The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-08-19

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 committee and Mrs. Mary Scul1y ob- several men who had been acting as interpreters at the meeting to ratify the agreement at Eagles hall late yesterday afternoon were all but mob 1 bed by the indignant women One Fof them dropped the paper he had been reading and sneaked from the
 stage into the crowd in the wings. An other was summarily hustled off the stage and made his escape down back stair case butt not until some of the girls had scratched his face and pulled his hair.
 The strikers were assembled in the
 hall, many being obliged to stand and about 2:30 Mrs Scu1ly arrived with the agreement which DeVer H. War ] ner had signed on behalf of his com pany. She wanted the strikers to ratify the agreement but the Iunga- rian women refused. crying continual l ly in Hungarian. .'no!''
 Emil Steiner who has addressed several meetings of the strikers talked first to the Hungarian women Then Elmer Rosenberg, an officer of the tjoint board of the Cloak Makers Un- 1 ion of New York city tried to talk but the women wouldn't listen to him.
 Ms. Scu1ly was mystif1ed. There's a -coYored gentleman in the woodpile somewhere she said.
 A few minutes afterward it all came out. Andrew Mikewicz, a local Pc fish agitator, was speaking to the Po- fish women when a young girl stood up in the gallery and called out, Mrs. ScuIlyt''
 "An right my dear, keep still a moment until this gentleman f1nishes,'' replied Mrs. Scully.
 ttNo, Mrs. -Scu11y. he is telling these girls wrong He is not. telling them the agreement the way you told it in I English" shouted back the girl.
 '.I understand Hungarian shouted another girl that Steiner didn't tell the agreement right either. He ad- vised the girls not to go back and SO did that Pole I know both lam guages-''
 Pandemonium then broke loose in the hall, all the women talking and chattering at once, in half dozen different languages. Mrs. Scu11y nearly wore out her arm rapptng for. order. with the piece of a chair she had been using for a gave1. When quiet was restored again she burst out:
 tI am only a woroan but if anyone tries Ato put anything over on me I'll lick the man who does it. Every man Interpreter have had here has tried to double cross me. Now I'll run this meeting myself. want one of you girls who can speak the lam guage to help me-
 Nfikewicz laid down his paper and beat a nasty retreat from the stage. Steiner was met a few minutes later by officials of the local Central La bor body who had been summoned by Mrs. Scu1Iy and he was ordered to leave the hall. Mrs. Scully said:
 'I want one of you girls who un- derstands Hungarian and can explain
  men to come on the stage and do so.' A rather pretty and stylishly dressed young girl came forward and took the paper and under Mrs Scu1Iy's direc- ton repeated the terms of the agree rnent- When she had finished they readily ratified it. They had been told by the male speakers, the girls said, that the highest wages they could receive under the agreement was $5.50 per week. When it was sex- plained that this was the lowest wage that would be received and piece workers would be paid as much as they made there was general applause and the Hungarian women readily agreed.
 This same procedure was carried out with other nationalities. Bright and pretty girls were called from the assemb1age to explain the terms of the strike in Italian, Lithuanian, and Po- fish.
 When the unanimous vote was ta- ken 'ratifying the agreement there was cheering loud and strong enough to raise the room. Mrs. Scully ad- dressing the girls regarding the agree ment that had been secured with the Warner Bros. Co., said in part: Now girls, don't forget your un- ion. It is backed by the American Federation of Labor I want every girl to join. You have something no union in this city has ever. had, grie- vance committee to which you can take your troubles if anything is wrong, and have them remedied. "In this agreement with your un- ion you have a wonderful instrument to play on, but play classic music, don't play ragtime. Stick to your or ganization and be fair with yourselves and with the boss and you will find it all clear sailing. Your only hope in living up to it is in your union.
 'I am a worker myself and know how hard it is. I was left a widow without money and with five children to raise and know what it is to be without money to pay the rent and to have to dodge the landlord. That's why I'm in the labor 1novement-be- cause it is the only way we women can get anything. If we don't stand up for our rights the men won't stand up for us. Women organizers have entered the labor movement and left it again because they cannot stand the insults and abuse from men who ought to know better. They cannot stand to be hustled by the police and to be called 'grafters' by others if they lose or settle a strike. Why I have serv- ed nine months in jail for activity in trying to organize women workers<1ike yourselves This life is not an easy one but I am in it to|stay. I am go- ing to stay right here in Bridgeport and organize the other women work CTS and I am going to stay here and help you keep your union going if it takes six months"
 There was much cheering for Mrs ScuIIy when she had finished