Rensselaer Republican, Volume 22, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 May 1890 — LABOR'S DEMANDS. [ARTICLE]

LABOR'S DEMANDS.

THE FIRST OF MAY AND THE EIGHT HOUR DAY. Notable Demonstration* all over the World.—Peace at all Points.—Workmen Everywhere Moving to Better their Condition. CHICAGO. The procession (on May 1, in the interest of the eight hour day) started at noon and was witnessed by 500,000 people. Everywhere, as far as the eye can see, says a dispatch, the stars and stripes float, humanity in endless line is keeping step to the spirited music of brass bands, drum and file corps, marching, celebrating May day. Chicago is not on a strike, but celebrating, cheering, encouraging organized regulated labor. The streets are crowded everywhere; two-thirds of the population is out in gala Attire. The Lake front appears to be a vast picnic ground. Lunch baskets and lunchers are to be seen everywhere. The crowd is good natured; no ruffianism is found anywhere. Fully a hundred thousand persons are in the procession, headed ,by a platoon of 150 police. All nationalities and trades are represented. Many di visions hove gaudily decorated floats in the ranks representing members of the craft pursuing their daily occupation. There is no break or hitch in the procession. after 1 o’clock the first'divisions of the monster parade reached the Lake front, taking up the places reserved for the paraders. Three stands erected served for the leaders of the labor movement and thespeakers. It was three o’clock bofore the parade was over, and the monster meeting called to order prior to the opening exercises. The mass meeting was presided over by Mayor Cregier. Addresses were made by Tuley, Altgeld, Prendergrast, Tuthill, Congressman Lawler, and other prominent speakers. The carpenters’ strike was declared off on Xho 22d, by an agreement and compromisa. ST. LOUIS. Fully 25,000 men were in line, and was made up from all classes of trade. At the third annual Convention of the American Federation of Labor, held in St. Louis lsbcember 11 to 15,1883, resolutions were adopted naming May 1 as the d ate for the monster demonstration in favor of *n eight-hour day, but it was then in tended that all trades in the Federation ihould simultaneously demand the eighthour day. At the Boston convention, held last year, the action of the St. Louis convention was reaffirmed, but it was decided that the carpenters and building trades make the initial fight, the cprogram being to fight out the issue a trade at a time. St. Louis carpenters are now working eight hours per day at 35 cents per hour, and it is therefore probable that the planing mill men will take the initiative here. Trouble with the mill men would amount to a practical tying up of the building trades. It is known that today’s parade will be immediately followed oy active measures to secure the enforcement of the eight-hour limitation, MILWAUKEE. In Milwaukee the demand of the union carpenters for the adoption of the eighthour system Was not coupled with a demand for increased wages, and as the men were willing to accept eight hours’ pay for eight hours’ work, the movement has met with no strong opposition on the part of their employers. Although the Contracting Carpenters’Association declined to formally declare in favor of eight hours, many of the individual members of the association, including the President, have announced that they will conform to the wishes of tbs men. Those who have taken this stand include the leading contractors in the city, and the indications are that if any striking iB done by the Milwaukee carpenters it wiil be in cases where individual contracr* tors insist on retaining the ten-hour sys' tern • The masons’ and bricklayers’ union hasrfesolved to assist the carpenters by stopping work on all buildings under contract by men who refuse to accede to the demands of the unions. The average pay of a carpenter in this city is 22 cents an hour, and under the eight-hour system the men will receive $1.76 per day instead of $2.20, heretofore. MINNEAPOLIS. The eight hour day agitation is not likely to cause much trouble in this city. There was no parade, but a mass meeting was held at night.

KANSAS CITY. Kansas City is a non union town—notoriously so. Consequently there has been nearly no agitation at all of the eight hour question and there is practically no pros pect of the occurrence of strikes among the various traces. The Union tailors—a minority of the whole number -made a demand afew days ago for the eight hour day and as yet have received no response to it from their employers. They may strike. The packing house employes are called to meet, to form a union for the purpose of agitating the eight hour question . At a preliminary meeting Monday night only 300 signatures were obtained to a document pledging the subscribers to join the proposed union. It is not believed the organization will gather in over 1,500 out of 4,500 employes. The carpenters are practically unorganized and there is no prospeot of any strike in that trade. There was no May day demonstration here. The unions are able to muster so few compared to the whole number of workingmen (hat no demonstration wmsorem talked of.

