The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-10-22
LEE EXPLAINS
REASONS FOR
STRIKE CALL
Issues Statement Be-
cause Public Is
Confused.'
BULLETIN.


mately 600 members OF the
Brotherhood of Railroad Train
men. scheduled fer noon TO-DAY
on the International & Great
Northern railroad of Texas, w.
g. Lee, president of the train
men, this morning said:
'<lhe men and committees OF
the Brotherhood on that rail-
road have voted 10 withdraw
from the service, and authority,
as vested in our constitution,
has been given them and the
matter is entirely out of my
hands,"
Cleveland. Ohio, Oct. 22.-(By the
Associated Press. Causes for the
strike of railway workers, set to
begin in general at a. m. on Oct.
80, are enumerated by w. G. Lee,
president of the Brotherhood OF
Railroad Trainmen, in a statement
to the Associated Press today.
The statement was issued, Mr.
Lee explained, because the public
is rather confused, as TO its causes,
some believing it is for higher
wages.
Three Causes.
Three causes were ascribed by
Mr.. Lee:
% The wage reduction of July
(2) Proposed further reductions.
CD Propos elimination of
rules which would mean still fur
ther reductions.
The three local brotherhood
chiefs, MIR. Lee of the Trainmen,
Warren S. Stone of the Brother
hood of Locomotive Engineers and
w. S. Carter of the Brotherhood of
Locomotive Firemen and Engine
men, while preparing to obey the
citation to appear before the rail-
road labor board in Chicago next
Wednesday, were also going ahead
with plans TO carry out the strike.
L. E. Sheppard, president of the
Order Of hallway Conductors, ar
rived last night
Not fOr More Wages.
Mr.. Lee statement as 10 the
causes OF the strike follows:
The public is rather confused
strike There is belief on the part
OF some that the strike is for hIgn-
er wages and is not understood TO
be demonstration against wage
reduction which has been added
propositions further to reduce
wages ana eliminate rules wnIcn
would mean stlll further reductions.
Railroad transportation en-
ployes, even when peak wages wei e
paid, did not receive advanced
wages in keeping with the increas-
ed living costs. The daily rate paid
transportation men was fixed for
all classes in the United States in
1913 and regardless of the increaS-
ed cost of living, there were no in
creased wages for these employees
until Jan. l, 1918, and only then
after a most searching investiga-
ton had been made by the Lane
commission to determine what
should be the reasOnableness of
wages paid transportation en-
ployes. This commission reported
that wages were adequate and, con
trary TO public opinion, did not
measure up with wages paid in 9th
er classes of service.
Cites Pay Figures.
THE rate of a freight brakeman
between Chicago and New York
was $2.67 day, which was referred
TO by the railways in their public
ity campaigns as a 'princely wage
and the public naturally supposlng
that a business representing so
much as the railway business would
tell the truth, accepted the railway
statement without question. 1t
does not take long to determine
how much could be earned in a
month of 80 days at a rate of $2-67
per day. Until Jan. l, 1918, $801O
was the princely wage some fifty
odd thousand railroad men receiv-
ed, in what is known as the east
ern territory Other wages were in
(Copti1ua6 on para Three !