Montana labor news., 1938-12-29
No Injundions During
Strikes in Montana
lContinued from Page u

- - 49, % 0%I 49,
Big Six Typographical Union of
New York placed the "Butterick
Patterns" on the unfair list and a
fight was made against the patterns
throughout the country. The Liv-
ingston Trades and Labor Council
took an active part in this fight.
The agent of the Butterick could
get no orders anywhere along the
Yellowstone and returned to New
York to report to his company the
extent of the union activity in Mon
tana. The Butterick outfit went
into the federal court in Helena and
secured an injunction from Judge
Hunt enioining all unions in Mon
tana from interfering with the sale
of Butterick patterns. The injunc-
ton was a drastic one, but Butterick
patterns were not purchased in
Montana.
Strains store in Anaconda put in
a large supply of Butterick pat
terms although they knew the goods
were unfair, but they could not sell
them. The Typographical Union of
Anaconda and Strains clashed and
the union found itself in court for
violating the injunction. The court
fight lasted a number of years as
Strain was afraid to testify against
the unions. The case was finally
dismissed, but the court costs to the
local union and the International
was approximately 1890. The late
Senator Walsh and Col. Nolan were
attorneys for the unions.
In 1906, the employees of the tele-
phone company went on a statewide
strike, and the company was de-
clared unfair by every Trade and
Labor Council in the state and by
the convention of the Montana Fed
Grafton of Labor. District court
judges got busy placing injunctions
on the unions. Judge Hunt in the
federal court in Helena placed an
injunction on the Montana Fedora
ton of Labor and its affiliated
unions. Scabs appeared in Ana
conda. Two pickets were arrested
by the u. S. marshals for Interior
ing with scabs; they were taken to
Helena, tried in the federal court,
sentenced to sixty days in Jail, and
fined $500. The day before the
pickets were tried a rich Helena
banker was found guilty of fencing
in forty thousand acres of public
land; he was sentenced by Judge
Hunt to twenty-four hours in jai.
and fined $500. The Jail sentence
was served in the sheriff's parlor
where a party was put on by the
members of the citizens alliance
of Helena-an open shop organiza.
ton. Thus was justice dealt out
in the federal court-twenty-foul
hours in Jail and a $500 fine fol
stealing forty thousand acres o.
public land, while pounding scab;
in the nose in Anaconda brought {
sentence of sixty days and a fine
of $500.
Scab linemen appeared in Butte
and the telephone poles were picket
ed; the U. S. marshal arrested foul
union men for violating the injunc-
ton. The men were tried in the
federal court in Helena. Judge Hunt
found three of them guilty, two
were sentenced to sixty days ano
fined $500 each; the third one, who
was president Of the Butte Miner:
Union, received a sentence of ninety
days and a fine of $1,000. The
fourth picket was acquitted for lack
of evidence, although Judge Hum
informed the mar in open court thai
he was satisfied that he was guilty
of contempt, While the trial was
on, members of the citizens ALI
ance on the streets of Helena were
offering to bet that the men would
receive the sentences which the
judge gave them.
Alexander Fairgrieve, president O.
the Montana Federation of Labor
was enjoined by the courts from
sending letters to unions advising
them of the strike or boycott Of
discussing the same at union meet
ings. Alex, however, found way.
of keeping the unions advised as t,
the strike and boycott activities.
Regardless of injunctions anC
court sentences the fight against tn,
telephone company went ahead
Every person or place of business
that used a phone was declared un
fair. The officials of the company
had to take the phones out them
selves as scabs were not available
A general strike was called in Hell
ena to force all phones out of place.
of business; the strike was woi
within a day. The telephone com
pany gave in after a fight which
lasted a year.
At the end of the last century tn,
employees of the Taft Vale Railwa,
in Wales went on strike, the rail
way company sued the r~ailwaymen'
union, many thousands Of pound
sterling for damages claimed causeC
by the men going on strike. In 1901
the Law Lords, sitting in London
England, the highest court in tn,
British Empire, awarded the rail
road the damages asked and tn,
union had to pay the same to thu