The Northwestern shops at Fortieth street, employing over 2300 men, were idle, only about twelve men signifying their willingness to work. The Galena division of this road, while making quite a bluff at handling freight, was not accomplishing very much, as it took them two days to unload a stock train. The Milwaukee road was doing better, having at work fifteen engines days and fourteen nights, but being manned mostly by green and incompetent men, were not making great headway. In all some 350 cars were gotten out and about 300 received in one day which is very small business for this line. The Wabash had only one engine at work nights, and this was guarded by a company of troops and about twenty deputy police. They succeeded in breaking down two posts, one at Polk street and another at Taylor street station, causing a damage of some $300 which was all accomplished in one night. The Chicago and Blue Island were now working two engines (this company generally worked ten), manned by scabs, one of whom was a nigger. A committee man from the Grand Trunk reported that only three men had returned to work. He said a personal friend of mine, a business man from Valparaiso, and whom I know, is in touch with the Grand Trunk, informed me that a Grand Trunk official had said in his presence that his company could not do business unless they made some kind of a settlement with the switchmen. Through John Downey and Miles Barrett, of the Switchmen's Mutual Aid Association, a meeting of switchmen was called in a hall at Eden to induce the switchmen to return to work. This meeting was "packed" in order to secure a majority vote in favor of returning but the scheme did not work. All the officials on the Pan Handle admitted that they could do nothing without the assistance of the old men. They had a few "stake" men whom they were paying $5.00 per day, but not enough to do any business. At Union Stock Yards all switchmen and assistant yard masters were out, and at the yard of the Street Stable Car Co. out of 300 men only three were at work. All men at the Burton Stock Car Co., the Canada Cattle Car Co. and the American Life Stock Co.'s yards were out, and refused to work under police protection. At Armour's car shops only nine men returned out of sixty who went on strike, and at Swifts only five out of forty-two. The yard trackmen were all out, as were also the Illinois Central switchmen and the Rock Island machinists and boiler makers. This was the condition of the strike in Chicago and the same existed in all parts of the strike district. Messages were received from many points saying that only those men who were subservient to the orders of their chiefs had returned to work, and from some points came the news that the strike had gained strength owing to the arrest of President Debs.