The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1922-07-17
Most Important Organization
Participating in the Strike

Washington, July 16.-The Inter-
national Association of Machinists,
one of the most important of the or
ganizations participating in the rail-
road shopmen's strike, numbers on
it's rolls approximately 25O,0O0 men,
officials declare, of which almost 1OO,-
0C0 are employed in railroad shops
or doing railroad work. The rest are
scattered through various other in
dustries.
The organization is among the old
est of the country, it is claimed, al
though it's present title does not date
further back than 1889. In 1858
groups of skilled blacksmiths and
machinists banded together to form
their first organization. The union
arrived for some years and became a
part of the famous Knights of Labor
when that body was organized, about
fifty years ago.
So important a part did the rail-
road machinists take in that body
that they have become the dominant
factor. In the eighties, the leaders
recalled, when the Knights of Labor
went under the ban, the members
especially in the West, had to change
their names and seek jobs elsewhere
hiding their union membership to
avoid persecution.
The Knights were finally disrupted
and the machinists got along as best
they could until, in 1898, the rail
road machinists in the shops at At
lanta, Ga, met and reorganized.
At the first yearly convention the
machinists representatives from va
rious sections of the country attended
and the name was fixed as The Ma
tional Association of Machinists. The
next year delegates from Canada,
practically the entire country, anc
| elsewhere, attended, the organiza
ton was extended into an interna
t,onal body and the name changed
to the present title.
The membership, composed for the
most part of the highest type Of
skilled mechanics, has always taker
leading part in the railroading, both
in this country and Canada, though tc
little extent in Mexico. While the
various local sections of the unior
have been embroiled in constant
trouble of one sort or another with
the railroad executives, union officials
declared, the present walk-out is only
the second general strike of the en-.
tire body.
The first occurred in 1901, when the
men rebelled against the ten-hour
day and struck from May to Decem-
bcr. The Association counted that
one moral victory, for the men gen
orally never returned to the ten hour
day, the maximum remaining at nine
hours, which several years later was
reduced to eight.
At that time, however, officials said
the organization did not adhere t.
the main principle of the present
strike, that no men should return to
work until agreements paved the way
for the return of all, but the men then
went back to their jobs by local
groups.
However, it was emphatically de-
clared on the first day of the present
strike, that just as the rail executives
have organized into one central body
to lower wages, so will the unions
fight in one organization fo:' the re-
turn to former scales.
While the many sections of the AS
sociation have take( part in a long
list of strikes, local and sectional
long and short, among the most bit
ter and longest were the following
The general strike in 1901, which
lasted eight months; on the Southern
Hallway in the same year, which last.
ed about the same time; on the Union
Pacific in 1902, duration nine months
on the Canadian Pacific, 1903, dura.
tion eight weeks; on the Santa Fe
same year, lasted four years; on the
Erie, 1906, lasted two years; on the
Baltimore and Ohio, 1910, duration
one year; on the Illinois Central.
1911, duration four years; on the
Grand Trunk, duration one and a
half years. Others of duration were
called on the Pennsylvania, the Wa
bash and the Wheeling.
William H. Johnson is Information
al President of the organization, and
with P. j. Conlon, International Vive-
President, will direct the activities of
the strike from Washington head
quarters.