The Pullman Boycott. W. F. Burns
nothing unusual about the depot, there was no boisterous talking, no threats were made, and the few squads of police officers sent there to preserve order, had nothing to do.
Train No. 7, due to leave at 9 o'clock, hauling two Pullman coaches filled with passengers, did not leave on time there being a delay of 30 minutes before it finally pulled out of the depot. After running within one hundred yards of Grand Crossing it stopped, there being a crowd of about five thousand people at this point of whom there was not to exceed one hundred and twenty-five railroad men. The engineer refused to start, and although Supt. Collins expostulated with him it was of no avail, and any further attempt to move the train was abandoned for the time being.
At 11:30 P. M. tower man Cable, who controls the switches at Forty-third street, left his post, and two south-bound suburban trains were whistling for the switches. They were soon joined by three north-bound trains, a freight train, Michigan Central Fast Mail, and Illinois Central Limited, and all were tied up until one o'clock in the morning when the superintendent of terminals threw the switches. The Chicago Great Western, Baltimore & Ohio, Chicago and Northern Pacific and Wisconsin Central were next to fall in line and refuse to handle Pullman cars.
President Debs, after reviewing the situation, asked the men as individuals to consider the problem involved, saying, that if the Pullman Company was right, then the strikers must be wrong, but if you feel assured that those men are only striking to gain that which is every man's right—living wages, then we ask your moral support. There is but one hope for the laborer. Labor must stand by labor. The corporations have now forced a fight upon us by combining to help the Pullman company; they have forced us to combine and use the only weapon which the workingman possesses, the strike and the boycott. The railroads have never done anything for labor that the latter should hesitate to use these weapons.
It is a battle between allied monopoly against the rights of working people, it is a matter of broad humanity. I want to see the switchmen, the car inspectors and other employes wait upon the officials in a manly way, and refuse to handle these boycotted cars.
I want to appeal only to your reason, and not to influence your passion, but I ask you to take a manly stand in the aid of men, women and children who have been ground down by the iron heel of the oppressor.
I would rather be a manly pauper than an unmanly millionaire.
I ask every man, as an individual to think for himself and to do what he thinks to be right.
President Debs appealed to the men to commit no acts of violence but act in strict accordance with the law.
The strike had now reached St. Paul, Omaha, Denver, Trinidad, Cal.; Raton, N. M.; Cincinnati, St. Louis and Duluth, and no intimidation, no threats, no violence of any kind whatever was resorted to. When the men were asked to handle the Pullman cars, they simply stepped down and out.
CHAPTER IV.
AN APPEAL FROM DEBS.
As the light of dawn proclaimed the birth of a new day so the events that this day would bring forth was the all absorbing thought and theme of a great number of the American people.
All were anxious to learn the situation, whether interested in the boycott or otherwise, as by this time the whole western part of the United States had begun to feel the heavy hand of the American Railway Union boycott, and every railroad from the Missouri to the Pacific coast, from Manitoba to Mexico, and all centers of importance in the West, Southwest and Northwest were tied up, because the American Railway Union men, in the cause of humanity and right, would not operate them with Pullman sleepers attached, and the railroad managers, in the cause of oppression, would not allow them to run otherwise.
Thirteen roads centering in Chicago were now completely tied up, the Santa Fe, Chicago & Northern Pacific, Southern Pacific, Chicago & Western Indiana, Pan Handle, Monon Route, Chicago & Grand Trunk, Chicago & Erie, Illinois Central, Baltimore & Ohio, Chicago & Great Western, Wisconsin Central and Cincinnati Southern, and the General Managers had begun to realize the futility of carrying on the fight, and if they had not received encouragement and aid from outside sources, would have in all probability ended the strike at once by dropping the Pullman cars.
As a prominent railroad man said when asked about the strike situation: "It is my opinion that the railroads will drop the fight just as soon as the American Railway Union can demonstrate the fact that Pullman cars can not be hauled without a long and expensive fight with their own employes. I know that this view of the case was taken by some of the managers at a meeting to-day, and Mr. Pullman will be notified that he must make a settlement with his men at once, otherwise the effected roads will drop his cars and resume business."
The Union now felt confident of success. President Debs said: "We are sure to win as our cause is just, there will be no disturbances as the men have orders that there must be no rioting and no interference whatever with the roads, other than to refuse to assist to operate them.
"Whatever the officials can do for themselves with the few men at their command let them do; we propose to be fair and square in this fight, and if within my power to prevent, not one spike belonging to any road will be damaged."
And thus the second day of the great strike came to an end.
June 28th added nine more roads to those already tied up.
The Chicago & Northwestern; Chicago & Alton; Union Pacific; Denver & Rio Grande; Chicago & Eastern Illinois; Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago; Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul; Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, and the Stock Yard Terminals, making in all twenty-two roads out and twenty thousand men on strike in the city of Chicago, and not one act of violence committed that could be charged to a striker.
The Mobile & Ohio at this time succumbed to the boycott and sidetracked its Pullman cars promising not to haul them again until the strike was settled. This rail road is a large corporation, and its surrender to the American Railway Union was considered a great victory, and the directors at once ordered the boycott raised as far as this line was concerned.
Minneapolis and St. Paul was now beginning to feel the effect of the boycott.
The Northern Pacific was the first in the fight, and the same plan of action outlined at Chicago was followed at these points when the time came to make up passenger trains. The switchmen refused to couple on the Pullman's and were discharged.
The mediation committee at once took up the matter with the manager, asking him to re-instate the discharged men, which he refused to do, and as a result the entire system from the Pacific coast to Minneapolis and St. Paul was called out.
This plan was adopted and carried out on all the rail roads entering the Twin cities.
The boycott was no longer a fight in the interest of the Pullman employes alone but had resolved itself into a gigantic contest between organized labor on the one side, and organized capital on the other, and although up to this time there had been no violence, no loud demonstrations, no threats of any kind, the Illinois Central demanded troops to protect their property, and the militia was ordered out. On the Pan Handle the Cincinnati Express had the cars of Mr. Pullman detached, and the officials cried "riot" and asked from Sheriff Gilbert of Chicago a posse to protect the U. S. mail. This was furnished, and although the mail cars were not molested in any way, the officials refused to allow the mail to go forward without the Pullman sleepers attached.
Seven more railroads had now come under the ban of the boycott making in all twenty-nine at the close of the fourth day.
On June 29th President Debs issued the following appeal to railway employes of the country.
"The