The Connecticut labor press. (New Haven, Conn.) 191?-1921, 1919-11-15
ORGANIZER OF
NINE WORKERS
IN NEW HAVEN
J. w. Brown, Also Representing
Steel and Iron Industry,
Visits This State.
WAS ALSO IN BRIDGEPORT
Communicates With Secretary
Reilly and Will Address New
Haven Trades Council.

T. w. Brown, national organizer Of
the United Mine Workers OF America
and also representing the national com
rr1ittee organizing the steel and iron in
dustry with headquarters at the Quincy
House in Boston, was in New Haven
on Sunday night trying to get some in
formation about organized labor here
He had hard luck at first as he went to
Trades Council Hall, where there was
to be an address by Socialist orator.
There were not enough people present
to have meeting so there was no
address. Mr.. Brown asked some of the
few present about how he could com
municate with some of the influential
labor leaders in the city and as those
who were present were not connected
with any organization Mr.. Brown was
unable to get any information. This
gave him poor opinion of New Haven
as an organized labor center but he was
finally put on the right track by Louis
CominsLy, a delegate to the Trades
Council from the Printing Pressmen's s
Union.
Mr.. Brown was told he might find
some one at the Hotel Volk and he was
informed, as to where he might find
President Ornburn and Secretary Reilly
of the Trades Council From New
Haven he went to Bridgeport and later
he wrote from Boston to Secretary
Reilly, acknowledging communication
from the secretary in regard to the
meeting nights of the Trades Council.
Mr.. Brown will come to New Haven
next Thursday night and, address the
meeting of the Trades Council. He
wrote that this is a critical time with
the iron and steel workers and they
needed all the assistance they could get.
John III. DeYoung of the national
committee for organizing the iron and
steel workers sends the following re-
port from Chicago:
milwaukee has a few highly paid
men some of whom are influenced by
company officials. Some few of them
are at work but the great majority will
stick No report that many have rel
turned. - .@ o.
"Waukegan has some $50 at work
with the original 1000 or more who
came out first all out yet The leaders
there are wonderful boys. We can de-
pend on the people there. ''
"A long story could be made of the
efforts of the company to get the men
back at the Marks plant at Evanston,
as at other points. After meeting last
Sunday night at which the men voted to
stick, some 20 who had been scabbing
came out and said they would stay out.
."DeKalk is holding we'll with most
of the men out working at other work
SO they can get along indefinitely.
"At Sterling is almost similar situa-
ton. The mill is very we'll tied up with
1000 men at least out, very few work
ing. 49,.
has been tied up II weeks. There are
perhaps 100 at work with over 1000 out.
an Elwood 1900 men out. They
have been out since the 22nd of Sep
tember and to be frank about it, we
did not know it until last Saturday.
They walked out, stayed out and never
even asked for speaker or aid. Some
spirit All the city officials are with the
BOYS in this town. Am sending Mother
Jones there Monday.
"In Joliet we have a fine spirit. While
there is some work" going on in the
mill, the productive end is practically
nil.
"In South Chicago they have over
1000 negroes, $50 of whom, were never
in the mills before. They might be
making $50 production there. The men
are holding out in good shape
men, probably more, out at the Stand
ard Steel Car Company.
"At East Chicago the Hubbard Steel
has few men at work with about 1000
out.
'The presence of the militia at In
diana Harbor is, of course, used to the
limit against us. The independent mills
there are making some bluff but no
steel worth talking of. We shall hold
strong there in any event, and 1t the
militia will get out or give us fair
chance, we can draw still more men
out.
Gary is holding out well. Picketing
on a satisfactory basis is difficult under
martial law, of course, and some do
clip in. But those whom we are able
to meet by meetings are pretty apt to
quit scabbing and join the great rank
of the men who are unwavering. There
is a great solid block determined to stick
till this thing is over. There are lot
of negroes among the strike-breakers
and a few whites brought in from other
sections.
81 have figured the whole district out
as carefully as possible and find that the
entire district produced less than 79o of
its normal steel output during the past
week. I regret that | cannot get accur-
ate information as to how much of this
steel produced has already been scrap
ped or will eventually be found unfit
for use and end up in some scrap pile;
/ am sure, however that the percentage
of scrap runs very high in what is turn
ed out. l have told you both the best
and worst SO that you can see that. as
a business proposition, we are in fine