The Seattle General Strike Seattle General Strike Committee DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Phe: ye. | SEATTLE GENERAL STRIKE An account of what happened in Seattle, and especially in the Seattle Labor ean Movement, during the General Strike, se, | ra February 6 to 11, 1919 Issued by the HISTORY COMMITTEE of the GENERAL STRIKE COMMITTEE THE SEATTLE UNION RECORD PUBLISHING CO., Inc. SEATTLE. WASH. EZ 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page IS TST RES REDE 9 cS Ol ls aR (ie Shipyard Strike. iy CES ai 8 The Calling of the enshete Nested eaMeee ae ee ea nD 12 Organizing for the Strike... USAR A eed 15 The Question of City Tight ica tl Fa) | Re, 24 On Thursday at 108. mu... ps etbiitobltye C2™ 27 Deeiieisiake Called OF OS Co ide ch Goenstructive Activities £0... (vi \a lA Se os /40 Meena the People oo ty Se ae ee Peereevineg the Peace 23.275 00 yen 45 ewan Activities oo VN 52 SUMREREIGCEM AGN) 2. See Nel fa i eee ee 57 Monvor Lost?- 0 yo... Wi Rat k eae 58: +] HISTORY COMMITTEE. Chairman, MAY YOUNG, Waitresses. JOHN McKELVEY, Boilermakers, Shipbuilders and Helpers. ’ FRED NELSON, Boilermakers. J. N. BELANGER, Steamfitters. Secretary, SAM FRAZIER, Carpenters 131. - Historian, ANNA LOUISE STRONG. THE RADICAL, ROOK SHOP B57 Lierk St. GHICAGO, ~ . =_ILLINOIS 46 What scares them most is That NOTHING HAPPENS! They are ready » Not For DISTURBANCES. They have machine | guns And oN Seer i In the wore But this SMILING Rey Beloved O08 Is uncanny. ny 3 The p ih ess men % es), } Don’t ; jtinderst phe 2 That sort of weapon. sy 10) It conies: ~ 2 Wall it ‘From DIFFERENT: WORLD © ONE Than the world THEY live in. (It “is your It is teally funny 2 And a bit pathetic To see how worried And MAD The business men are getting. What meetingsesthey hold, What WILD RUMORS They use A To keep themselves STIRRED UP. . Yet MOST of them Might be real pleasant HUMAN BEINGS Except that life Has separated them Too much from common folks. It is the SYSTEM Of industry Le : ast to. coast Katt the Dur that a revolu- — imminent in Seattle. A General Strike had =~ nt called in sympathy with the shipvard' workers, _ ns one. knew hae would come of. At. Both before hse ee thidieering. appealing to ie as to nich flag they were under,’’ and if under the flag, to put down Bolshevism in their midst. / . opponents of organized labor hoped tb see r Movement of Seattle broken by the attempt _ a General Strike, and many old-timers in the . Tovement feared that this would indeed happen. . time the people of the city laid in supplies for pee Grocery stores sold enormous quantities ra Hardware stores ransacked their storehouses anded supplies of lamps, of the sort used by last ’s resorters in beach camps, and sold them out bstantial advance in price. .A few of the wealthy were eoportt 3 in the press as ae Ore to ate outward turmoil in the city ‘of Seattle. Or- ry police court arrests sank below normal. Quiet throughout the city. “Even the ordinary meet- radical groups were voluntarily suspended lest an opportunity to some one to start trouble. “aS. 3 Mee Eh from a nearby town declared in scattered documents, in the p utes of the strike committees and r We do this because the General Strike to the workers of the United States. — occurred, we did not know how the w: “held in our hands would ‘‘go off.’’ gained an experience which we believ the Labor Movement of our country. In the uncertainty and tension ‘0 occurred, when no one knew exactly of it, the statement that “‘this is no revolution’’ was first.made by the m It was the morning paper, the Post-Int first publicly announced the alleged ‘‘] acter of the strike, in a cartoon sho hoisted above the stars and stripes in tle. . aes hi To what extent Revolution was or minds of workers participating im * «discussed later, after the actual h strike have been madé clearer. Bu published in the Union Record (the offic of the Central Labor Council) ‘the d: strike, has been quoted in partial form f coast, as a sign of revolutionary intention here in full: . There will be many cheering, and who fear, ‘i Both these emotions are useful, either. a ‘We are undertaking the most tre made by %:ABOR in this country, | lead—NO ONE KNOWS WHERE! We do mot need hysteria. Din We nee: the iron march of labor. — ; ale ute LABOR WILL FEED THE PEOPLE. Twelve great kitchens have been them food will be distributed by the pri at low cost to all. — ii hia vat LABOR WILL CARE FOR THE BABIES: “AND Mh b THE SICK. ay The ‘milk: wagon vans, pee tits laundry drivers are “arranging plans for supplying milk to babies, invalids i and hospitals, and taking care of the cleaning of linen i ber hospitals. | LABOR WILL PRESERVE ORDER. The strike committee is arranging for guards, and Gt is expected that the stopping of whe ears will keep people at home. * % * A a hot-headed enthusiasts have complained that strikers only should be fed, and the geseral public left to endure severe discomfort. Aside from the inhuman- _itarian character of such suggestions, let- them get this straight— NOT THE WITHDRAWAL OF LABOR POWER, BUT THE POWER OF THE STRIKERS TO MANAGE WILL WIN THIS STRIKE. ¥ What does Mr. Piez of the Shipping Board care about / the closing down of Seattle’s shipyards, or even of all _ the industries of the northwest? Will it not merely z strengthen the yards at Hog Island, in which he is -- more interested? _ When the shipyard owners of Seattle were on the point of agreeing with the workers, it was Mr. Piez who ke meen them that, if they so agreed— HE WOULD NOT LET THEM HAVE STEEL. _ Whether this is camouflage we have no means of knowing. But we:do know that the great eastern com- binations of capitalists COULD AFFORD to offer pri- _vately to Mr. Skinner, Mr. Ames and Mr. Duthie a few eens apiece in eastern shipyard stock, RATHER THAN LET THE WORKERS WIN. The closing down of Seattle’s industries, as a MERE SHUTDOWN, will not affect these eastern gentlemen much. They could let the whole northwest go to pieces, as far as money alone is concerned. “BUT, ‘the closing down of the capitalistically con- - trolled industries of Seattle, while the WORKERS OR- _ GANIZE to feed the people, to care for the babies and the sick, to preserve order—THIS will move them, for Pi seats the workers. — Labor will not only SHUT DOWN Labor will REOPEN, under the man: propriate trades, such activities as serve public.health and public peace. © tinues, Labor may feel led to avoid pu reopening more and more activities, UNDER ITS OWN MANAGEME And that is why we say that we road that leads—NO ONE KNOWS This editorial was perhaps more preted than any statement made The Post-Intelligencer published it ) as an editorial which had appeared in th and made no further comment. Anc is needless, since each man will inte to his own intentions. It might be mentioned, however at tl was submitted, as were all matters to the members of the Conferene Metal Trades, before it was publish time when it was being held alo revolution, by the capitalist press o moil, a suggestion of some truly ment that might come out of the For the mood of Labor, as the Ge near, was one of deep seriousness. they were facing a situation as yet did not know what would result | bad, for the City of Seattle and mas! in that city. What did come ont of it, as i ai proceeds, was precisely what was h editorial_—‘‘more and more activities | agement of labor.’’ The stimulus to prise and to the enthusiastic wor unions was the most important, per structive result of the General Strike. Gy y ies fy Ys & f fs io the twee ‘Anise’ verses printed as an happen jikees 9 this book, and ae to an core! published in the ; caetainy Revolution ae “We are growing tired of explaining that we DIDN’T i ‘mean this and that; we are weary of seeming to take the negative, explanatory attitude in connection with meaning to our lives. We want to tell, in positive words, the glorious thing we DO mean. Tf by revolution is meaft violence, forcible taking over: of property, the killing or maiming of men, surely - no ‘group ‘of workers dreamed of such action. But if fy by) revolution i is meant that a Great Change is coming Pak over the face of the world, which will transform our method of carrying on industry, and will go deep into le very sources of our lives, to bring joy and freedom in place of heaviness and Seen tren. we do believe in ‘such a Great Change and that our General Strike was one rer definite step pow ards it. ve lob about us Re and see a world of industrial unrest, of owners set over against workers, of strikes and lock- outs, of mutual suspicions. We see a world of stri and insecurity, ‘of unemployment, and hungry children. It is not a pleasant world to look upon. Surely no one desires that it shall continue in this most eeu unrest.. * * > °* ; We see but one way out. In place of two classes, ompeting , for the fruits of mdustry, there must be, ik “eventually ‘ONLY ONE CLASS sharing fairly the. good ings of the world. And this can only be done by E WORKERS LEARNING TO MANAGE. * * * When we saw, in our General Strike: ‘he Milk Wagon Drivers consulting late into the oht over the task of supplying milk for the city’s AN eo ; 1 ae The Provision Trades working twenty-four hours out - of the ae tour on the question of sas 30,000 1 workers; wT faith of which we are proud, a faith which adds © ca oe shops; is The Blaaudttchs opening a pr fit : The Labor Guards facing, under the task of maintaining order Pas: method ; When we saw union after union s ished desires to the will of the G mittee: THEN WE REJOICED. For we knew that it was worth days’ pay apiece to get this educatio of management. Whatever strength selves, and whatever weakness, we learning the chime which it is NE know. *. * Some day, when the workers h age, they will BEGIN MANAGIN And we, the workers of Seattl midst of our General Strike, vag storm, a glimpse of what the fell day shall be. : * * * The General Strike in Seattle of some 35,000 shipyard workers The Seattle ein are on owners and ie Metal Trades Coun Council is composed of delegates f ferent craft unions, (seventeen a strike vote). These. separate un ons blanket-agreement is made at interva Trades Council for all the crafts comf war. In August 1917 the workers Waa’ lishing a uniform seale of wages for "ernment preventing them from raising wages without the Government’s consent. The Macy Board came out on the Coast to adjust the wages and instead of bring- ing about uniformity in the wage scale through their bs system of applying the increased cost of living to wages received that had been brought about by collective bar- _ gaining, applied the increase to the wages received the year before and owing to some of the crafts having been in a disorganized condition at that period and others ' having been organized and in a position to maintain their standards, the application of the increase gave some crafts 60 cents per day more than they had re- quested and the great majority of basic ship yard trades 221% cents per day less than they were receiving in the other yards and shops. Making a difference of 8216 cents per day between the crafts which created dissatisfaction from the very start. There was bitter opposition to this among the Seat- tle workers, who saw themselves deprived ‘of. advant- ages gained by long years of organization and struggle. But the International Officers of various crafts in- volved had signed the memorandum creating the Macy Board, and the men, while protesting, refrained from _ striking ‘for patriotic reasons, because of the war needs of the country. The Seattle workers maintained that according to the constitution of the various craft unions, the Inter- ‘national Officers of the various crafts had no authority thus to bind their locals, without a referendum vote. This was felt all the more keenly as the local crafts had themselves given over their rights to the Metal: Trades: Council, in order that they might bargain for the entire industry at once, and they felt that power was wrongfully taken, from the instrument they had built for their own protection. For more than a year they continued work, though under. constant protest against the fairness of the agreement, to which they constantly stated they had not been a party. Appeal after appeal was made, with no result. While continuing at work, the Seattle ship- yard workers established world’s records in the build- ~ ing of ships. So great was their efficiency that official _ records state that 26 1-4 per cent of all ships built for 4 the United States Shippine Rou built in Seattle alone. After the armistice was signed, failure to get relief through appeals, of the Metal Trades took a strike y According to the strong convictior unions, in voting on these matters count as one, no matter in which un cording to the constitution of the v organizations and the Metal Trades | American Federation of Labor, h counted by crafts, and requires a m represented in order to settle an is about as large as the other twen would have only one vote in twen ity of men in the yards might be way and the majority of craft other way. In this particular case, however, 1 ed either way, was in favor of the seventeen craft unions declared according to its own constitution, required a two-thirds, in others a Of the remaining seven unions, one cure a majority vote for the strike, Oh majority of workers the desire for the s more noticeable, since it was pree unions that the vote went strong for The vote was counted on Decen was announced and held by the to use whenever they decided thei Meantime attempts at negotiat Failing to secure satisfaction, on January 16, the strike was cafled to t following Tuesday morning. The Ta Council took the same action: . _ The demands of the men were $8.00 chanies, $7.00 for