The Pullman boycott : $b A complete history of the great R. R. strike — John Shaqi
The Pullman boycott : $b A complete history of the great R. R. strikeBurns, W. F.
History
The Pullman boycott : $b A complete history of the great R. R. strike
Burns, W. F.
Pullman Strike, 1894
All freight through the Twin Cities handled by these roads, is
interchanged at this point. It is situated midway between St. Paul and
Minneapolis and employes from three hundred to five hundred men
according to the volume of business. This is a freight yard exclusively,
and therefore had nothing to do with the handling of Pullman equipment.
But this little technicality did not prevent this body of men from
coming to the assistance of their brothers, and as each road was brought
under the ban of the boycott they refused to handle cars or in any way
assist them to operate their line.
On the night of the 1st day of July, the Milwaukee road now under
boycott brought in five cars of beer for delivery to the Great Northern.
The men including the yardmaster refused to deliver the cars, and were
sent home. A meeting was called for the night of July 2nd, and a
committee appointed to wait upon the superintendent, Mr. D. M. Sullivan,
and ascertain if the men were discharged. Mr. Sullivan answered in the
affirmative, and an unanimous vote to strike was then taken, over three
hundred men, the entire force with three exceptions quit work, and not a
wheel was turned except by the superintendent himself, for ten days.
The general Managers now got in their fine work by utilizing the
government. A Washington special to the Chicago Times says:
Our wretched administration is in the hands of the railroads, there is
no doubt about it, Cleveland, Lamont, Olney and Bissel are at the beck
and call of the corporations, from the White House down it has been
determined to put forth every effort even to Gatling guns, to employ
every arm of the government even to its Supreme Judges to destroy this
strike and the laboring people concerned in it. The case is decided
against the strikers in advance, the wired words of the General Managers
are accepted as settled facts; what they ask for they will get, what
they suggest will be adopted. The workingmen are to be ground beneath
the heel of the military, and if necessary, to force them into
submission they are to be sabered, bayoneted, shot down or taken
prisoners or whatever is deemed sternly necessary to compel them to
submit to such terms as their moneycrat owner sees fit to impose.
This is a railway administration. So promptly loyal has Cleveland proven
himself to be that it is to be believed that should the companies desire
it, they could have the Executive Mansion for a round house and the
White House grounds for switching purposes.
The managers wired Olney to name Edwin Walker, who is attorney for the
Milwaukee road as special solicitor for the government, to take measures
against the strikers as they had no confidence in Milchrist.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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