The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-08-07
WORRIED 0vEgg<:<
LABOR S's lion
Government Alarmed at Un-
rest of Workmen, Which
Threatens to Delay
War Work.
lSTRIKES IN ALL PARTS
High Cost Of Living and War Profits
Enjoyed by 9th ers, is the
Cause Of the
Turmoil.
|STRIKES IN ALL PARTS

UNITED Press Leased Wire Service.]
WASHINGTON. Aug. THE labor
situation In the United States is
causing the government alarm. War
work Is threatened to such point
that a concerted campaign was
started today to dispel unrest among
the workers.
War, navy and labor departments
have named committee to study
adjustment of wage schedules in
navy yards, arsena1s and other gov
ernment works, to bring about salts
factory schedules.
This committee, Including Assist
ant Secretary of the Navy Roosevelt,
Walter Lippmann and William Black
man, are to report their findings to
the government August "a. Employees
will then have an opportunity to sub
nit appeals from recon mendation of
the committee. BY September !, 1t
Is hoped all difficulty will have been
settled.
The high cost of living and a de-
termination to share in war profits
are responsible for the labor unrest,
officials state.
Some Of the principal labor diff
culties in the country today are:
Twelve thousand metal trades
unionists striking for higher wages
in over thirty ship yards around New
York
Mine strikes or lockouts in Mon
tana, Arizona, New Mexico, Pennsyl-
! Yania and Kenlucky.
Troubles In lumber districts In
Washington state
Telegraphers demands on Rock
Island railroad; Kansas City, Mexico
and Orient railroad; New Haven sys-
tenn, and telegraphers' strike on the
M. x. and T.
Threatened strike Of $500 men on
Southern Pacific; mediation to be
tried.
Number of strikes in textile mills
in the south and east.
Summer is usually a season of few
labor difficulties. This year, despite
the war demands for utmost co-opera-
tion between labor and capital,
strikes and threatened walkouts have
been out of all proportion.
Effort to Mediate.
BUTTE. Mont. Aug. THE first
effort to mediate the street car strike
which has paralyzed city transporta-
ton here since Saturday morning, be-
gan today when committee COM
posed Of Mayor w. H. Maloney, Coun-
ty Commissioner Otto Simonson, Scott
Stevens, president Of the street car
mems union; former United States
Senator w. A. Clark, principal owner
of the street car system and G.. C.
Willis, secretary of the employers as
sociation, met to discuss terms of set
tlement of the strike.
The committee will report tonight.
Outside this mediation effort,
Butte's labor situation was unchanged
today. The coroner's jury after a
three day inquest formally reported
that Frank Little came 10 his death
by hanging at the hands of parties I'M
known to the jury William Sullivan,
attorney for the Industrial Workers
Of the World, failed to appear at the
inquest, although he was invited to
present any evidence he might have.
The city was quiet today, although
between 10000 and $4,000 men were
on strike. Union leaders declared no
violence would be permitted. as this
was exactly what the mining COM
panies wanted, so they would have an
excuse to ask for troops.
General Strike Of |. w. w.
CHICAGO, Aug. 7.-Sentiment is
growing for a general strike of I. w.
WIS according to VIM. d. Haywood,
general treasurer and secretary of the
organization, who today declared that
harvest hands in South Dakota have
been called out and that S5 per cent
on the lumber industry in the north
west is tied up as a result OF walk
outs. Haywood refused to state how
many would be affected in case of n
general strike, but said that more than
75,UOO are out now.
II have received kilograms from
all parts of the country endorsing a
general strike in retaliation for the
lynching Of Frank Little" said Hay
wood
Haywood declared that a general
strike could be accomplished only by
the separate branches of the /. w. w.
striking individually,