A history of postal agitation from fifty years ago till the present daySwift, H. G.
History
A history of postal agitation from fifty years ago till the present day
Swift, H. G.
Postal service -- Great Britain -- History
In one case, at Bradford, they were preached to for half-an-hour by a
colonial bishop, the vicar of the town, Bishop Ryan, on the duties of
obedience to their pastors and masters, and the desirability of remaining
good and dutiful in that position in which it had pleased God for some
wise purpose to place them. The good bishop, however, did not forget,
in the course of his little homily, to turn to the officials forming a
cordon round the postmaster, and remind them that it was his opinion
that the men were being disgracefully treated. The postmaster addressed
them, and others addressed them. But the men having taken the step they
had, and feeling certain that exactly the same step was being taken in
all other towns, would not return to work that day. The men were then
released on their own recognisances. Later, however, they were again
called up, and directly questioned as to whether they each belonged to
their association; and if so, would they sign an agreement to relinquish
their society, and promise never again to agitate? As was only to be
anticipated, every self-respecting man refused. They were then, in some
cases by policemen already stationed, unceremoniously bundled into the
street as dismissed from Post-Office employ.
In each of the towns where this took place there was generally much
sympathy shown for the locked-out or rather dismissed men. At Liverpool
there was a public meeting outside Brown’s Library. A strike fund was
organised, and some of the leading cotton and stockbrokers of the
Exchange contributed to the fund no less than £70 by passing round the
hat.
On the following Monday a prominent representative of trades unionism
in Liverpool waited on the committee and offered to pay all expenses if
they would raise an action at law against Mr. Frank Ives Scudamore for
having suspended the leaders of their movement, as the trade unionists
of Liverpool were of the opinion that such suspensions were illegal.
A sum of £1000 was freely mentioned, and it was stated that they were
anxious to see the matter tested. This offer to defray the expenses of
the prosecution was the result of a discussion on the question that arose
at the Trades Union Congress at Nottingham. It was definitely proposed
to prosecute Mr. Scudamore not only for illegally suspending members of
a trades union, but for illegally suppressing their telegrams, and also
wilfully delaying press messages. The Trades Union Congress would assist
financially.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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