President Theodore p. Shonts. On the
| latter occasion, he declares, Mr.. Shonts
finally put the situation up to him in
these words:
| You know how I regard la Dor unions
Mr.. Stone, and you know that on five
| railroads with which / am connected
you have 90 per cent organization. I
| think IT Is a good thing elsewhere. but
not here Conditions are different in
New York than In any other city in the
world, and you cannot organize the
| lnterborough lines. / do not want to
| have to fight you, but the policy of the
| board Of directors is against any man
working on the Interborough being
affiliated with a labor union"
! Continuing his discussion OF the case
| Chief Stone said that the same schedule
which he made with August Belmont IN
| 1904 remained in effect. This schedule
calls for SO 30 day of nine hours and a
run Of 10 miles. This is the express
route. Another grievance claimed by
the employees, he said, was the fat re-
| fusal of the company to permit it's men
TO have any insurance excepting in the
Voluntary Relief Association, the organ
izatiOn of the company. The third prin-
cipal agency in bringing about the pres
cnt crisis, he declared. was the rigorous
spy system run by the Interborough 10
detect the presence of employees who
favored unionism.
Extra Trip" the Chief Issue.
! The essential moot point, however,
which precipitated matters was the al
| legged extra trip system" and IL the as
| sertions of the Interborough officials are
to be believed Chief Stone may not ex-
pect much sympathy from New Workers.
| whom he proposes to send about their
| business afoot. This extra trip" was
unqualifedly denied last night by Frank
| Hedley, the president and general
manager Of the Interborough
He declared 1t was one Of Stones ruses
for stirring up sympathy for his cause.
Mr.. Hedey also denied the presence of
strong union spirit in the ranks Of the
| lnterborough men, and said that the
employees were "all a happy family to-
gether" and impervious to the brother
hoods efforts to instill dissension.
II wish TO say that | am closer TO tn.
men in the employ of the Interborough
than Stone is" said Mr.. Hedley. "Iknow
what the men want. and I know they
are working I'm harmony with the off,
cials Of the company. These employees
are satisfied with the conditions under
which they are working. and IL tbev
were not I would certainly be the one
| TO know IT.
The public will remember that II ,vas
this man Stone who caused all the
| trouble in 1906 when the strike tied I'm
the Interborough lines for several davs
do not think the public or our men will
stand for much that this man can do
| or course. Stone brought on that strike
| II was a personal matter with him AT
| that time and the men had very little
cause for complaint. Such as II was. Il
could readily have been remedied nv
conferences with the Interborougb off,
cials. But IL seems to be Stones wish
| TO cause trouble. He put the Brother
hood of Locomotive Engineers behind
that movement. Just as he is seeking TO
do now. He would like to get all the
| marlborough motormen into the union.