The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-06-16
SILK SOON WITHOUT
WEAVERS, He SAYS
Manufacturer Asserts Machines
Arc Being Perfected to
Displace Them.
HEARING IN PATTERSON
Would Blow Up Mill to End
strike. |. w. w. Leader \
Tells Commission.
HEARING IN PATTERSON

PATERSON. y. J., June l5.--"Judging
~ the progress that IL now being made
n perfcctng the mechanical working Of
s,.k looms. II II only "a question OF time
when silk weavers will no longer be re-
CURED
This statement was made by Henry
poh.rtv j.. Of the Henry Doherty Silk
COMPANY to the United States Commission
on Industrial Relations which began a two
days inquiry at the City Hall here to-day
mo conditions In the silk industry in
this. the "Slk city"
Much % the proceedings dealt with the
great Paterson strike OF 1918. which lasted
more than tive months and entailed a loss
Of millions OF dollars. Adolph Lessig,
Paterson organizer OF the I. w. w, which
engineered the strike, who IL now secre-
tary Of the National Union Of Textile
Workers. created more or less OF a stir
by replying to a question put by William
o. Thompson. counsel for the commission,
,ha, III a strike could be won by blowing
up a MILF his organizatlon would sane
ton Il.
Doherty testified that at this time the
elk looms are so per cent. efficient 4
weaver works only when a loom Is stand
ING stll. he said. and that means only
about two hours OF actual work each day.
H. said that before the strike his COM
pany offered to turn over TO it's employees
its mills at Lake View and Paterson and
lei them share In the profits II the COM
pany was allowed 6 per cent. on its capital
invested The employees tried II for "a
while, no said, but didn't like the system
and went back TO the old order OF things
Doherty said that before the strike the
four loom men were making big money
and the first Indication of trouble came
when the two loom hands demanded the
end Of the four loom system.
81 believe" he said. that this com
mission or the Government should fix n
uniform scale OF wages, and this would
do away with much OF the present
trouble. My father and favor the eight
hour work day, providing II can be made
effective all over the country"
Doherty asserted that the average
wages in his firms mill from the high
est to the lowest amounts TO SIC a week.
Adolph told the investigators that the
l. ". ". adheren,s had 1000 adheren,s
in the strike, but now has an actual
membership OF only l,400. Asked II he
coIusellcd the blowing up Of mills during
the labor struggle. the witness replied;
There was no need of any action Of
tlat kind then"
Ltssig said that the workers lost tho
strike, but are now "passively resisting
b. Stacking up in their work.
Isn't I. the policy of the |. W. W. TO
destroy or make poor or inferior grade
OF silE"' he was asked.
The l. W. w. doesn't hesitate to say
that this Is so." was the response. "Other
organizations also do 1t. but they deny
that they do
Lessig said that the cause OF the strike
was overwork and underpay. lie said
that as a result of the strike some of the
workers are getting shorter hours.
Thomas Morgan. second vice-president OF
tle Textile Workers Of America said:
''rhe chief reason for the strike was
-he unrest among the foreign element.
Twenty years ago so per cent. of workers
IN the silk industry were English speak
ing. To-day the great majority ar.
Italians. Hebrews, Armenians and SyrianH.
only IL per cent. OF the weavers to-day
are English speaking"
The commission will meet again this
morning