The Holbrook news., 1915-10-29

was to oust the Mexican employees
 from the district. During the ensu-
 ing two weeks the Federation organ
 izers adopted bolder methods and by
 importuning, harrassing and persecut-
 ing the men, succeeded in forming a
 local organization of considerable
 strength Not until then did the com
 panies take active measures by dis
 charging certain ringleaders who
 were guilty of fragrant breaches of dis
 cipline.
 On September 11th two letters with
 demands from the agitators for con-
 ference with the Western Federation
 of Miners were dispatched to each
 of the three mine company managers.
 The old employees of the com
 panies had submitted detailed
 grievances to the managers.
 The trouble was precipitated on September 11th through the sole die tation of the Western Federation of Miners, which, acting under the lead ership of Guy B. Miller, called 8 general strike in the district. At Il D. m. the employees in the mines, con centrators and smelters of the Ar1- zona Copper company were called out or forced to leave. On the following morning the employees of the Arizona and Shannon companies at Clifton were ordered to cease work, and in the afternoon the smelters of the two companies at Clifton were closed down. Each and every order came from the Western Federation of Miners. Such procedure as ac- companies outlawry attended the
 closing of the plants. Opportunity was not accorded to tap matte out If the furnaces; to finish blowing the charges then in the converters. Ob- stacles were raised by the Fedora tion against efforts of the companies either to protect their properties or to save them from destruction.
 The Federation stationed pickets in and around the plants. These pickets denied entrance even to of ficers of the companies and watch men regularly employed by the com panies were run off. The companies were thus forced to accept the sit uation created by the Western Fed eration, and in order to meet it in the only way left open, the plants were surrendered into the care of the sheriff
 The companies managers deter mined to appeal to their old em- ployes and agreed to meet on Sept. IT committee representing the em- ployes of the Arizona Copper com pany. The committee which re- sponded admitted that a majority of its members was chosen at meetings of the Western Federation. It was therefore a Western Federation com mittee acting under explicit instrlIc- tions from Federation organizers. Manager Carmichael, of the Arizona told the committee that be- fore a conference could be held, the employees would have to send a rep resentative body of men selected fairly from the ranks of former trust ed employees. Thereafter meetings organized and conducted by the West ern Federation were held and a con- mittee made up in many instances of officers and leaders of the Western Federation were chosen.
 The mining company managers previously had made it clear that they were eager to confer with com m.ttees which were not hand-picked by the Western Federation. Word was received on Sept. 20 that con- mittees had been named and a joint conference was agreed upon in spite of the fact that the mine managers were convinced that :iey were being deceived and the Western Fedora -ion was indeed in complete control. President Mover of the Western Fed eration arrived in camp from Den yer on Sept. 24, thus finally and putting the Western Fed eration brand upon the acts and 1oings of the strikers and their com nittees- Mover arranged so-called mass meetings at which resolutions were adopted. At one of these meet ngs Federation leader publicly announced that the mass meeting movement was merely little orange u1ce in the castor oil to be admin stered to the companies by the western Federation of Miners
 A joint meeting was arranged on Sept. 25, at which the resolutions adopted at the Federation mass mee,- lngs were read. These resolutions called for, amoLg other things. the adoption of wage scale which would put the Detroit Copper Company and -he Shan Copper company out of business permanently and reduce the If of the A-4zona Copper company possibly fifty per cent. The joint