specialists of semi $6.00 for helpers with a scale of, $ eight hours per day, forty-four hours demand, however, was not final insofar concerned and had there been a. co. aif 10 oaeciie all men in the yards in the same proportion if it. would have been necessary to resubmit the vote to | hse) the membership for acceptance or rejection. _ Many evidences point to the fact that it was the es. raise in pay for the lower-paid men which was most de- sired. Many of the skilled men were already getting _ more than the minimum asked under the new scale. aio ‘They were, however, strong in their advocacy of the strike on account of the condition of the laborers. It rr is stated, on many good authorities, that Seattle busi- ness-men, and especially Seattle landlords, had taken occasion to profiteer to a greater degree than in other ' places along the coast, and that consequently the cost of living in Seattle had inereased far above that in Los Angeles and other California points, This bore hardest on the lower paid men. The Conference Committee which had conferred with the employers, reported that the yard owners were willing to grant an inerease to the skilled me- * ehanies but not to the lower paid helpers. The men stood together in their unwillingness to accept such an agreement, regarding this as a bribe to induce the skilled men to desert their brothers. _. The shipyard workers came out and the yards closed _ down, making no attempt whatever to run. Special reference must be made to the attitude of ! Charles Piez, Director General of the Emergency. Fleet Corporation. During war. time, while ostensibly ad- * mitting the fight of the workers to bargain collectively with their employers, he informed the Seattle yard- owners that if they gave in to the demands of their workers, he would not let them have steel. a When the appellate board, which reviewed the de- Ne cision of the Macy Board, ended in a deadlock, Piez ' told James Taylor president of the Metal Trades Council and local representative of the Seattle work- ers with the Macy Board, that the men were free to deal directly with their employ ers. He later confirmed this statement by telegram to Mr. Skinner of Skinner & ‘Eddy Corporation, ‘and in an interview to Mr. Ash- mun Brown, published in the Post-Intelligencer of MUP: dima ‘24th. il ae But when the Jard-oraers 3 an. ‘at his word and entered into co! threatened the yard- owners, this t drawal of contracts, in ease they seale. aa This attitude bobined “hitouelbed a most perplexing manner one telegra stated that the yard-owners were fre own dealings with the men and that h to prevent them; another stated that tracts would be "denied any yards w: rate of wages; still another said that : concerned the government would not any raise in the war-time wages. Throughout the strike he seemed ce one point,—that he would have no de with the men until they had retruned SYMPATHETIC STRIKE AS& E The strike of the shipyard workers « day morning, January 21st. On the at the meeting of the Central Laboe gate body composed of representatr unions ‘in the eity, vigenpniic’s the Council and went out to the variou as they hold the final authority in case their members. On the following Sun and that this General Strike Commi ealled to meet on the following Sunday By the next Wednesday meeting Labor Council, so many unions had decelar tention to strike, that the puee ee } ary biihd. at 80 clock. This General Strike Commit- oe e, composed of delegates from 110 unions and from. - hs the Central Labor Council, held the ultimate authority on all strike matters during the time of the By pepavienic ae strike, ms SOME OF THE STRIKING UNIONS. ot Phe completeness with which the unions of Seattle voned for the General Strike came as a surprise to - many unionists. Union after union sacrificed cherished _ hopes, in order to “‘go out with the rest.’’ The Longshoremen’ s Union, in which, after many vicissitudes, the Truckers had at length combined with - the Riggers and Stevedores, had just put through a elosed-shop agreement for the waterfront of Seattle, which was seriously imperiled and in fact, broken down, by their participation in the General Strike. vt The Street Car Men were 100 per cent organized, - aiter a long and bitter fight which had included a _ street car strike. They were looking forward at last, after a year of waiting, to some fruit from their labors. Poorly paid, and with long hours, they expected a de- eision to be handed down “from the Supreme Court of the State, and on the very day after the date set for the General Strike, which would assure them a sub- stantial advance in wages. All this seemed to them endangered. Yet a majority of them votel in favor of _ standing with the rest of labor. And although the ‘Street Car Men were later. among the first unions to go back, at the orders of their executive committee and an international officer, yet even the most radical union men, knowing the pressure under which they labored, were inclined to urge: ‘‘Don’t be too hard VO those boys; they risked a great deal.”’ _ Many weak unions, knowing that they risked their jobs as individuals and their existence as unions, yet took. this chance and went out with the rest. Among ‘these were the Hotel Maids, the Cereal and Flour Mill Workers, the Renton Car Builders. Over against these were the votes of old and con- ‘servative unions, unused to indulging in sympathetic strikes or in ‘‘demonstrations.’’ The most unusual was ey nieas the vote of the Typographical Union, a union 18) a eee npinebol ‘ob its: own jobs has i - strong that strikes have fallen into disuse ganization. Yet it gave a majority vo striking, although its strike was not al International, as it failed to ‘get the re fourths yote. tedien 1 The Musicians’ Union, iiother con took two votes. It was almost 5 tol of the General Strike, but 6 to 1 nt fe with the rest of organized labor, decidéd to go out. In other words, it s ity even against its own preferences. ih The Carpenters’ Union, 131, an ol union, which has become one of the ‘ of the city, due to its ownership of a building, voted for the strike by amaj than 2 to 1.” ‘There was no one down ing us, either,?’ said one of the member: ‘have stood for it. We took a secret ba to strike; and then we put our fate in Strike Committee and stuck till the en . The Teamsters’ strike is remarkable b great. pressure under which they labo that 800 calls came into their office not get any heat on account of the str sters. Many people realized for the fi union, which handles the transportati groups of Government Tianlavbol a Postoffice Department stated on the floor tral Labor Council that the regulations - they practically faced jail for striking ‘ first time, the Labor Movement in See 14. | may: mean, not. greater freedom for the iranieera: but af ae rigidity of regulations, and less freedom for the eT ie aur deste nce the strike hohandis took ates: the ue eg ‘meetings of the General Strike Committee began. With _ their first session on Sunday, February 2, 1919, author- __ ity over the strike passed from the Central Labor Coun- - eil, which had sent out the call, and from the Metal ih ‘Brades Council which had Liskbed it, and was centered jn a committee of over 300 members, elected from 110 - loeal unions and the Central Labor Council, for the express purpose of managing the strike. ‘The first meeting was called to order at 8:35 in the Hie morning and continued in session until 9:35 that eve- ning, with short intermissions for meals. From this time on until the close of the strike, there were meet- ings daily and at almost all hours of day and night, of either this General Strike Committee, or of the Execu- tive Committee of Fifteen to which it delegated some Le yi) tis authority. The volume of business “transacted was tremendous; practically every aspect of the city’s ~ life eame before the strike committee for some de- (y gfCISION., . A general strike was seen, almost at once, to differ (anes profomidty from any of the particular strikes with _ which the workers of Seattle were familiar. “t was = HOt: enough, as some of the hasty enthusiasts declared, to ‘‘just walk out.’’ The strikers were at once brought face to face with the way in which the whole commun- ity, including their own families, is inextricably tied together. If life was not to be made unbearable for _ the strikers themselves, problems of management, of } selection and exemption, had to take the place: of the ny sauch simpler problem of keeping everyone out of work. — ‘The strikers had no quarrel with the city of Seattle its or with its inhabitants, of whom they themselves and 5 their families comprised perhaps half. They had no ‘ _ particular quarrel with the city government, and most of them took pride in the municipally owned light and water and garbage systems, the municipal car line and _ the public port. While they were doubtless deeply 16 touched by that spirit of unrest and desire for anew world which is sweeping the earth today, ney) had no — definite revolutionary intentions. Consequently the problems of what shanties ue done about the water supply, the lighting system, fhe hos- pitals, the babies’ milk supply, came before a commit- — tee of quiet working people whose stake in | things was as great as that of any persons in the city and who, while they intended to make a tremendous and solid demonstration of sympathy with their. -broth- ers in the shipyards, had at the same time no desire to wreck the city’s life. They realized that they were undertaking dombnera new in the American labor movement; they were not quite certain where it would lead; but. they felt them- selves strong enough to handle whatever problems © might arise. The Committee Organizes. To make the problem harder, the General Strike Committee was not, like the Central Labor Council, composed of delegates who had had experience in work. ing together. They were a new group, a very large and unwieldy mass of unacquainted individuals, npon whom, almost at once, great and momentous questions — descended. The quantity of business transacted and the. bettaes: like attention to many aspects of complicated questions, is shown in the minutes of the committee, and indi- cates a much higher level of efficiency and business-like methods that could normally be expected from such a — large governing group. The morning session of the first day was taken up. ; with passing on credentials. Highty unions, in addi- © tion to the 21 unions of the Metal Trades, presented © acceptable credentials at this meeting. A few other unions were added later, making 110 in all. All unions which had voted to strike, or whieh he- longed to a district council which was striking as a ona, were granted three delegates. A few of the officials of the labor movement were granted seats im the meeting by special vote. Several irregular ere- dentials were turned down. s 16 as “the first appearance of the ip table problem of the relation of the strike to the city authorities oceurred “when the Garbage Wagon Drivers asked for permis- sion to explain why they had voted against the strike. i They stated that Dr. McBride, the health commissioner ‘of Seattle, had told them that they must take eare of _ hospitals ane sanitariums, subject to penalty under the law. They had not known whether the strike commit- tee would make any exemption in favor of these emer- geney needs, and so had voted not to strike. Later the Garbage Wagon Drivers’ delegates were seated and certain exemptions were made in the interests of health. Another fundamental problem which raised its head in this first meeting was the opposition of officers of international unions. The stereotypers stated that one | of their international officers was in the city and would _ probably try to foree them back to work. They wanted to know what support the unions of Seattle could give them in case their international officers supplied men to fill their places and otherwise disciplined them. The committee declared that the sympathetic strike would ° not be called off until the stereotypers were reinstated in any positions lost as the result of striking. _ The date on whieh the strike should be called came in for much discussion. It was finally decided to fix the followurg Thursday, February 6, at 10 a. m., and to ask Tacoma and Aberdeen to postpone the general strike, which they had ordered, until the time agreed on by Seattle. An executive committee of fifteen was next appointed to work with the metal trades committeesin formulat- ing a’plan of action, and to present this to the Central ~ Labor Council on the following Wednesday evening. Almost at once other motions made this committee per- manent and instruc‘ed it to consider all questions of exemption that might arise in the handling of the strike. The decisions of this eommittee were at all times subject to appeal by the General Strike Commit- tee, but in practice, repeal was not found necessary. Committees on publicity, on finance and on tacties were also appointed, and many other minor matters _ of business were disposed of. A.nong these were the 17 ; % « mi: 4 forwarding of a oaktens ‘to wad manding the removal of Mr. Piez of the and the adoption of a resolution that mitteeman should reecive any salary ¢ Just at the close of the meeting suggested. ‘‘We have nothine to ‘ose and a whole world to ‘gain’? was eje¢ “Together We Win.’’ The unions of § elaring in favor of labor’s solidarity declaring in favor of the well kno class war. ¥ Executive Committee Orge Even while the first meeting of the Committee was going on, the newly ap tive Committee of Fifteen met and p ness. Brother Nauman, of the Hoisti elected chairman, and Brother Eg secretary. Three subcommittees consider exemptions from the general . der three main heads: Construction and Provisions. SRT ‘ Committees on miscellaneous exem ances and on general welfare were al: The Cooks Union reported at thi arrangements for feeding the stril were well under way. The exeeutive committee decided » ings. As a matter of fact, so many and were the matters brought before than themselves Sige teri to mee more On the following day, Monday, the e” teen met again. Before them came a the Firemen’s Local 21, whom they the firemen to stay on the job. This emption granted in the strike. It was many more. arrange for the necessary forms of pe to designate the autos and trucks. labor in carrying on the necessary 18 strike. Here agnie the necessity of exemption wae recognized. . C. R. Case, ewe of the department of streets of ba : ih city. of Seattle, was the first department head to appear _ before the committee to state city needs. He pointed out the fact that the watter supply of Queen Anne Hill and West Seattle depended on electrical help from the City Light and Power. He also stated that large quan- tities of food in cold storage wotld spoil if the power system did not run, and that without the street lights the city would be a prey to lawlessness and disorder and thuggery. He mentioned the needs of gas in hos- pitals and laboratories, and the need of transportation i for the various city institutions. The Committee of Fifteen realized what they were facing, if a strike were carried through without ex- emptions. They appointed a speciat hour on the follow- ing day at which they requested heads of city depart- “ments to appear and state their needs, and they ex- ' pressed as the sense of the committee that they co- operate with these heads in every way possible. Organization of Laundry Workers, ' One of the neatest little bits of team work between ' four different organizations came up for approval at this first meeting of the executive committee of 15. The Laundry Drivers’ Union had at first voted not to strike, _ but later changed their vote. They had a great deal to lose in any strike, as they had built up laundry routes with much patience and the effort of many years. They were working under an agreement with the Laundry- men’s Club, the organization of laundry owners. _. There was also in Seattle a Mutual Laundry, owned by organized labor, and the question of its operation cr -eame to the fore. After consultation between the laundry drivers and inside laundry workers, it was pro- posed that hospital laundry only should be handled; that a certain number of wagons should be exempted and furnished with signs and permits to servé the hos- pitals; that one laundry should be agreed on as the one best qualified to handle hospital laundry and should be allowed to operate under a permit, with a sign, ‘i “Hospital: Laundry Only, by Order of General Strike ih 19 call te “ Comittee.’’ This laundry should ot The laundry workers served notice ers to take no more laundry, as it coul and then requested thé Committee of Fi them to work a few hours past the time of the strike, in order that the clothes plants should not mildew from dampn A note from the Laundry Owners Clu Washington Laundry as the one to be also submitted, together with the rest from the laundry drivers and laundry a well-thought out program, indicating ment with the entire laundry industry. cepted by the Committee of Fifteen. a The Problem of the Butc The meat cones “presented an. problem from that of the laundries. plete organization of the industry, they struggling union, organized in a few to gain an. entrance into some of the were controlled by representatives. of the If they should strike, and withdraw th the little shops, which had dealt fairl were they not penalizing their friends ing their enemies whose non-union running full blast? the Sst with meat through certain ( shops, demanding only that ‘the ve of be deducted from the cost of meat. ‘strike of the meat cutters was incomple handicap they labored past ak the need -f a law sich order committe pressing, and the Committee of Fifte ement was. plgged in 'the iclow Roboga asking that labor union men who had seen service in the United tates army or navy come to a meeting to discuss ‘im- ortant strike work. This was the beginning of the famous Labor’s War Veteran Guards, who did such splendid service in preserving order during the sie ets Demands for Exemptions. Va Demands for exemptions came in thick and fast on Tuesday, now~that the strike was actually looming near. The proposed meeting with heads of city depart-. ments neyer came off, but requests from several public officials came in formally for exemptions. These were referred to their appropriate committees, considered, returned with recommendations, and either granted or rejected. In some eases a conditional erant led the Committee of Fifteen into the position of. actually pre- seribing the conduct of certain lines of activity. Here are a few selections from Tuesday’s minutes: _ “Kine county commissioners ask for exemption of _ janitors to care for ee County building. Not _ granted. . «HA Rust asks for janitors for Labor Temple. Not _ granted. (The committee was playing no favorites. It is wortfhoting, however, that a few days later, when the Co-operative Market asked for additional janitor help because of the large amounts of food handled for the strikers’ kitchens, their request was allowed.) _ ‘Teamsters’ Union asks permission to carry oil for. - Swedish hospital during strike. Referred to transpor- tation committee. Approved. — **Port of Seattle asks to be allowed men to load a _ government vessel, pointing out that no private profit is involved and that am emergency exists. - Granted. * (Note: This was on a later date.) x “Garbage Wagon Drivers ask for instructions. Re- ferred to public “welfare committee, which recommends _ that such garbage as tends te create an epidemic of " disease be collected, but no ashes or papers. Garbage wagons were seen on the streets after this with the : Sign, ‘Exempt by Strike Committee.’ - Drug Stores—Prescriptions Only. ae “The retail drug clerks sent in a statement of the : 21 ai health needs of the city. Referred to publie welfare committee, which recommends that preseription count- ers only be left open, and that in front of every drug store which is thus allowed to open a sign be placed with the words, ‘No goods sold during general strike. ~ Orders for prescriptions only will be filled.. li general strike committee. ‘‘Communication from House of Good Shepherd, Per- mission granted by transportation committee to haul ~ food and provisions only.’’ This is by no means all the business that came before - the Committee of Fifteen in a single afternoon, An appointment of a committee of relief to look after destitute homes, the creation of a publieity bureau, an order that watchmen stay on the job until further notice, and many other matters were dealt with. And after this eventful afternoon there foes a aight meeting at 10 p. m. GUO ye To Fix an End for the Strike. Should a final limit be fixed for the general strike? Or should it start to end—no.one knew where? This was the question discussed on Tuesday evening by the executive committee. = Many of the older members of the labor movement frankly dreaded the general strike. They saw in it even such possibilities as the complete disruption of Seattle’s labor movement. They urged that a definite time limit be fixed to the sympathetic strike, with the threat to repeat it unless action was secured on the difficulties of the Metal Trades. Foremost among those urgmg this limit were James Duncan, seeretary of the Central Labor Council, and E. B. Ault, editor gt the Union Record. The executive committee of the Metal Trades was at first reported as having approved such a time limit, but after they had conferred with their general conference committee, which refused to agree to the proposal, the Metal Trades Council sent word shortly after midnight — that they had no request to make. They also stated ~ that the mine workers of the state would be asked to strike and that the State Federation of Labor would be requested to co-operate with the strike. Bn 27 a! At | Drives Union. “The move to fix a time limit to the ae strike eonsequently failed. pe : Take Over Printing Plant. _ On Wednesday the same grist of requests for exemp- ‘eens and for directions came before the Committee of _ Fifteen. The Trade Printery asked for exemption on the ground that it was printing material needed by the. _ various unions. The request was denied, and the Trade _ Printery was asked instead to turn over its plant to the strike committee, to be run by printers giving their services. To this the Trade Printery agreed. — The day before this offer was made the Equity Print- ~ ing Co offered to put its plant at the disposal of the strike committee, volunteering free labor. This offer was favorably considered by a sub-committee, on re. jected by the Committee of Fifteen. The auto drivers were given permission to carry ‘mail only’’ on the Des Moines road. They were also allowed answer emergency ¢alls for hospitals and funerals, provided those calls came through the Auto Ministers Appeal. The RE wisterial: Federation sent representatives to see the Comittee of Fifteen on this day. After sub- mitting.the resolutions which they had already sent to Mr. Piez and Woodrow Wilson as evidence of their sympathy with labor’s cause, they fermally requested postponement of the general strike for one week to give a chance for peaceful settlement. They were given a Yising vote of thanks for their interest, but their re- quest was not granted. ‘The telephone girls were requested to stay on the Ms Bi dob temporarily. The school janitors’ request to remain on the job was i ‘and they were referred to the Engineers’ Union, which on the following Saturday allowed them to return: 7 Bake ovens at Davidson’s bakery were allowed to aperate, all wages to go into the general strike fund. This was the usual policy adopted when union men were allowed to work for private employers in a matter of ns emergency. 83 2 The eventful Thursday deat! ne portant matter was still unsettled—th light. At the request of the Comm Mayor Hanson came to the Labor meeting for conference on the subje convened shortly before midnight, rived after midnight, remaining morning of Thursday. ~ The electrical workers had voted 1 exemptions. On the day before the st agent, appeared in the morning pap ; not a single light would burn in Se telephone system, the newspapers ani di depending on ‘‘juice’’ would cease ‘“‘No Exemptions. may die for want of light,’’ Green wa ' replied, ‘‘No exemptions.’’ The . tem. More than any other one event strike, this front page report of ar oused both. fear and resentment, n nounced that city light should run, bring in soldiers to run it. Appeals: public for volunteers to run the city. The electricians took’ the ground tie-up would shorten the duration 0 answer to this the city authorities shutting down of city power would supply-in West Seattle and on Queen mean the spoiling of large quantities - eold storage warehouses, while the | streets would inevitably lead to di ler, shutting off of lights from the Hen many deaths, 24 aa All Committees Much. Concerned. The various committees dealing with the strike were all deeply concerned. The Committee of Fifteen re- Gs quested the electricians to allow enough electricity to operate the fire alarm system; they also appointed a - eommittee of three to formulate a solution of the elec- — trical supply problem, and called a late night meeting “eh to make final decision. * At the same time the conference committee of the _ Metal Trades, charged with the conduct of the original _ strike of the ‘shipyard workers, called into conferencé the three men who had been appointed by the electrical workers to handle their part in the strike. At first the zommittee of electrical workers stood firm for a com- plete shut-down, but when it was evident that the rep- resentatives of the Metal Trades were much opposed they finally consented to allow exemptions if a com- mittee on exemptions could be installed in the city light plant, with authority to state what parts of the system should be allowed to run. _ First Conference With Mayor. | At this point A. E. Miller, chairman of the conference committee, called up Mayor Hanson on the telephone and asked him to join the conference. The mayor came over at once to the Collins building and announced that eity light and city water should not be interferred with. He refused to recognize any committee on ex- emptions, but finally, after a long discussion, consented to meet with such a committee and take up with them, ' section by section, the various parts of the lighting sys- tem, in an effort to prove to them that no part of the _ system should be shut down. A committee of three went oyer to the mayor’s office, but a deadlock oc- —eurred at once on the question of street lighting, which the committee of three refused to allow. . - Upon this the Engineers’ Union announced to the mayor that if the electricians left they would operate enough of the plant to supply hospitals and other pub- lie needs. ; Midnight Meeting With Mayor. All the various pieces of consultation ae planning on the subject of city light, which had started spon- 25 taneously in. different quarters as soon as the Green interview appeared in the paper, came to head in 1 midnight session of thé Committee of i the night before the strike at the Labor Temple. The subject under consideration had been ive ome all day as the most serious problem which h ret involving questions of relations with the city @ ment, as well as the relations between individual unions _and the general strike committee. In addition to the ¥ Committee of Fifteen, representatives of the electrical workers, the engineers and the conference committee of the Metal Trades were present. The mayor, invited at a late hour by telephone, ap- peared shortly after midnight, and reiterated his state- ment that city water and city light must run, He said thta he would prefer to run them with the union men, but that he would run them with soldiers from Camp Lewis or Bremerton if necessary. He added that he did not care about the other public utilities. The ear line was not essential; in fact, he might even have the men given a lay-off so that they would not lose their civil service rating. But light and water, he stated, were needed for public health and publie peace. The mayor finally left at 3:30, and the Committee of Fifteen voted, after his withdrawal, to- order~-the electricians back to run the city light plant, with the exception of the commercial service. A committee was appointed to announce this decision to the mayor, who, when called on the telephone, said he would be im itis office at 8:30 in the morning. In the end the eity light plant ran without interrup- tion, as far as was apparent to the citizens of Seattle. A month after the strike a member of the strike com- mittee of the electrical workers, when asked how this happened, made the following statement: ‘¢*The mat- ter of city light was a bluff between Green and Haase: We had the operators in the sub-station only par organized and could not have called them off if .we had wanted to. We could and did call out the line men and meter men, who responded. But their absence made little, immediate difference, and they went back before the strike was ealled off. The engineers were in a better position than we to close down eity light, but 26 vege ge 7 i ke a Dele SE: * * ‘4 Pa : ‘9 ea “this they declined to do, and only called off their men _ after it was sure that city light could run anyway.’ _It is perhaps a rather inglorious explanation of a mat- 4 ter which caused so vital a stir. But, however, much _ bluffing entered into it, a few facts stand out as imter- esting. First, that the exeeutive committee of the "strike, believing that it had the power to shut down eity light, ordered that all city lights should run ex- cept the commercial power. This is important because it shows the temper of mind in the executive commit- tee. Second, that up to the time when the strike was actually in full swing; Mayor Hanson was not the “‘yevolution quelling strong man’’ that he has been announced as since, but a worried and busy mayor, not sufficiently familiar with the details of his light plant to call Green’s bluff and endeavoring for many hours in midnight session to argue.the strike committee into saving city light from serious inconvenience. It is per- - haps not so thrilling a picture, but it is a more human one. aS ON THURSDAY AT 10 A. M. The strike had been called for Thursday at 10 a. m. “At that hour the street cars began to pull for the barns, the workers all over town left their tasks, and _ . the strike was on. Some crafts had stopped before the hour set. The cooks had been on-strike all the morn- ing, and were working wii preparing food fcr the strikers’ kitchens. _ According to the business press of the city, Seattle "was **prostrate.’’ According to an admission in the | morning paper, ‘‘not a wheel turned in any of the _ industries employing organized labor or in many others which did not employ organized labor.” : Regular A, F. of L. Strike. Some 60,000 men were out on strike. The strike was ealled, organized aiid carried through by the regular unions of the American Federation of Labor, acting regularly by votes of the rank and file. It was a strike in the calling and conduct of which, contrary to state- ments made widely throughout the country, no L W. W. had any part. - Yet the strike affected more organizations than those 27 in the American Federation of Labor. Organi: of the I. W. W. also struck at once, and sent wor 6 if any. of their members proved unruly, they them. selves would put them out of town and keep them out, as‘they-intended to show the A. F. of L. that they could co-operate in a strike without causing di rder. Since no disorder of any kind occurred in in connection with the strike, it will be seen that ha Ae were as good as their word. y Japanese Strike. Among the other organizations striking were the Japanese barbers and restaurant workers. In fact, all ~— the Japanese section of the city was closed up tight and remained closed. The response of the Japanese workers added greatly to the good feeling between them and the American workers, and they were in- vited to send delegates to the general strike commit- tee, but without vote. As has been said, the strike was from the wea | to the end under the firm control of duly elected rep- resentatives of regular A. F. of L, umions, and any other organizations which also struck had no voice or vote in its conduct. * Many Individual Strikers. How many individuals, unconnected with any or- ganizations, struck just out of a feeling of fellowship for labor will never be known. But there were many of them. In the nature of the-ease, word only is heard of afew. An elevator boy in an office building of con- servative business men, two laborers working. for a) landscape gardener, and hundreds of other sporadie *NOTE—The rumor that the I. W. W. had a leading part in the strike can be traced perhaps to the general desire on the part of the press to discredit the strikers, and partly to the fact that certain dodgers were published and distributed i during the strike calling on the workers to emulate Russia, which seemed to be of I. W. W. origin. In the excited minds of business men untrained to discriminate in matters - ing labor, this was supposed to be part of the authorized “strike propaganda.” It caused no excitement in the ranks of the workers, as they are accustomed to seeing such propa- ganda put forth by radical groups, and as they are also ac- customed to distinguishing statements authorized by their organizations from totally unauthorized leaflets. \ 28 jap Ceecot this type, eeuereih Persons of this inal had not even a union to protect them in securing their jobs ai again, yet they struck out of.a feeling of sympathy, and a desire to be ‘‘a part of the general strike of _ Seattle’s labor movement.’’ Second Meeting of General Strike Committee. _ Two hours after the strike’ began the general strike - committee held its second full meeting, Thursday at noon. An avalanche of business descended upon it. For three and a half days the Executive Committee of Fifteen had been the authority in strike matters. Now at last the strike was on and the general committee - met to survey its handiwork. _ The greater part of the first session was devoted to attempting to unwind the tangles of the city light situ- ation, which is elsewhere described. Exemptions Referred to Executive Committee. ‘The regular grist of requests for exemptions began ~ to come in to the general committee, but was soon found - to be too burdensome for so large a body t® deal with. _ It was finally directed that all exemptions should go first to the Committee of Fifteen. A few typical instances of the type of exemption asked for from the general strike committee are as follows: Seattle Renton Southern asks permission for trans- portation in carrying mail. All motions made on this were tabled. Co-operative Market says that the milk supply is ‘short, and the farmers have offered to deliver it if per - mission is granted. This was Pent g to the ee coun- cil of teamsters. The longshoremer’ ask AS to handle govern- ; ment mails, customs and baggage. Permission is given Naas the mails and customs. : \ The postal clerks ask that enough taxi company’ ’s ears be exempted to give them irdnsporauion over the city. This was refused. The icemen ask for exemption in transporting ice to hospitals and drug stores. This was referred to the pagtet council of teamsters. Meantime words of greeting and help came from 29 nearby towns. Tacoma had called her rike | same time as Seattle. Various unions in Rei struck. Everett sent a delegation to state that work was sent to Everett from Seattle they wou out their men. The mine workers from Taylor oj ered financial assistance. at The Renton mine workers. being stated ‘will the . Seattle Central Labor Council, struck. Other organi- ~ zations of mine workers sent good wishes Begs ihe statement that they stood ready to strike if the move- ment was made statewide. Meantime the Committee of Fifteen had been ealled — upon for additional minor exemptions. They granted | permission to the street car men to appoint six of their watchmen for the car barns. They ‘gaye permits to~ the plumbers and steamfitters for seven men to act in emergencies only under the direction of the Plumbers’ Union. These details are of particular interest in show- ing the closeness with which.the city was tied up, and the inevitable result in placing power in the hands of the strike eommittee over many aspects of wich eity’s life. I. W. W. Cards Recognized for Meals. On Friday morning a new issue came before the gen- eral strike committee. A committee from the Transport — Workers, an I. W. W. organization, appeared to pro- test because their ‘‘red cards’’ were not recognized at the strikers’ commissaries. At these eating houses the general public paid 35 cents, while men with union cards were admitted for 25. The general strike committee voted that all ee ecards, regardless of affiliation, should be recognized cognized in the eating places. This instance of a tendency to eut across thio pees that existed before the strike also eame out im diseus- sion ¢oncerning the Japanese workers, who had struck in unison with the Americans. After much discussion ~ between those who wished to offer the Japanese full representation on the general strike committee and those who wished only to send a committee to confer with them, it was finally decided to invite them to have seats in the general strike committee, but with-" out vote. 30 Pe inbiory- demand of the mayor that the strike be called off. It was perhaps the very completeness and bi " stiecess of the strike, together with the alarm of the ; business men, that brought him to take this aggressive attitude. ©. Af all events, Mayor Hanson, who 36 hours before * st had spent long hours conferring with the Committee of Fifteen regarding city light, suddenly adopted a . different position. He issued a proclamation to the ie people, announcing that he had plenty of soldiers to ' maintain order; he sent word out by the United Press _ throughout the country that he was putting down an - .. ‘attempted Bolshevik revolution. And he sent ‘word _ to the general strike committee that he wished at once _ to see their representatives. : _ To these representatives he declared tat ative the _ strike was at once called off he would reopen all in- | _ dustries, using soldiers and declaring martial law if _ necessary. The time first fixed by the mayor was Fri- _ day at noon, but as it was noon before his communica- tion finally reached the general strike committee he deferred the hour till 8 o’clock Saturday morning. ‘Already there were members of the committee who had been from the beginning in favor of a limited strike. But, according to the statements of committee members, this action of the mayor ’s solidified resist- if iar This view of the mayor’s intrusion was given by - Ben Nauman the following Wednesday at the Central Labor Council: “Ole attempted to call the strike off at noon of Fri- day, and said that if we didn’t do it he’d declare martial ’ law. Then he said that unless we declared the strike _ off Saturday morning he’d declare martial law. We didn’t declare it off, and Ole didn’t declare martial law. Finally, he made many of the members of the commuit- . tee so mad we couldn’t declare it off ourselves.’ THE STRIKE CALLED OFF. The picture of the calling off of the strike given by a Mayor Hanson to the press of the country was dramatic enough. It is significant that it was not printed in the 8h try, the Gieateals Papen ‘Council, wh of the heads of the different unions, the radicals——Labor tried to run ever ‘We refused to ask exemptions from seat of government is at the City Hall 1,000 extra police, armed with rifles an told them to shoot on Sight anyone ¢ We got ready for business. **T issued a proclamation ‘that all li would be protected; that all business usual. And*this morning our municipal light, power plants, water, etc., were. *blast,; +... - “There was an attempted revolutio to first, basa,” ‘vu ae Head, This was the account of the Seattle by the mayor of Seattle. Later, the good advertiser, but he lost his head ec spent $50,000 of taxpayers’ money for which was never needed. , facoma spe Tacoma had no trouble.’ ; How the Mayor Shifted His It was not until the second day of in a most Neg manner. Lat ‘Now boys,’’ he said, ‘‘I want my ee : my water, and the hospitals, That’s all. about the car line or the other departmen: Perhaps it was the very completeness or perhaps the pressure from meeting men. Or possibly the tilt with Green 32 iers: apd uno Bioont i citizens to go about hei _ business as usual. - He also called up James Duncan and said that the strike must close by noon. When Mr. Duncan replied that. this was impossible, he asked that the Executive _ Committee of the Strike should come to his office at - onee. He was told that this message would.be trans- mitted but that the committee was very Ausy and armen be unable to come,as a body. . The Executive Committee sent a ‘sub-committee of \, Veta ‘members to conicr with the mayor. The mayor urged them to call off the strike, saying that if the pices could be settled locally they had won ‘‘hands. _down,’’ but that Mr. Piez must be seen, and that ‘‘that at group”? had already double-crossed the city and were oir “probably double-crossing the shipyard workers. He offered if the strike were at once called off, to ‘‘lock up his desk and go to Washington with them, to try to et the wages of the lower paid men raised,’’ a demand ich he declared to be just. . In ease the strike were not called off, he threatened martial law. The committee replied that they were not afraid of martial law, and if that was the mayor’s next card, they had still ‘other cards themselves. The gas. workers had not been ordered out, and the mine _ workers of the state were ready to go out. Pet gis you want this strike to spread, declare martial law,”? they said. ‘‘And furthermore, you,don’t know how the boys in Camp Lewis will stand on the ques- tion of strike-breaking.’’ shy “By G—,’’ said the mayor, “‘if they are not loyal I as want to k ae “TE you want to see the streets of Seattle run with blood to satisfy your curiosity about loyalty, we don’t’’ “hs _Teplied Mr. Dunean. aes i Peaentahives: of the Conciliation Bbard, ie latter ‘might be able to present some offer which they could ake to the men as a reason for going back. Conse- ently the mayor ealled J. W. Spangler, a banker, nd os A. Matthews, down to the office, as rep- a, ro 33 Mr. Spangler said ie vise repor further conference was then fi - evening, : Tone Seems Ch When Mr. seg retuned: t the labor men by their first nam short, stating that ‘“‘his people’? this was a revolution and they revolutionists. He admitted that he fooled’’ and did not consider it a rey ‘this people’’ did; and that they refu any way until the strike was called ‘‘That’s final, is it, Spangler?”’ sai being told that it was he said to th mittee: ‘‘Then that’s all there is to From this time on the mayor the strikers. He threatened ma statement to the press of the ‘€o strike as a revolution. The interpretation of his action 2 since that time has been that he tried, tician, to play both sides, but when it to choose, he sided with the business S After the strike was over, when city were being penalized for havi and when officials of the Central | to the mayor to intercede for the ‘“You think we couldn’t run an o if we wanted to,’’ clearly indi dropped his attitude of of hostility, labor movement for one of hostili The Fateful Saturday Ml Many striking inaccuracies ocouni ment made to the press of the ‘courier proclaimed. The fact was that he I -regarding exemptions for ae **T issued a proclamation and t were running full blast.’’ The bit ae proclamation was phat seven cars began to he Tun on the Municipal car line. _ The water, power and lights had been running from the beginning. On Saturday morning, the time when the: mayor called upon business to resume under his _ protection, business simply did not resume. _ .Yhe main car lines of the city were not running. A - pltare taken of Second and Pike streets, one of the _ busiest corners of the city, at 9 o’clock on Saturday "morning, shows a deserted city. Teamsters, trucks and Sich were ‘absent. “The restaurants were closed. ue What Did Stop the Strike. What did stop the strike, then, if the mayor’s procla- _ mation had so little effect. Pressure from international officers of unions, from executive committees of unions, from the ‘leaders’? in in the labor movement, even from _ those very leaders who are still called ““Bolsheviki” by: - the undiseriminating press. -And, added to all these, the pressure upon the workers themselves, not of the loss of their own jobs, but of living in a city so tightly closed. _ Saturday morning at 8 o’clock, the hour specified Vibe the mayor for the reopening of industry, saw the -General Strike still in full swing. The strike commit- tees were still discussing exemptions, and sending dele- gates to other cities to “explain the strike and ask for rors oscin But the Executive Committee of Fifteen was seri- ously considering a resolution for calling off the strike. It was realized “that in some form or other the city _would have to resume some activity soon. On Saturday afternoon this committee brought in to the General Strike Committee a resolution fixing Saturday night as the close of the strike. This had been passed by a vote of 13 to 1 in the Executive Committee, one mem- ber being absent and one voting against. it. _, The resolution follows: = _ WHEREAS; the unparalleled autocratic attitude of Charles &zE Piez, General Manager of the Emergency Fleet Corpora- ig tion, in refusing to permit the shipyard employers and em- oe ployes © of this community to enter into a mutually satisfac- tory agreement as to wages and working conditions (which would not add to the government cost one penny) so aroused 35 the indignation of all uniogjsts’ ‘in Seat to express that indignation © rough the strike; and WHEREAS; it has pay ic recognized of such a strike would be extremely limit no good could be accomplished by .contin definitely: and WHEREAS; on the 7th day of Februa Strike Committee was in session delib visability of calling off said strike on : object had been fully attained brewed workers in other ship building centers and ; WHEREAS; the ill-advised, hysteri proclamation of Mayor Ole Hanson trem fact that it suggested coercion; and - WHEREAS; martial law has been s' made to throw the military forces of th ance on the side of the employing intere WHEREAS; .thirty thousand shipyard on strike for a period of sixteen days, % a out so much as a fist fight or any oth . now, therefore be it 5 RESOLVED; that we recommend that ) strike, excepting the shipyard workers midnight, Saturday, February 8, with. the” all. persons who went on strike return tions, holding themselves in readiness f eall from the General Strike Committe to secure a satisfactory adjustment of mands within a reasonable length of time RESOLVED; that Organized Labor o press to the Mayor, and all others, its action taken, and announce that as Jaw have no fear of martial law or ‘any other | used by those presumed to represent the reality are representing only one class; an RESOLVED; that we take this opportu to the strikers our deep appreciation and a splendid spirit, and order maintained ini; and aggravating circumstances. P Not Yet Ready to Quit All afternoon and all night the in the General Strike Committee. — Many of the most prominent mén o ment, including the persons who ha 36 x ue Hi f Tn one of their arguments, however, after a dis- “‘eussion which lasted eatil 4:12 in the morning, the vot- ing of the General Strike Committee showed such an . overwhelming defeat of the resolution that it was unanimously decided to continue the strike. It was _ obvious that the Executive Committee of Fifteen and the old-timers in the labor movement were more cau- tious than the larger committee just elected from the rank and file. Y ‘But the break had already begun to appear. Whether - the recommendation of the Committee of Fifteen was “lnerely a wise forecast of what was about to happen, ‘or whether their action and the uncertainty about the dosing of the strike’ gave encouragement to the thought of returning, by Monday morning, when the General Strike Coimmittee again met, several unions _ had gone back to work, under orders from international officers or from their own executive committees, in many cases. hastily called and without full attendance. In no case is it recorded that this return was taken by the rank and file. - Most important of these unions were the Street Car | en and the Teamsters. ~The former reported that they had returned by order of their Executive Committee on recommendation of an international officer, but that they would come out again if called by the Gen- eral Strike Committee. “The Teamsters had also returned on retommienddation: lat the Joint Council of Teamsters, but the rank and file had ealled another meeting for Monday afternoon at ma which it was predicted that they would go out on strike } again, vs An incident in connection with the.return of the - Teamsters to work is enlightening, as it shows what results may happen through a mingr personal friction. On Sunday evening Auditor Briggs, international of- _» ficer of Teamsters’ Union, appeared before the Commit- Bly Hee AOL Fifteen and stated that he had tried to gain the floor both in the Central Labor Council and at the Gen- veral Strike Committee and had been denied admission. : oe abe that it was as aresult of this attitude toward . 37 him (an A. F. of L. representative and an international officer) by the persons responsible for the strike that he had ordered the Teamsters back, and that he ley have acted differently if he had been treated | ate bodies as the Committee of Fifteen had treated Roll Call on Monday Shows Some 331 A few other scattering unions were found Res from their places when the General Strike Committee met on Monday morning. The Barbers had gone back, instructed thereto by a meeting of their Executive Com- mittee. At this meeting a member of the Lady Bathow was also present, arriving late, and through this fact some confusion arose, a few of the Lady Barbers going back to work without the knowledge of their officers. The majority, however, led by their own Executive Com- mittee, remained out. As a matter of fact all the women’s unions showed a strong feeling of loyalty towards the strike, many of them outlasting the men of the same eraft. «< - The Stereotypers were also back at work, reporting that they had been under severe pressure from their international officers, but had only gone back on the: report made to them on Saturday night, that the strike . was being ealled off. The Auto Drivers, Bill Posters, Iee Wagon Drivers, Milk Drivers were not present and were reported as having returned to work. Some of these organizations belonged to the Joint Council of Teamsters and were included in the he order that was issued by that body. It was reported that the newsboys had heen ordered back by a small meeting of their Executive Committee, at which not even a quorum was present, but that they were holding a general union meeting that evening to settle the question, All other unions were still out on strike and many of them voted enthusiastically to remain ‘‘to the last diteh.’’ A few unions, while sticking by the strike, vepared that it might involve them in great hardship, The Sailors’ Union, for instance, felt that by striking they 38 A " es placing the Seaman’s bill in ieee The Hotel Maids stated that, since they were a small union with much competition from non-uhion girls, they stood to lose their jobs. _ At the end of the Monday morning session the Hx- oy ecutive Committee of Fifteen again submitted a re- _ vised resolution, calling for all unions which had re- turned to work to go out on strike again, in order that ‘all might return in a body the following day, Tuesday, at noon. The resolution was passed almost at once by the General Strike Committee. The voting was confined to the ‘‘allies’’ or sympa- thetic strikers, the shipyard workers not being granted @ Voice. _ The text of the resolution was as follows: Whereas, this strike committee now assembles in the midst of the general understanding of the true status : of the general strike; and Whereas, the Executive Committee is sufficiently i fnatiatied that regardless of the ultimate action that the - rank and file would take, the said committee is con- -vineed that the rank and file did stand pat, and the stampede to return to work was not on the part of the — rank and file, but rather on the part of their leaders. (However, be it understood that this committee does not question the honesty of any of the representatives of-the general movement.) Therefore, be it . Resolved, that the following action become effective at once, February 10, 1919: _ That this strike committee advise all affiliated unions that have taken action to return their men to work, that said unions shall again call their men to respond im- mediately to the call of the rank and file until 12 noon ‘February 11, 1919, and to then declare this strike at a “successful termination, and if developments should then _ make it necessary that the strike be continued, that _ further action be referred to the rank and file ex- clusively. In the evening the Teamsters reported that a meet- ing of the rank and file had unanimously voted to strike sett again till Tuesday noon in accordance with the recom- _. mendation of the General Strike Committee. 