BOSTON. The strike of the carpenters of this city for an eight hour work day was formally inaugurated Thursday morning. About 1,800 men are out and of this number 560 are new recruits, who Joined too ranks of the disaffected within the past day. It is estimated there are 2,000 men in the dty who have been granted eight hours by about 100 firms who are notmombers of the Master Builders’ Association. The men !n continuing at wsrk. An enthusiasticmeeting of eighty strikers was held Thursday forenoon to celebraie the institution of the eight-hour movement. Addresses

weAe made by several labor leaders, and the men were pleased with the state a affairs. A number of members of the Builders’ Association said to a reportei Thursday morningthat the strike was of much smaller dimensions than expected. will never secure their demands from th e Builders’ Association, and that this move by the jnen will have the effect of breaking up the Carpenters’ Union. - i PHILADELPHIA; ‘ The journ eymetr carpenters of this city went on a strike Thursday morning, as they had previously announced they would do. Their demand is for a nine hour work ing day with pay at 35 cents per hour, she present union rate of wages is 30 cents per hour. A majority of the master carpenters at a meeting Tuesday night, decided to resist the demands of the men for an increase. A few, however, including John Wanamaker, who employes 60 men, and Allen B. Rooke, a prominent builder who haa 175 carpenters on his rolls, notified their men several days ago that begin ning May 1 their wages would be increased to $3,15 per day. The number of men thus affected is something over 500.

CINCINNATI. This city is happily free from any labor troubles of any considerable magnitude. "The only thing that can be called trouble for to-day is a demand for 10 per cent, increase in wages by bench molders. This will affect about 500 men. There has heen no organized movement—at least) none made public—for securing any ohange in the hours of labor or of wages, except as above stated. j L-- NEW TOBK. —The city has been very quiet to-day find 7 no one would imagine it was a day decided upon as the greatest strike in the annals of labor. The American Federation of Labor are gayly decorated with banners and inscriptions referring to the eight-hour law. This is practically the only demon-\ stration 'to-'day,r_ VIENNA, AUSTRIA. -Despite the belief that the labor demonstration in this city would be attended by great disorders there was no disturbance whatever. There were no street parades, but meet- 1 ings were held in various halls, attended j by the larger portion of the working men in the city. No afternoon papers were’ issued as the printers are all taking part in ' the May day fetes. The strike movement in the provinces is spreading. It is calcuJ lated that throughout Austria and Hungary 1,000,000 men have already struck or threat en to strike.

BERLIN. Nothing of an untoward character occurred in connection with the demonstra-' tion by working men, except the arrest of one man who was detected by the police in the act of hoisting a red flag upon a telegraph pole. Work is proceeding in the usual manner in Munster, Wiesbaden, Strasburg, Nuremberg, Stettin, Dortmund, Neukirchen, Spandau and Zurickan. A few of the workmen in Leipsic and Halle ( went out on a Btrike but amajority of them were not in favor of making any demonstration, and they went to work Thursday morning as on an ordinary day. Two hundred and sixteen of the proprietors of the smaller manufactories closed their establishments and gave all their employes a holiday. * IN PRANCE. Dispatches from Marieilles, Bordeaux, Nancy, Rousaux and Lille say that no disturbances have occurred in these places and that tranquility prevails in the streets. There was no disturbance in Paris. The central quarters wear their usual aspect The shops throughout the city, with the exception of those devoted- to the sal6 of fire-arms and ammunition, are open and business being carried on as usual. The gas men and gas-stokers inaugurated tlieir strike Thursday. A large deputation of workingmen went to the Chamber of Deputies this afternoon and presented a petition asking that the Chamber makeeTght hours a legal’ day’s work. Large gathered on tne thoroughfares in the vicinity of the Chaim, bers completely blocking them. The cavalry, which is doing special duty in the city, quietly cleared the way for the deputation to proceed.

IN AUSTRIA. The labor demonstration at Pesth was marred by a scene of bloodshed. Early Thursday morning a large number of workmen gathered in front of one of the rolling mills. At first the men were order, ly enough, but, under the incitement of agitators, they became aroused and bitterly denounced the alleged tyranny of their employers. Finally they lost all selfcontrol and engaged in riotous demonstrations, which the police were powerless to quiet. Military assistance was summoned and a body of troops promptly appeared on the ground with fixed bayonets. The mob was ordered to disperse and upon their refusing to obey the troops charged. The crowd broke and fled in all directions, but not before many of the rioters had been pierced by the bayonets of the soldier-. The mill where the trouble occurred remains open and work is going on as usual*

IS ENGLAND. Five hundred disorderly men gathered on the Thames embankment Thursday morning, bent on making some demonstra. tion. A force of 2,500 police was on hand, however, and the mob was cowed by .tbeir presence. Dispatches from all continental capitals except Paris report everything quiet 1 . There is much discontent hero over the restriction of the right of parade imposed on the workingmen. The Royal Courts on the Strand and the Bank England, are guarded by troops.

is SPAIN. The reports received at Madrid concerning the May Day demonstration, showed that tranquillity prevailed throughout the provinces. The strikes in Valencia, however, are spreading. The employes in ail the trades there are Joining in the movement for the establishment of an eight hoar working day. is itaiA. and in tbe principal Cities and towns of Italy Thusday. Dispatches from parts of the oouhtry showed that order is being maintained.