The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-07-17
Labor Battles in 1877

grew steadily worse. BY 1877 the I'M
employed were estimated at 100000
The death of workers from starvation
became a familiar item in the days
news and night after night police sta
lions were thronged by families plead
ing for the shelter of cell for the
night. The employing class took ad-
vantage of the hard times and large
army of unemployed to put over wage
cut after wage cut, which the unions,
greatly weakened by the long-drawn-
out depression, found it almost impos-
sible to resist.
Early in ~ number of the great
railroad corporations, several of which
had only recently cut wages, an
nounced further reductions to go into
effect in the summer. An attempt was
made by rank and file committee or
ganized by young brakeman from
men disconnected with the lack of
fight shown by union representatives
chosen to treat with company officials,
to form secret union of all classes
of rail workers on the three grand
trunk lines to carry out a simulta-
@neous strike against reductions. I'm
fortunately, however, at the last mo-
ment dissension caused the committee
to go to pieces, and the strikes that
broke out from coast to coast were
separate, spontaneous, and morgan
lied.
The first intimation of the violent
struggle that was to spread from the
Atlantic to the Pacific was on the Bal
timore and Ohio road, which had an
nounced 10 per cent cut, the third in
three years, to take effect on July 16.
The men answered by walking out at
Camden Point, Martinsburg and Cum
berland, taking possession of the track
and running freight trains onto sid
ings. The company officials appealed
to the governor of West Virginia for
troops in order to clear the railroad
property of strikers and protect the
scabs running the trains. The call
was promptly answered, but since part
of the state militia that were sent in
fraternized with the strikers, and the
rest found themselves helpless in the
face of the strikers determined stand,
not much was accomplished by this
move. The governor now appealed to
the president of the United States to
put down the disorders, his appeal be-
ing supplemented by a personal one
from the president of the B. G. o. road.
In answer President Hayes issued a
nr0pIa nation oommon d;ror oil etr;I,aro
to retire by noon, July 10, ON pain of
dire penalties, which was completely
ignored by the strikers. who did not let
it interfere in the least with their
plans. In addition, General French, in
command at the Washington Arsenal,
and General Barry from Fort Henry,
were ordered to proceed with all avail
able troops to the threatened points.
This was the first time that the ma
tional government had interfered in a
strike, and the move created immense
excitement among workers turnout the
country.
THE central committee of the B. &
i o. strikers at Baltimore issued a
circular stating the causes for the
strike-that in addition to this being
the third cut in three years, they often
had only Is days work month; that
when the trains were sent into Mar
tinsburg they were kept there four
days and forced to pay their own
board, which amounted to more than
their wages, leaving nothing for the
support of their families; that when
they thus fell into debt their wages
were attached, which, according to
company regulations, meant their i'm
mediate discharge.
BY now the railroad men had been
Joined by large numbers of workers
from the mills and factories OF Balti-
more. When word came on July 20
that the Fifth and Sixth Regiments
of the Maryland National Guards were
to be sent from the city to break the