The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-09-30
90 PER CENT ARE FAVOR|NG NATIONAL RAILROAD STRIKE
Trainmen's Leader Advising Workers to Take Wage Cut Passes the Buck
 to Big Four

Chicago, September 29.-Presi- dent w. c. Lee of the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen, tonight said that 1.-the strike vote cast by 90 per cent of the 186,000 members in the recent referendum on the wage reduction should be supported by the grievance committee, a tentative strike order would be issued, effec- tive only when and if the other unions should strike.
 With this parting declaration. W. G. Lee, dispatched 57 general chair men of the unions to their homes tonight with written instructions to call their grievance committees, get their approval or disapproval of the strike vote and report back here next week. That the grievance com nittees will approve the strike was predicted at union headquarters.
 Lee expects to act on the commit tee instructions before the brother hoods of engineers, conductors, en- ginemen and trainmen and ths Switchmen's Union of North Amer lea have completed the count of their 259,0o0 strike ballots which will start here Monday. The strike call, however, he indicated today, will provide for q walkout of the train men whom and if the other unions strike. A walkout of one union un- supported by the others will not be r undertaken.
 That the strike, even if or-
 aered, will never actually take
 place, continued to be the pre-
 vaiIing impression in union cir
 
 ised to call the wnlkout if the
 the committees so direct, he
 bIuntIy told his men in general
 letter on september IF that he
 would be remiss in his duty If he
 failed to point out to them
 that wage and working condi-
 tions established since 1918 were
 the result of . World war such .i as never before known; that
 government reports indicate that 100000 men were out of work;
 that most classes of labor have
 been forced to accept some re-
 auction of wages; that the pay
 increases granted them last year
 by the United States labor board
 WIS based on the increased cost
 of living, and that government
 rcports show a reduction of more
 than 16 per cent in such living
 costs.
 The strike vote was taken on the question of accepting or rejecting the 12 per cent wage cut made July l by the labor board.
 90 Ter Cent Favor strike
 Tabulation of the vote had not heen completed tonight but the bal lots already counted showed from zssy U 5 pes esIt <, z sts's naep Aon every railroad system in the country voted to quit work rather than ac- cept the pay reduction. No system tailed to return less than out or 10 votes for the strike.
 Lees determination to announce his unions stand before the other hrotherhoods complete their ballot count shifts the entire responsibility for the next move in the threatened general strike to the four unions which toog joint vote-Brother hood of Locomotive Engineers, oroer of Railway Conductors. Brothernoou of Locomotive Bremen and Eheihe man and the Switchmen's union oi North America.
 Shopmen Would walk Out
 The affiliated shop crafts' py vote ot 325,000 to 4S,00O, have ai- ready zone on record in favor or strike, put udFo poSNPo bending the decision of the other unions and action of the labor poaro on rules and working conditions which questions are before it, II. As the situation stands tonight II the engineers. conductors, enginemeh and switchmen walk out, the traih- men and shopmen will join them but the first four will have to assume responsibility for the move.