Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-07
STRIKE MAY NOT
HURT DC SERVICE
Wire Companies Predict Lit
tie Effect Here of Threaten
ed General Walkout.
STATEMENTS ARE MADE

old pToDdDly Will not De seriously al
fected in the event of national
strike called by the Commercial
Photographers Union. Local officials of
the Western Union, the Postal Tele-
graph Company and the Chesapeake
and Potomac Telephone Company
made statements to this effect today
Officials of the Western Union Com
pany, upon which it is anticipated
the strike will first be called. mini
mize the danger of the strike, de-
claring that they relied upon the 10y
atty of their employees and that only
a small number would be affected in
the District in any event.
Expects No Trouble Here.
I'VE don't anticipate a ripple here"
said General Supt. Taft of the local
Western Union offices. 1.-The situation
is now serene and normal. The trans
mission of messages is normal. If any
of our men should go out in the event
of the calling of a strike there will
only be an infinitesimal number COM
pared with the number of our en-
ployes."
Mr.. Taft declared that the number of
Commercial Telegrapbers' Union men
in the local Western Union office is
small. although he was unable to give
lHc SAdCl Income Oh messages
from the strike center in the south
was normal, the general superintend-
ent stated, indicating to him that the
strike there was not SO serious as
claimed. since the District Office is a
sort of Geographic barometer, being a
big relay center for messages from the
near south.
w. q. Seen as Storm Center.
The Western Union office here prob
ably~will be the storm center of any
strike called here, it is anticipated
1t is generally understood that the
Postal Telegraph Company will not
be touched on strike order, as it is
believed that this company met the
full wishes of the Commercial Teleg-
raphers' Union by recognizing that
body. Officials of the local Office of
the Postal company do not expect a
strike to be called upon their COM
pany.
Efforts to get exact figures as to
the membership of the Commercial
Union in the various local telegraph
offices led to dubious results. as
neither side was ready with even ap-
proximate figures.
Not to Affect Phone Service.
Telephone service in the District
will be affected in no way by the strike,
according to c. T. C1aggett, division
manager of the local office of the
Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone
Company, for the simple reason that
there is no labor union among the en-
ployes of the telephone company here
The local office speaks for the terri
tory of the American Telephone Com
pany included in the District and
nearby sections of Virginia and Mary
land
Press associations and brokers prob
ably will not be affected by any
strike called, although one Of the
press associations has a large mem
bership among its telegraphers of
Commercial Telegraph Union men.
Workers in this Office, however, de-
clared that the strike. if called, will
not affect them. I'VE are not in
volved," one of these men said today.
Postal Company's Attitude.
The local office of the Postal Tele-
graph Company is planning to take
care of any Commercial Photographers
Union men who may strike at the To-
cal office of the Western Union Com
pany in the event the national strike
is called. This is pointed to as force
full indication of the security felt by
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