New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-03-29
Acts to Prevent Any Inter-
ruption in Completion
of Contracts
Abandonment and
Strikes Feared
Labor To Be Shifted from
Less Important Tasks if
Need Arises

Threatened interruption Of millions
OF dollars worth of construction work
on the new subways, through strikes
and the abandonment Of contracts be-
cause Of the high prices of materials
led Mayor Mitchell yesterday TO appoint
an emergency mobilization board to
shift labor from less important public
works to the subways should the need
arise. The Mayors action followed a
long conference at the City Hall be-
tween the members of the Public Ser
vice Commission and the city authori-
| ties.
Many subway contractors have re-
Gently appealed to the Public Service
Commission for relief from the unusual
conditions. Laborors struck on a new
section in Williamsburg recently, and
yesterday half the men employed by
the Degnon Contracting Company failed
| to report for work on another section
in Brooklyn. Many contracts were
drawn a year ago and the laborers are
becoming dissatisfied with the wages.
Bill To BE Pushed
As a matter Of preparedness, it was
decided yesterday to push the bill now
before the Legislature TO allow the
commission to take over and complete
the work on the new subways wherever
the conditions might warrant 1t. Fol-
lowing the conference, Oscar S. Straus,
chairman of the commission, notified
| F. J. MacIsaac, president of the Cen
eral Contractors Association, of 81
] Chambers Street, 70 that effect. Mr..
! MacIsaac had appealed TO the commits
sion on behalf of some of the con-
| tractors, contendng that they were
| losing money on their contracts.
Mayor Mitchell issued this statement
after the gathering:
"The city is faced with the possibility
of grave emergencies, growing out OF
war conditions, in prosecuting impor-
tant physical public works. AS a re-
suit of my conference with the Public
| Service Commission this morning 1t is
clear that the prosecution of subway
construction requires the immediate and
complete cooperation of the city gov
eminent. IL is imperative that an order
/ of urgency be established, so that all
! available labor shall be used on the
most important work without having to
/ compete with other public work less
urgent.
at il also imperative that the stats,
labor and plant controlled by city de-
partments and public service corpora
/ tons should be capable Of immediate
mobilization. IL is also entirely pos
sible that at a later date there will be
such curtaiment of physical work gen.
orally as TO produce conditions of I'M
employment The city government can
not look upon this possibility with un-
concern, and one of the results of de-
! ferring less pressing public work now
/ will be to enable the city to alleviate
unemployment conditions should they
later arise.
Names a Board
"To handle this situation have asked
these public officials TO serve as Pub
lie Works Mobilization Board until
! further notice:
/ Public Service Commissioners Henry
| W. Hodge and Travis II. Whitney, Rob-
ert Ridgeway, engineer, and Daniel L.
Turner, acting chief engineer, Public
Service Commission; J. Waldo Smith,
chief engineer, Board of Water Supply;
W. W. Brush, department chief engi-
neer, Department of Water Supply, Gas
and Electricity; +. A. Byrne, acting
chief engineer, Department of Plant
and Structures; Amos Schaefer, consult
ing engineer, Manhattan; George w.
Tilson, consulting engineer Brooklyn;
Clifford B. Moore, consulting engineer,
| Queens; J. W. S. Bennett, consulting
engineer, The Bronx; Nelson p. Lewis,
chief engineer, Board of Estimate;
Leonard NJ Wallstein, Commissioner OF
Accounts; F. Carter Childs, secretary.
Department of Plant and Structures;
Charles W. Stamford, chief engineer.
Department of Docks and Ferries; Put.
nam A. Bates, electrical engineer; John
r. Healy, Inspector OF Combustibles,
and Edgar V. 0Daniel, fourth deputy
/ OF the Police Department.
81 am asking this board TO list all
physical public works projected by the
Public Service Commission, the city
government and the Board of Water
! Cupplv. RI Jatarpnipo thai, nrdar ~