Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-01-22
Steel Strikes Effect
Begins Spreading 10
Other Industries
BY the Associated Press,


PITTSBURGH, Jan. 22.-Pa-
ralySis gripped Americas basic
industry today as the strike OF
CIO-United Steel Workers kept
100000 idle for a second day.
The biggest walkout in American
history closed nearly 300 steelmak-
ing and fabricating plants, alumni
mum mills and iron ore mines in %
States. Today its effect was spread
ing to construction, railroads and
public utilities.
The coal industry was affected
slightly, with $500 miners idle al
the Birmingham (Ala) pits of the
Tennessee Coal, Iron g. Railroad Co.
a United States Steel Corp. SUBJ
sidiary. About 1900 Bethlehem
Steel Co. miners were idle at Johns
town, Pa. A coal producers spokes-
man in Pittsburgh said output OF
mines owned by steel companies
were going to the commercial
market.
Production of steel, the bone and
sineW of industry and reconversion
had dwindled to less than S per
cent of capacity, 53-year low. Two
instances of violence flared in Ohio,
but in the main the gigantic stop
page, which started at midnight
Sunday was carried out in complete
good order.
Murray Assails Big Business.
Philip Murray, CIO-USW presi-
dent, said in a radio address last
night that the unions strike in sup
port OF wage increase demands was
Iprecipitated by IAN evil conspiracy
among American big business"
which has set out to destroy labor
unions, to provoke strikes and eco
aomic chaos and mulct the Ameri-
can people through uncontrolled
profits and imitation"
There was no immediate reply
from management. Spokesman for
United States Steel and Republic
steel Corp. refused to comment. but
United States Steel said it might
issue statement later today.
Harold E. StasSen, former Gov
ernor OF Minnesota and a Repub-
lican presidential possibility, assert
ed in a speech here that 1.-The only
prospect of an early settlement of
the strike still rests with the Presi-
dent of the United States"
There was no report OF negotia-
lions between the union and ma ior
steel producers. Management of a
handful of smaller plants agreed to
pay the 1872 cents-an-hour wage
increase suggested by President Tru-
man and accepted by the union.
These companies, including seven in
Pennsylvania and a few others as
far west as California, kept their
plants in operation.
But the total output was small.
The American Iron e. Steel Insti-
tute estimated production yesterday
at $1,000 tons, 40 per cent of capac-
lty and the lowest level since 1898.
when the average weekly rate was
1852 tons.
Across the Nation pickets trudged
their circling paths before gates to
mills where smokeless stacks jutted
stark against the wintry skies. Heavy
snow and near-zero temperatures in
some areas made picketing a chill
job, but the marching men echoed
Mr.. Murray'S words:
We're prepared to 20 through
with this thing, no matter how long
1t takes"
First Effects of Strike.
First effects of the strike on in
dustrieS not directly involved ap-
peared in New York, Indiana and
Pennsylvania. Charles H. Sells, New
York commissioner of public works,
said the bulk of that States postwar
public works program would be de-
ferred because of the steel walkout.
Among projects he said would be de
layed were $4O000,OO0 in contracts
for institutional buildings, $l25, 00O,-
600 to be spent on highways and a
$1O0,000,000 low-rent housing pro-
gram.
At Pittsburgh, 1000 railroad work.
ers and 400 employees on river barges
were furloughed because of declining
steel and coal shipments. Most
large steel mills operate their own
intraplant railroads. and with the
mills idle they had little or no work
to do.
A fuel gas famine appeared avert
ed at Gary, Ind, when Carnegie
Illinois Steel Corp. announced it