2) Ttl was penerally ene that the Street Car Men 39 would also strike again, since they had reported _ on Sunday to the Committee of Fifteen that their Hxeeu- tive Committee had full power to call them out again, if it seemed needed in the interests of solidarity, and sinee they had reported on Monday to he General Strike Committee that they would go out called to do so by the General Strike Committee. — It“took, however, some hours to summon a meeting of the Street Car Men’s- Executive Committee, who were at work; and when they were called together, they stated that a meeting of the men to decide on the matter could not be held in time. Consequently the street ear men did not come out again. The meeting of Newsboys took a vote andl depied to remain on strike till Tuesday noon. So also did: Bae meeting of Auto Drivers. It will be noticed that all cases in whieh the unions \oted on the question were decided in fayor of the re- quest of the General Strike Committee, while all in which the Executive Committees or the international officers,.took action, were decided against the Wie ean? Strike Committee. This fact was apparent from*the beginning on Mies strike to its close—that it was not a strike engimeered | by leaders, but one voted for, carried on, and kept up by that part of the rank and file which attends union meetings or takes part in referendum votes. The in- Aaa of recognized ‘‘leaders’’ was in every ease on tae side of greater caution and conservatism a was ictually displayed. . CONSTRUCTIVE ACTIVITIES OF eres FEEDING THE PEOPLE. Among the pieces of constructive oreauane ae ‘ear- ried on during the *general strike were the supplying — of milk to babies by the milk wagon drivers’ union, — the handling of hospital laundry by joint agreement between the laundry. drivers, laundry workers and laundry men; the feeding of the strikers and many of. the general publie by the provision trades, and the maintaining of Bublic peace by the Labor War. Da ive Guard. OH ane 40 ey F eae Milk Stations for Babies. The arrangements made by the laundry drivers a aundry workers for handling hospital laundry are “elated elsewhere. The milk wagon drivers at first at- mpted to make a similar type of agreement with the ilk dealers or dairy owners. They worked out a plan for neighborhood milk stations all over the city, # shad for downtown depot stations from which delivery ieee be made to hospitals. This plan was submitted to the employers. It was soon efelt -by the union that the employers were at- : tempting to direct the operation of the plan in such a way as to gain eredit for themselves in relieving the milk ‘situation of the city. Furthermore, the plan of the employers ‘involved opening of downtown dairies only, which the union believed would leave thousands x, of babies, and especially of the poorer classes, unable to get milk. The milk wagon drivers’ union therefore withdrew fraiet the attempt to work together with the employers 3 rca established through their own organization 35 neighborhood milk stations all over the city. The em- _ployers meantime combined together and operated one - -pasteurizing plant at which they themselves. did the work, and from which they distributed milk to the yarious dairies in the city, For this distribution they applied for exemption of one truck, and the milk wagon drivers’ union endorsed their request’ to the iS a general strike commtitee. The hospitals were required ae come to these dairies for their supply of milk. Arranged All Over Town. "The dairies thus supplied by the milk dealers were only eleven in number, so located that it would have been impossible for the mothers of Seattle to secure - milk unless they owned automobilés. The milk wagon “ drivers therefore chose 35 locations properly spaced throughout the city, secured the use of space in stores, _ and-proceeded to set up neighborhood milk stations. The stations were announced as open from 9 till 2, but the milk was always gone before noon. The - amount handled increased as the days went on until about 3,000 gallons were handled in the various sta- "41 tions. The first day the supply ran noticeably ae especially in some parts of town, but by the third day of the strike the irregularities were ironed out and the supply was more adjusted to the need. ' The milk was brought into town by the small private dairymen, whose dairies were near the had consequently been thoroughly inspected by the board of health. It was raw milk, pure, and authorized for babies. Each dairyman was given the address of a different milk station and made his deliveries direct. The over-supply at some and under-supply at others was changed the second day by a small amount of de- livery handled by the milk drivers’ union between stations. Union Loses Money. — The men at the milk stations gave their services bree: and as a result the union stood to make a small profit on their activities in spite of the loss in efficiency which always occurs when a new system is put into effect. But this gain was more than offset by heavy losses in connection with the supply of milk to the strikers’ eating places. The estimate of the number of people who would have to be fed was much heavier than the ~ number of those who actually came, some 3,000 gallons of milk ordered for these kitchens were never re- quired, and as the milk drivers’ union had contraéted for this with the farmers they stood the loss. The milk came from distant farms and could not have been transferred to the milk stations, because it was unin- speeted and not usable for babies. A loss of $700 was therefore sustained by the milk wagon drivers’ union as part of their contribution towards meeting an emer- gency in the city of Seattle. The union has, however, gamed in an understanding of the milk problems of a large city, aid in ability to do the teamwork of co-operation whenever, in the in- — evitable development of industry, it is seen desirable to handle the milk of the city as a co-operative unit. Feeding the Strikers. The heaviest and most complicated job of organiza- tion fell to the provision trades, charged with feeding 42 he late ora and aint members of the general pubhe t as desired to patronize the strikers’ commissaries. The restaurants of Seattle are almost 100 per cent i ganized. When the vote of the cooks and assistants, the waiters and waitresses threatened to close them down the restaurant owners took the matter phil- i osophically. Many of them offered their kitchens to Me the: cooks for the preparation of food for the strikers, ‘and some offered their entire establishments to the. vunions for the duration of the strike. It was realized that the feeding of people through a i ae large restaurants would be much simpler and “less | expensive than feeding them in specially arranged halls. But for various reasons the offer of the restaurant. owners was refused. Chief among these reasons wi the fact that to take a few restaurants and omit othe would be unfair to the owners who were omitted.” wi “One restaurant owner said to the union: “Sure, é take my whole place and run it. , When you boys get through I'll have some business.’’ The truth behind: this remark made it impracticable to take some restau: - rants and leave others. In a few of the outlying dis- tricts, where it could be done without discrimination, an occasional restaurant was taken over in its entirety for the duration of the strike, with the consent of the _ owners. Open Twenty-one Eating Places. ‘Some 21 eating places were opened in various parts of the city. The food was cooked in large kitchens, the use of which was donated by different restaurants, and was then transported to various halls where is was served, cafeteria style. The original plan called for each person to bring his own “‘eating utensils,’’ but this caused so much dissatisfaction that large quantities ot paper plates and pasteboard cups were bought, to- gether with small an ea of dishes, tin cups, knives, __ forks and spoons. vr The trials of the commissary department were many. + fe It had to organize the supply of a large but quite un- -. known number of meals. It faced difficulties in pp ing provisions, in transporting cooked materials, bringing the volunteer cooks to and from their aes Vues of these problems depended on the working to- 43 gether of people who had not had time > to ‘become welded into a complete organization. neat Delay was experieneed on the opening | idlay: mae many causes. Some of the kitchens promised were withdrawn atthe last moment, and the bane Sl provisions sent there had to be taken arrangements for transporting cook geo te place to another did not work perfectly. In many. TARY the first meal of the day was not ready until 4 or 5 in the afternoon. When it arrived there was only the smallest possibly supply of dishes, and the patrons had . not noticed the order that each must brmg his own. There was no corps of dishwashers to keep up the ‘meager supply of dishes until the waitresses’ union, . assisted by: patrons, leaped into the breach and organ: izedethis very necessary branch of serviee. — Many of the strikers had been without food all Hane as the restaurants had not been open for breakers Consequently on the first day there was a tink sot - amount of inevitable grumbling from hungry men. the second day, however, the difficulties were m reduced and meals ebgan to appear with regularity. Zeal and Sacrifice Under Difficulties. The amount of zeal and sacrifice of many of the cooks deserves special mention. It was expected that they would be taken to and from their work by the auto drivers’ union, but these arrangements did not always work at first, and men who had labored 12 to 14 hours: at the hardest-kind of work sometimes founé themselves faced with a five-mile walk home, and an-. other day on the morrow of the-same kind of labor. i: Through all these difficulties the commi mC mittee, consisting of William Hinkley, Bert’ Oy William Wilkening and Harry Nestor, with the pay assistance of Fred Leandoys, business agent of the cooks, made persistent headway. They had greatly overestimated the number of people that would need to be fed, for many people stayed at home for one or all meals. In the end they were serving 30,000 meals a day with little trouble or friction. It was a task the magnitude of which only those can appreciate who. have attempted to feed even a thousand people with 44 . oes took she in. : this order, sometimes with- ae all the eating houses. ‘On the final day he price was 25 cents to everyone. fi This eovered a full and very substantial meal of beef stew, with large chunks of beef and whole potatoes ¥ amd carrots, spaghetti with tomato sauce, bread and ve coffee. On some days the menu was varied by steak, FAL pot roast and gravy, in place of the stew. It will be seen that the diet chosen was by no means an inex- __-pensive one, especially as every person was allowed as : much as he ‘eould eat. 4 _ »- Money Loss of Kitchens. _ De tier the strike was over and the committee of the iy - Metal Trades who had-guaranteed the bills added up their eacounis they found a loss of some $6,000 to " Le 000. ep str Nearly a1, 000 worth of bread was left on the last day and tid to be given away. Over $1,000 had been - food from place to place. In addition to this the first Cae day of the strike showed a loss, for this day alone, of over $5,000, due to the difficulties of getting started and the spoiling of much food which soured before the next day. Much of this was due to overestimating the number of meals that would be necessary, and much of it to the fact that a few hours was not long operation into running order. “Tf the strike had lasted four or five days more,’ states Bert Swain, secretary of the Metal Trades con eil, ‘we would have come out even, and after that, reduced the price. Another time there should be some some one person in charge of transportation. We did : tation work paula. be.’ he PRESERVING THE PEACE. 45 spent on equipment, and $1,500 for trucks to haul the » enough to get the ‘machinery of transportation and ' one'caterer at the head for the buying of supplies, and . not realize how large a feature of the job the transpor- — it was the universal testimony that never had a strike Bro hal been carried on so peacefully as the Seattle alerale strike. ‘‘Sixty thousand men out and not even a fist- fight’’ was the way the labor group expressed it. The city was far more orderly than under ordinary — conditions. The general police courts arrests sank to 32 on the first day of the strike, 18 on the second, and 30 on the Monday morning report for Sattrday and Sunday. Not one of these arrests was due in any way to the strike. Maj. Gen. Morrison, who came over from Camp Lewis in charge of troops, told the strikers’ committee which called upon him tiat in 40 years of military éxperience he had not seen so quiet and orderly a eity. Reasons Given for Order. What was the reason for this order? Mayor Hanson says it was secured by his extra police. ““They knew we meant business and they started no trouble,’” he declared, in the pronouncement sent broadcast through- out the country. ‘“‘“While the business men and the authorities pre- pared for riots. labor organized for peace.’’ Such is the statement of a reporter from a meh city, who | came to get a first-hand view. Robert Bridges, president of the port of Seattle, wrote a letter to the Central Labor Council in whieh he declared that’ ‘‘it was the members of organized labor who kept order during the strike. To them and to no one else belongs the ecredit.”’ ‘“It was a great spiritual victory for organized la- bor,’’ he declares, ‘‘a victory that cannot be taken from you notwithstanding many assertions that others than yourselves were responsible for preserving that pepe and order.’ He alluded to the show of force and the calling in of the troops as ‘‘an aggravation’’ rather than a help, tending to give labor the impression that violence was expected from them. ‘‘ Notwithstanding these extra- ordinary precautions, which were an extreme aggra- vation to them, the members of organized labor re- strained themselves and went about their way quietly and peaceably. I sincerely hope that this will establish a precedent for future strikes.’’ 46 ae is no doubt that large ‘numbers of business n in Seattle believed the view that has been sent roadcast throughout the nation, that it was the action r sing the police force by six hundred men, and i deputizing some 2,400 citizens of all varieties with the right to carry guns, that stopped a bloody and violent # in “revolution i in the Northwest. This is the time honored 4 * method of the authorities, and the business world as a ee class believes in it, and expects machine guns to pre- ACY vent bloodshed. — RES Bitterness Among Business Men. _ Bitterness was great in the businéss world. Some Aig reasons. why it was greater among them than among pe ‘the strikers may be touched on later; here we will ? merely quote the statement made to the ewriter by .a _ prominent public official who was mixing much with both sides: ‘‘It is only necessary to mix among the business men of this city and then among the strikers, and hear their remarks, or even watch their faces, to - find out which ones have murder in their hearts !”’ a It was a commonly noticed fact that women on trains _ running into Seattle, or in elubs, or in gatherings of - other kinds, expressed the view that those strikers ought to be stood up Against a wall and shot down.’ Two weeks after the strike, a prominent business man remarked to friends: ‘‘If that strike had lasted a few days longer, there would have been some people hung.”’ The expectation, even the desire, to see the streets run with blood, was heart constantly i in business offices. “JT had four hundred requests for guns,’’,said one proprietor of a hardware store, ‘‘and not one from a laboring man, as far as Leould judge them,’’ Two thousand four hundred eitizens, according to the -Inayor ’s statement, were given authority to use stars. and guns. The process by which this authority was secured is thus described by two young men who were deputized: “We went into an office and held up our hands and : somebody mumbled some oath or other and they pinned Guigk: star on us and turned us loose.’ 47 of Mayor Hanson in bringing in machine guns, in- and it would be no bluff when he dee ‘strike. But not one single copy of major general did not even know of One responsible business man w order to ‘‘protect his property’’ two ‘‘young kids’’ who had just bs who were. openly exulting in the striker.’’ Soldiers Brought In addin to the armed men Tt was fortunate for the ine of § diers came under the charge of a nan Morrison. Vested, in the absence of | from our shores, with the right to if he deemed it necessary, he appe duct himself im such a manner as of strikers who called upon him : mayor’s threat of martial law he martial law was necessary, he himse! ealling in of the soldiers. One is a “literature” about the strike which ed not aus page of authent the strikers. Denuneiations in untempered lan uage business sheets, together with unauthor some of which seemed to come from the EB there in abundance. The whole colle foster a belief in the revolutionary nouncements published by the strike not a copy of the Union Record or the of which over 100,000 had been sent the Union Record, the official organ ( circulation of any newspaper in. the N 4 compiled the collection of ‘‘informatior not known, but its Intent was obvious. 48 teed interesting fact is that when ‘the writer ° of this history called upon the successor of Maj. Gen. orrison, to secure information regarding the calling. ot of the troops, such information was not available. The officer in charge stated that he was not authorized to inform the people of Seattle either the number of ) men sent over, nor at whose request or order they had ey been sent, nor for what purpose they were in the city, whether to guard government property or to give gen- eral aid in ease of trouble. It thus appears that mili- _ tary authorities may be quartered in an American city, and the people of that city be denied the right to know _ at the time or afterward for what purpose or at whose ie ge ak they have come and what they propose to do. Labor Organizes for Order, Meanwhile the strikers ‘‘organized for peace and or- _ der.’? They realized that they had nothing to gain and everything to lose by a riot in the streets. The tone of the editorial comment in the Strike Bulletin _ and the Union Record, both before and after the strike, shows a marked absence of bitterness and a prevalence of good humor. “A machine gun may be a good argument, but it does mighty little execution “where there are no crowds’’ was one little squib intended to discourage the forming of large groups in the streets. a _ “Wild rumors are floating around. Be careful how you believe them. The worst of these tales yesterday _ was that the strikers had blown up the city water dam. Whoever started this is responsible for much unneces- sary mental anguish. The strikers are not blowing _ up anything.’’ So runs another of the ‘‘Strike Notes. “Keep quiet. Let the other fellow do the quarrel- ing, »” was another slogan passed around. “The Strike Bulletin commented favorably on the use of public libraries which had increased with a tre- _mendous bound during the strike, and urged small ee community sings and recreational gatherings for the _- purpose of * ‘making the most of your leisure time.’ sae And it ended: ‘‘This is fine weather for a vacation, ee Sh shea cate iame on “‘Keep Siting? poked gentle fun at ~~ 49 ¥ Tf there is any shooting done, it will ‘ane: salen oppeene new ential ae their way through crowds at the Labi ‘urged the workers to remember that ‘ 18 you thought you ran *he pron? a angry at the youths. Labor’s War Veteran s iy addition to this constant stre in the interests of quietness and ord 300 unin men who had seen servi or navy were organized into Labor A. Rust, head of the Seattle Labor Tem an old and tried and rather conserv organized labor, was at the head. In an interview with the mayor I Mr. Rust was told that he could have h and given police authority if they wo1 and be sworn in. He refused this su ‘‘We think it will reassure the pub said, “‘that we have no guns. W keep order in our own ranks with “We Have No G Serawled across the blackboard a at ¢ t quarters of the War Veterans Guar : ‘of any sort, but to use persuasion of, arguments about the strike and disco from them.’ by one of the volunteers: oy veld said, ‘‘and say: ‘Brother working your own good. We musn’t.have er used as an excuse to start any tro would answer : “You're right, brother, seatter.’ This was the method used in disp that gathered when the first unsucces "50 uM € e, and then Hidpy ing eye and s saying ‘get out of | wine le f Shooting” ’ Star. yf the ‘ ‘ageravations’ * mentioned by Mr. Bridges - ding to pr disturbance, but which failed Seripps pee 2 aa ‘until the advent of the circulation by the time the strike occurred almost cut in two. ith the help of men who worked under the direct of international officers, the Star Pa en a a of the Labor Guard talked to the boy, ex- ¢ what seabbing meant. The youth declared would stop if he could get back to the Star poperor the guard hailed a passing automo- “ith a cordon of ‘police drawn 1 up at both ends reet. ‘The papers were passed out by police ge aa Ena eeideice: districts In machines f Seattle. Tt has ath alluded to in spon- ' A Permanent Gain. por War Veteran Guard was organized with quarters, each with a chairman and secretary for eicht- hour. shifts day and night. The large were in every instance exceptional ap- individuals, the kind one instinctively classes ers. of men.”’ The groups acting under them 51 a eous cartoon and comment, as the ‘‘shooting Star.” _ ae were loyal labor men, most of whom could have’ re- ceived from $5 to $6 a day as special police, if they had acted under the police department imstead of vol- unteering their service for labor. But they believed - in the ‘“‘big idea’’ behind the Labor Fis * which one of them expressed thus: “Instead of a police force with clubs, we o neat de- partment of public safety, whose officers will under- stand human nature and use brains and not brawn in keeping order. The people want to obey the law, if you explain it to them reasonably,’’ The Labor War Veteran Guard co-operated with the police force and worked without friction with them. How long this would have lasted cannot be estimated, since, of course, the fundamental prmeiples underlying the two groups are dissimilar. The Labor Guard is to become a permanent organiza- tion in Seattle for the purpose of preserving order in labor’s own ranks, during strikes, parades, public aay ings and similar events. OUR OWN ACTIVITIES Some misunderstanding, intentional or otherwise, was caused by the interpretation given by the daily press to the editorial in the Union Record whieh spoke © of ‘‘opening up more and more activities under our own ~ management.’’ ‘This was held to presage a violent oyer- turning of government and a seizure by force of Pr ¥ erty in the city. As a matter of fact, without disturbance or disorder, more and more activitiés in Seattle have opened under the management of labor; and the move im this direc- tion seems to be only a beginning. A month after the strike, when this was written, union after union is talking co-operative stores of various kinds. These range from the simple desire to start a co- ~ operative workshop in which members of the same union shall. co-operate to produce,—to more elaborate schemes for enlisting groups of unions im starting a department store. The barbers umion is talkmg of a chain of co-operative barber shops. The jewelry work- ers have already opened a store on the Rochdale plan. 52 'h abitiers and p ober are carrying on a flour- shing grocery ae a The interest in “our own activities’? has been tre- sh mendously stimulated by the strike. Both money for NRA cor hae movements and money for patronage come Ff easily. The members of organized labor have had the _ experience of working together and they appear to » y mene more of it. Some of the unions, like the cooks, milk wagon driv- ee ers and laundry workers, have had experience during iF ‘the strike of co- -operation on a large scale. These par- tieular: organizations are not announcing plans for co- oe operation at present, as their relations with their em- _ ployers are satisfactory. But it is evident from the tone of discussion that the rank and file in these or- t ganizations feel a new sense of power to organize and ‘manage activities of their craft or industry. They are f ready to pet it when occasion comes. je ‘Co-operative Markets Stimulated. hg “The Co-operative Meat Market grew greatly during a strike. It had three shifts of men working to sup- ply the strikers’ kitchens. On the first Friday in Feb- ‘ruary, during the strike, this concern did a cash busi- ness of $6,257, including over $3,000 worth of meat et bought by the strikers’ kitchens. The contrast of this with the first Friday in January, when the cash busi- ness was $2,126, or with the entire month of J anuary, when. the business was $37,000, shows the big gain dur- ing the period of the strike. How much of this gain will be permanent cannot be cee ola: Of course the strikers’ kitchens are no longer ry, supplied, but the inerease over the January sales, even after‘the strike terminated, is still noticeable. Some of pr. this x no doubt would have come through natural expan- as 9 sion, but the strike called attention more quickly. x The Co-operative Grocery, (Rochdale plan) traces its Shade growth not only to the strike, but to a raid -eondueted on its office a week before the strike, during ene the books were seized. _ Before that time, a Rees times what | A hed tee before th Membership in the grocery organiz volves a $10 entrance fee, also inc ‘during this period. Much interest s districts, and plans are now discussed for ber of branch stores. In Tacoma the interest’ in Rochde reached a ecliniax, resulting in the estab such stores in a period of two week Ba: time, ‘the Sheet Metal Workers’ II operative shor owned by their org: auto-mechanics laid plans and ‘raised _auto repair shop owued by the union ers and decorators are Bertin a simi way. ! The Pipe Trades Groce One of-the most enthusiastic dev General Strike was the profitless gro steamfitters and plumbers. It was s provisions to strikers at wholesale ¢ head cost of handling. Rent was the Union Record, striking steamfitt so ever since. Then the steamfitters went soit eV and sold ‘‘groecery tickets,”’ entitling the $5.00 worth of groceries. With the receip tickets, together with another $1, 500 ad the organization treasury, and $2, 100 P01 ers, they had capital enough to buy : ou a ness on a prominent corner. 4) Already (a month after the ctriiee Hy rhe potatoes, eggs, butter, meats and milk di farmers, and expect before long to ap from the co-operative mill. They are ni} of $1,800 per day. ‘When the strike rf workers is over and the steamfitters anc baek to work, those who are retained store will be paid wages. The plan Is at 54 $8.00. a day to’everyone employed from the manager down, this being the wagé demanded by their trades. Striking Against Their Own Plants. “Undoubtedly the business of the various union- ge ee activities im Seattle would have received a larger boost, if it had not been for the policy pursued by the strikers of ‘‘striking against their own plants.”’ For when the eapitalistically controlled industries of Seattle were shut down, no discrimination was shown by the strikers; the union owned industries also took a vacation. The underlying reasons for this were many. Among them is the fact that the workers, striking as crafts, ' were naturally in the position of employes, not own- ers, in each particular union-owned industry. To a janitor, the Labor Temple association was as much-of an “‘employer of labor’’ as was the City-County build- ing. _ But the main reason was that the vast majority of the workers, not contemplating revolution, knew that after the strike they would still have to do business in a business world. And the standards of fairness in that world demanded that they should not unfairly favor one of two competing concerns, if they hoped to deal satisfactorily with both again. There was even talk of closing down the Co-opera- tive Market, but the need of food prevailed over this idea. However, the Mutual Laundry shut down; the Labor Temple went without janitors, except for vol- unteers; and the Union Record stopped for a day and a half, This shut-down caused more protest.from the strik- ers than any other in the closing of industries. The Union Record was ‘‘their paper ;’’ many of them hoped to see it sweep the others from the streets as the only paper issued. The craving for news, for printed mat- ter of any kind connected with the strike, became very urgent. It was a need almost greater than that for food. ‘The plant of the Union Reeord, under the dareeton of the Strike Committee with a volunteer force, pub- lished for free distribution a ‘‘Strike Bulletin,’’ a small 55 two-page sheet Wea ek advertisements, and with 6 telegraph news service except such as bere directly Z on the strike. On the afternoon when it was given out, streets, sur- rounding the Union Record office were j ¢ with. a crowd of perhaps 5,000 people. Even the rts Labor Guard were insufficient to keep them away. ' But the Strike Bulletin se.ved only to aggravate the desire for reading matter, and on Saturday, the third day of the wtnikee. after the Star had: disregarded the strike by sending papers out on wagons with armed police, and after. the Post-Intelligencer had managed to issue a four-page sheet which was given away at its own doors, the General Strike Committee directed the Union Record to start printing agam. At the same time, the General Strike Committee assumed full re- sponsibility for the fact that the paper had not been published. The grounds for closing down the Union Roswae are . given by its editor, KE. B. “Ault, and board of directors, as follows: ‘*Since the strike was not revolutionary in intent, the conduct of the official organ of the Central Labor Council was a matter for careful consideration. ‘The printing trades on the other papers had been asked and were expected to strike in concert with all the other trades. After the purposes of the general strike had been served these members expected to go back to work in the offices: from which they had walked out, and the management of the Union Record felt that it would be unfair business practice to take igo Ts of their competitors by operating during the e, and also felt that it would make it much harder for the printing trades to return to their work with continued amicable relations with their employers. ‘‘Then, too, news is as much a part of public seciaie as transpor tation, and since transportation was stopped news naturally should have been stopped in order that the community might know what labor solidarity really meant. The needs of the workers could be and were served by the issuance of a strike bulletin carry- ing all the essential developments of the day. 56 Le baa of the paper has increased tremendously > the strike, and by the further fact that the op- Ps unfairness on our part in conducting the strike.’ THE AFTERMATH. ms ‘There were no arrests during the strike for any mat- ers” liked to remark, ‘‘not even a fist- ficht. x Bat no sooner was the strike over than the county eae auth orities sent-out and arrested thirty-nine members __ of the Industrial Workers of the World, on the charge ey ibe bei *‘rine-leaders of anarchy.’’ ‘Some of these arrests were accomplished by raiding the I. W. W. _ headquarters, and then stationing a plain clothes man in the office of the secretary to arrest all members as - they came in to pay their dues. Most of the members were: soon released, only a few of the more prominent hss being held. ey The Socialist party headquarters was also raided and Foy, “the Socialist candidate for the city council arrested. ‘The Equity Printing Flant, a co- -operative printing es- me tablishment, the stock of which is owned by various al “organizations. of workers and many individual work- '__ ers, was raided, its manager arrested--and the plant closed down. Later the plant was allowed to reopen, for eight hours daily, under the constant surveillance of policemen. The policemen opened the plant in the i s eaeatiaig, locked it up at night, and supervised its operation during the day. A marked falling off in ny Passos was stated to be the result. The cause given for all these arrests was the passing Neat of leaflets during the strike, which were alleged to have been prepared by I. W. W-s or radical Socialists Chief among these was a dodger entitled ‘‘Russia Did The arrested men had no connection with the Cen- tral Labor Council or with the General Strike. They Patan 7 It, ” urging the workers to operate their own industries. " ters connected with the strike. There was, as the strik- ty ~ and to have been printed at the Equity Printing Plant. - dlaimed, Kameiae that they were. a a desire of the authorities to prosec el account of the strike, and that they, | by vane union, were the easiest victims. Central Labor Couneil to come to their o pointed to investigate their ease, andr its opinion no one ‘of the leaflets on whi passed gave any evidence of anarchy poleany but were rather socialistic in th in the Equity Printing Plant, together of the chief of police that he did this 'b tired of what they were prirting ’? remark to a protesting committee committees eame to see him he woul plant entirely. Declaring that an ‘invasion of fi had taken place,’’ through unlawful they announced that ‘“fundamental by favor, and when they are denied denied to all.’’ ; ; While expressing their opposition f -as a dual organization, and urging work r in thé interests of solidarity, to join t movement, they yet recognized the existene case, of ‘‘one common enemy.’ nat i Their recommendation was adopted by a unanimous vote: ‘‘That the Central - that the fundam ntal rights involved which are necessary to our own existene served.’’ ‘ There the cases stand at present (Me several workers, presumably members of arrested on the charge of criminal anare tion with the strike, and the Central L coming to their defense because rik are involved. Hs WON OR LOST? From coast to coast the newspapers dec 58 x He General Strike in Seattle was lost. The Seattle news- ‘papers announced the same fact, declared that the - workers were creeping back to work downeast, that! they had lost their strike. The press then proceeded to offer them many bits of advice and admonition, ehiefiy that they must “‘clean house’’ at once, and get rid of their radical leaders. But strange to say, except for an occasional note of regret, the workers of Seattle did not go back to work with the feeling that they had been beaten. They went smiling, like men who had gained something worth gaining, hke men who had done a big job and done it well. The men went back, feeling that they had won the strike; although as yet, there was: no sign from Washington that Piez would relent On! a/single point. ‘They went back laughin@ at. tlie suggestion that they ‘“‘¢lean house of their radical leaders who’ had tried to aks a Bolsheviki revolution.’’? They knew quite well that these same leaders were jthes mer, who had ‘coun- selled caution and moderation, who had urgéd them to fix a time limit, and:had later urg¢d_a return before the individual unions ‘should start back, one at. a time. They knew that these ‘‘radieal leaders”? wére’ really more conservative than the voting rank and file that goes to meetings; and they were amused at the. at- tempts of the press to make them believe otherwise. They had chosen the strike themselves, and it had been a great experience. Hardly a word of regret was heard from the men who had lost five days’ pay for a cause. It was the men whose business had been hurt, the men who had expected riot and found none, who told Mier they had **failed.’’ So it is worth considering for a moment 6 what ex- tent the Seattle General Strike was won—or lost? What Was the Strike For? | What did the workers expect to gain? What were they striking for? It is easy after we have once had an experience to analyze the complex motives that went into it. But reasoning and analysis cannot take place before there is an experience to learn from. There had never been by) i Hh \ a General Strike in this country. None of Seattle’s workers had ever lived through one. So it is not surprising that we should. be able now to see the fact that many varied motives and reasons entered into the Seattle General Strike, and that we had not had the experience at the time to state fo our- selves very clearly just what we wanted or expected. Some were striking to gain a definite wage inerease for their brother workers in the shipyards. Some few, a very few, were striking because they thought ““The Revolution’’ was about to arrive. But the vast major- ity were striking ‘‘just for sympathy,’’ just as a show of solidarity. The extent to which they were also moved, half.conscidusly,\ hy the various forms of labor’s upheaval going‘ on ‘throughout the world, cannot. be estimated. Conkeiousiyy perhaps, not very much; but unconsciously and instinctively, a great deal. oe and upheavals were in the air. /\ For a\ Definite Gain? Those who struck: for a definite aim—the raise of the wages in the shipyard, did not gain their aim. It is true that men were hurrying here from Washing- ton, D. C., to:look into matters. It is true that some gain may in the end be influenced by the strike. But the sympathetic strikers went back to work with Piez still interfering in the local situation. Possibly one of the reasons why they did not gam a definite end was that no end was stated quite definite- ly and simple enough. And perhaps one lesson’ that other cities may learn from the experience of Seattle is this: ‘‘If you are striking for a definite aim, and refusing to come back until you have Bained it, make your aim so clear and simple that everyone in the city will know the one man on whom to bring pressure, and what one act to demand of him.’ Tf the strikers had said: ‘‘We aré remaining out ~ until Mr. Piez definitely and publicly states that he will leave Seattle employers and employes alone to bargain together over their own aftairs,’’—if they had asked anything so simple as that it is quite possible that the worried business men and the general publie of Seattle would have been led to concentrate their ~ 60 f are asking—a raise in wages in the { something which either Mr. Piez the Seattle shipyard owners alone, or the Chamber of Commerce alone “eould give them. omething ‘that demanded joint action ‘by several + e. nsequently the persons i in the community who being noyed and punished for something which was their ult and about which they had the power to 10% This fact undoubtedly accentuated the g of bewildered bitterness in the business world. j , could see no constructive plan in the strike. tur rally jumped to thoughts of revolution and . For Revolution? workers, of whom there were probably few, tle, were also doomed to Cae pr ae believed that the revolution was at hand. ef as there was occurred in isolated eases in c and file and was expressed by the disappointed _ ery of the boy in the Newsboys’ Union: va we were going to get the industries.’ men who had been longer in Seattle’s labor mt, even those among them who look forward revolution’’ ultimately, were quite certain that not Maeiiyh 2 now. They knew that it was not _the workers of Seattle feel: _themselves, be- itil he gaye in to this definite effects of the general strike had no immedi- or their grievance. They felt that they were ght “‘the social revolution’’ was ready to start” t, while no revolution occurred and none was % the alan ee the osecrat . “stand the way in whieh events are 0 \ the business group, ened their old lack of violence which we noticed authority of the strike committee ing in Belfast, and draws comparis¢ general strike. ‘They are singula: Quiet mass action, the tying up of ing of exemptions, until gradually 1 of the: city are being handled by the stril ‘‘Apparently in all cases there is t comes, not ,with- the shifting of p ‘country revolutionaries’ try to reg inevitably and almost-without their from their grasp. Violence would ha if it had come, not from the worker by armed opponents of the strike bers. met “We had no violence in Seattle al That fact should prove that neither #1 tee nor the rank aud file of the wo revolution. rs 4 “But our experience, meanthine) communities all over the world, whe not being called off, slips gradually mto © of more and more affairs by the a cor into the general strike—the reason 4 plest and the most important. The struck to express solidarity. And they yond their expectations. Ae They saw the labor movement come one man and tie up the industries of the saw the J apanese and the I. W. W.s and ual workers join in the strike, and they a glow of appreciation. They saw and ey wagons boing ny the : They came close for the first e problem of management.’’ é ead that the Abo movement of Seattle was 1 = strong.’ For they were quite aware that it is why they went back fou the ‘‘glorious ”? feeling that they had won.. Not perhaps ex- the things they set out to win, but something "4 Srerit, whether this be the explanation or not, remains that the workers went back» most of not feeling defeated, but feeling quite reason- cessful, glad they had struck, equally glad to off, and especially glad to think that their ex- would now be of use to the entire labor move- the country as it makes its plans for the general strike, by giving the necessary infor- net them. for the giving of this deel lene adda ato that both its successes and its mistakes will be ‘ial Gm! 1 of just what happens in a community when a— l1 strike occurs, what problems arise, and how one jon, the labor movemert of Seattle rejoices to Form 335. 25M—7-38—S news Irom a Fresh vase int. = All thie -will he deliveiod io youre except Sunday for the smz2'l sum month, one-half of which goes to. who makes the delivery. Call us at Elliott 4471 or address 6 | Seattle, Wash. — wut 331.892 $4418 P71546 Seattle,_General Strike Com,_ — Seattle GeneraliStrike—— ISSUED TO