The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-05-31
Winnepeg Force Gut to Bone
by Discharge Of 189 Men,
bers of City Depart
ment.
CONNECTED WITH LABOR
General Strike Now In Effect In To-
ronto, With 235 Factories cIes.
ed Down and 1900
idIe.

[By James T. Kolbert, United Press
Staff Correspondent
WINNIPEG, Man.. May 31-Winni-
pegs police force today consisted OF
nine men.
One hundred eighty-nine officers
were automatically discharged Friday
on refusal to sign an agreement with
the city severing connection with
labor. The policemen had voted ap-
proval of demands in the general
strike here, but had not voted to go
| out themselves. An effort was made
| to have mounted police do the patrol
| ling.
Returned soldiers asked Premier
Norris to put collective bargaining in
the provincial statutes. He was also
asked to withdraw demands on the
police. He promised some action by
eleven o'clock today.
The citizens committee and the
general strike committee heading lhe
two conflicting bodies, today gave
the United Press statements on the
strike as they see 1t. The strikers
insist it is a mere demand for better
wages and the right of collective bar
gaining; the citizens committee
charges an attempt to establish boil
shevism on the continent.
The strikers committee statement
issued on condition it be Qua.sd
exactly, read in part:
eve have offered to both the civ
authorities, provincial authorities and
dominion authorities, our offer Of
settlement which can be brougnt
about through constituted autaJ-ity,
but the dominion authorities state
they will not raise finger to bring
about a settlement until we order
the postmen back to work, which, If
agreed to, the city authorities would
then call upon to release their en-
ployes and if agreed to city authori-
ties would then demand return CT
their employees, all of which agreed
to would break the strike and we
would have no guarantee that the
right of collective bargaining through
the representatives of the organ:za-
tfons which we are striking for
would be assured
The citizens committee said:
"It was Immediately recognized
this was not an ordinary industrial
dispute, but had for it's aims the
establishment Of the so-called soviet
government.
"The committee feels most strong
iy that the present leaders have be-
trayed the cause of labor and are
using the minor dispute as pretext
for leading the workers blindly into
a revolution.
"The citizens of Winnipeg are to-
day more firmly convinced than ever
that this strike cannot be compro-
missed or settled In any way until it
has been clearly established that
there is only one government in Win
nipeg and until the wrong done by
the strikers committee in declaring
a general sympathetic strike has
been righted The citizens are fully
alive to the fact that Winnipeg had
been carefully selected by the boil
shevik leaders as the most favorable
field to stage the initial attack"
An issue was made Of the fact
that wagons delivering necessary
foods were placarded ''by permission
of the strike committee" Strikers
said that was merely to protect the
workers. Opponents said it was
proof of an attempt to show govern,
mental authority.
Toronto's First Day.
TORONTO, Ont, May 31-Toronto
passed through its first day of a gem
eral strike without experiencing, so
far as the mass of its population was
concerned any of the disorder or in
convenience associated with such a
paralysis of industry.
Between 1900 and 5000 union and
non-union workers out of total OF
over 10000 were idle yesterday; 235
factories in the metal trades we're
closed down; fifty shops where gar
CONTINUED On page a.