Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 22, Number 99, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 August 1901 — LAW BAN ON PICKETS. [ARTICLE]

LAW BAN ON PICKETS.

UNION MEN ENJOINED FROM ACTING AS SENTINELS. ■ I ' Restraining: Order Taken ths Striking Machinists by a Chicago Firm—Action Commented Upon by Leaders on Both Sides of Controversy. For the first time in Chicago since the famous Debs injunction during the great strike of the American Railway Union a similar writ was issued Friday by a federal judge, preventing the strikers from interfering with the operation of business. Judge Kohlsaat, sitting in the United* States District Court, issued an injunction against the strikers who are carrying on the war against certain Chicago - machine manufacturers. The writ was issued at the request of W. J. Calhoun, of the firm of Pam, Calhoun & Glennon, representing the Allis-Chalmers Company. This writ is to remain effective until the court has oppoytunjty to decide whether it should be made permanent. Judge Kohlsaat will set a date for the hearing of arguments on this point. The injunction is directed against the National Association of ironworkers, th» ' Iron Molders of North America, the Pat-tern-Makers’ Association and the various officers and members of those organizations. The mption for an injunction as presented by Calhoun requested thgt the striking molders and machinists be enjoined from “a continuous and persistent picketing of the shops and plant of the Allis-Chalmers Company, accompanied by the incidental ‘slugging’ of nonunion employes and otherwise interfering with the operation of the company’s' plant.” “This is the first time in Chicago that the federal courts have been appealed to since the big Debs strike,” said W. J. Chalmers. “The reason we appealed to Judge Kohlsaat is because we cannot get protection in justice courts. Politics seems to be intrenched behind justice court cag.es, and the assaulting or intimldatioh of strikers are not taken care of as they should be, in fact they are protected. Yesterday five men were beaten at the Allis-Chalmers plant. Hardly a day passes that men are. not knocked down and beaten up there. In view of these facts, we could see no other thing to do but to appeal to the court of highest jurisdiction in the city.” “I am not surprised at the action of the employers in seeking the assistance of the courts,” said Business Agent Ireland of the machinists. “They have been threatening it for a long time, but, in my estimation, the plea for an injunction is a confession of weakness on their part. The courts have been closed to us during the importation of men here because we had not enough money to pay an attorney to request an injunction restraining the bringing in of men; and thus testing the validity of the law. We’ll have to do the best we can to continue the fight if the court rules against picketing.”