Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1919-09-22
THOUSANDS OBEY STRIKE ORDER
Leaders Tell
Facts Behind
Steel Strike

PITTSBURG Sept. 22.-Following
are the twelve demands formulated
by the National committee for Organ
izing the iron and steel workers. fail
ure to win which resulted in the strike
being called:
Right of collective bargaining; re-
| instatement of men discharged for
union activities; an eight hour day;
one days rest in seven; abolition of
| the twenty-four hour shift; increase
in wages sufficient to guarantee
American standards of living; stand
ard scales of wages in all trades and
classifications of workers; double
rate of pay for all overtime, holiday
and Sunday work; check-off system of
collecting union dues and assess
ments; principles of seniority to ap-
Y ply in maintenance, reduction, and
increase of working forces; abolition
of company unions; and abolition Of
physical examinations of applicants
for employment.
The strike order, distributed among
steel workers throughout the country,
reads in part as follows:
The Strike Order.
'The workers in the iron and steel
mills and blast furnaces, not work
ing under union agreements, are re-
quested not to go to work on Sept.
%, and to refuse to resume their en-
ployment until such time as the de-
: mands of the organizations have been
, conceded by the steel corporations. !"
: The slogan of the strikers is to be
modelled on the slogan Of the colon
, lists in 1776; instead of mo taxation
without representation the strikers
cry will be: 'No labor without rep
: resentation." In their reply to Judge
S Gary the union heads said:
"There is one and only one ques-
: tion at issue, and that is the question
: of conference The employees have
= exhausted every avenue of approach
to the corporation for the purpose of
establishing humane and reasonable
methods of dealing with the very vital
problems which affect, their lives their
= homes and their future" This letter
: was signed by John Fitzpatrick, D. J..
; Davis, William Harmon and w. q.
) Foster.
Reply To Wilson.
In their letter to President Wilson,
| explaining their failure to comply
with his request for a postponement
of the strike until after the industrial
conference to be held in Washington
on Oct. 6, the union heads said
"Your request for postponement
, would have been gladly granted were
not for the following facts:
q. Mr.. Gary has asserted that
his men need no trained representa-
tion in presenting their grievances,
notwithstanding that they can nei-
ther economically, by lack Of means,
nor intelligently, by lack of school
ing, cope with him or his representa-
tives.
''2. That ever since the men start
ed to organize a systematic persecu-
tion was instituted, beginning with
discharge and ending with murder,
recalling to us viv'dly the days of
Homestead and the reign of despot-
ism in Russia.
"3. Through the efforts of the
representatives Of the steel industry
officials various localities have de-
MED the men free assembly and free
speech. Instances are too numerous
where meetings have been suppressed,
men arrested, tried on various un-
founded charges, excessive bail re-
quired and cruel punishment impos-
ed, all without warrant in law and
justice.
Meeting Broken Up.
81. AS one of the many examples
in the city of McKeesport, a meet
ing held by the men within their con-
stitutional rights was broken up and
men arrested and thrown into jail
charged with riot and held to the ex-
cessive bail of $4,000 each, while one
of the steel industry, arrested for the
murder of a female speaker at Brack-
enridge, Pa, is being held under bail
of but $4,000. Another patent ex,
ample is Hammond, Ind, where four
defenseless union men were charged
upon and killd by hired detectives of
the steel industry and witnesses in
behalf Of their survivors have been
so intimated and maltreated that the
truth of the killing was suppressed.
"5. Guns and cannon have been
planted in mills, highly charged cleo
trio wires have been strung around
their premises.
"6. Armed men in large numbers
are going about intimidating not only
the workers but everybody in many
communities who show the slightest
indication of sympathy with the men.
I ~. Men have been discharged in
Increasingly large lumSers day by
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