The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-16

May RESULT
IN 5 HOUR DAY
Bridgeport Labor Tanglc
Apparently Planned
to That End.
ENTIRE CITY MAY BE
TIED Up TO WIN POINT

Hstn1rPoRr, Conn, July l5.-1ndica-
,ons point tonight to the probability
that within a few days all the Bridge
port factories may be tied up in "A strike
OF far reaching proportions.
The trif,ng internal differences. wholly
within the ranks Of labor which "a few
dsys ago caused the walkout of the struc-
,ural iron workers and the millwrights
employed by the Stewart Construction
Company on Its work OF building the
new Remington Arms factory. now more
than half completed. threaten to involve
no, only a score OF factories holding
sub.contracts from the arms and am
munition company. but other manufac-
tories here In which the same kind of
mechanics and artisans are employed.
Almost the entire day was taken up
with conferences between the union men
themselves and their representatives and
the officials of the Stewart company.
The settlement Of the tense situation
seems TO rest with the machinists em-
ployed at the Remington factories. with
whom the striking millwrights have
allied themselves. Their leader. j. J.
Keppler, was out of town all day, but
they will hold meeting tomorrow
night 20 vote on sympathetic strike.
II they decide tc strike 1t is pre-
dic,ed by the labor leaders that not
only the machinists employed in the
Remington factories and by their sub
contractors but members of the eighteen
allied metal trades throughout the city
will join.
Oficials at the Remington Arms and
Ammunition Company. sister company
OF the Remington L. NJ. Z. Company,
both of which are manufacturing enor-
nous quantities of war munitions for the
Allies and some for the United States
Government, do not hesitate to ascribe
the present labor trouble TO sinister IN
auerces, presumably of German per-
suasion. They couple with this BELIEF
the idea that labor generally. acting on
a we'll laid plan, sees in the situation
chahce to make all Bridgeport an eight
hour city. It~t~.their opinion that the
e,,sls was framed to that end.
Cannot Fix blame.
Remington officials admit that they
cannot point to any one here VINO may
be held responsible for the agitation,
but they cannot otherwise account for
the strike on such "A purely technical
prtteNt. Information was received here
tonight alleging that the country's most
influential labor leaders were behind
The agitation. Promin, nj names were
mentioned in letter and 1t Is on this
and other information that the employ
ers base their belief.
That the labor leaders are endeavoring
TO use the technical strike of the mill
wrights as to whether they shall belong
10 the carpenters or the machinists'
union as a basis for widespread agi-
taton for an eight hour day became
more apparent to-day with the initial
publication Of an eight page paper called
the Labor Leader, which bears in black
type the boxed words: I'VE want eight
hours"
The paper was printed in town and is
said to have 10000 circulation. Mex,
week ii is to be published daily at l cent
copy but to-day II was circulated free.
It is filled with eight hour talk.
with the first issue Of the Labor
Leader" says the sheet editorially, "the
Bridgeport Lodge of the International
Association OF Machinists wishes to in
form all those in sympathy with the
machine shop workers of this locality
that the campaign which has been goinG
IN for the past four months has now
teached a point where something is going
10 b. done that will bring to the machine
shop workers OF this locality the wages
hours and general Improvement in con-
dltlons which the machinists are justly
entitled to-"