26 Mar 1903
Page 1
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This newspaper page contains 26 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Seattle Star
Location
Seattle, Washington, United States of America
Date
Mar 26, 1903
Page
1
A citywide strike by the IW Car Men’s Union idles 580 trainmen and shuts all Seattle Electric Company streetcar lines from Ballard to Queen Anne. Patrols report no riot, while nonunion crews keep lines moving. police note no immediate mass action, as citizens walk to work amid rain and disruption.
In Tacoma a local streetcar strike centers on union recognition rather than wages. Union leaders and company officials clash over whether nonunion workers can fill striker vacancies while inspectors and foremen face accusations related to organizing efforts. The dispute is framed as a principle fight with no concessions in sight.
Beattie Electric Company executive Furth denies Seattle Mieciie company sent workers to Tacoma for 18 cent jobs. He says most Tacoma workers were substitutes paid by the Tacoma firm and notes a 4 cent wage difference. General Manager Grant cites a strike led by longtime company men, with Furth nodding assent.
Twenty six Seattle men arrived in Tacoma to work as motormen on the cars. They receive 37 1/2 cents per hour plus free board and room. They say they were sent Monday by Superintendent Kempster of the Seattle Electric Company and will stay until the strike ends. They wore service stripes and previously earned the highest wages in Seattle.
Mr Furth says he will not remove loyal workers and faces the choice of hiring new staff. He suggests submitting the dispute to a citizen board and warns that discipline may slow operations in Tacoma and Seattle if strikers persist. He appeals for restraint and notes no grievances among the workers.
Report details the formation of a new streetcar union led by S W McCoy and A M Mortensen, an ultimatum to Supt Kempster, and a planned strike to shut down car service. About 30 to 50 members are involved, with organizers aiming for a peaceful, nonviolent action while acknowledging potential trouble from lawless elements. Obstructions were placed at Pike Street and Ballard line areas to disrupt service.
A Ballard line car ran during the strike with Conductor James Badotette and Motorman John Tyler. Strikers at Seattle terminus pressured the crew to quit, but they claimed no notice of the strike. The car finally returned after delays, met jeers, and a cautious reception along Ballard avenue. The boycott affected Ballard residents, travel to Beattie, and seven Seattle-based teachers unable to reach desks while schools remained open.
Bon Marche plans to move 90 delivery wagons with seats to the suburbs to pick up customers during a first day of Spring sale as streetcar strikes disrupt transit. Manager A G Buchanan says the move is to assist customers and is not a shift into general transport. Wagons will display a notice that ladies ride free to the Bon Marche.
About 8 o clock the morning a car on the Pike Street and Broadway line faced a mob of strikers at Fifth Avenue. They surrounded the vehicle and blocked the street for 26 feet while denouncing a nonunion motorman and two electric company staffers. A Western Central Labor Union representative pleaded with the crowd, and the car finally proceeded with no passengers aboard.
The Chamber of Commerce adopted the committee on municipal affairs report approving a new city hall site on the ety hall block and rejecting Third Avenue and Pine Street as a site. Governor McGrawe opposed that option and warned of costs to relocate the fire house and build a new site. A memorial urged talks with Third Avenue property owners on a regrade plan and a petition was discussed but no action taken.
An early morning accident on Queen Anne hill injured a crew and wrecked a city counterweight car. The motorman’s inexperience caused the car to lose control and race down the slope tearing up two feet of track while the vehicle was badly damaged.
A misread dispatch notes a treat car running over pee lines of a large placant Dhaka States Seat during a strike. Strikers declare they will investigate, but no action has occurred yet.
Motorman Trier, who had been operating a car on the line, quit his job today amid ongoing duty concerns and transportation disruptions.
Arbitration provided for Bection and successors and assigns regarding any dispute between grantees and their employees. Submissions are limited to written notice, hearings heard by arbitrators, and any award binding for one year from the date. The grantors J D Low and Jacob Furth, March, transferred ownership to the Beattie Company.
President Furth of the Seattle Bicotrie Company met with Mayor Hume in a conference to discuss an early adjustment. The meeting aimed to represent a joint effort by EPG and allied groups toward peace and reconciliation in the city.
Worn with slogans such as Do You Walk and Mine Is True Do You vendors struggle to supply hundreds of badges. Placards along First Avenue urge Do Not Ride With Beabe as sidewalk crowds surge.
A local mayor rides a bicycle to city hall reflecting ongoing transit wage disputes. Citizens compare Beattie and Tacoma car workers pay while the outspoken Beattie officials express steady resolve in the strike atmosphere.
Incidents aboard a Beattie Electric trolley and another Capitol Line car disrupted service on Pike Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues as strike sympathizers accosted workers and derailed wires. A crowd blocked a car at Union Pike and eggs and missiles were hurled at crews trying to clear the line. passengers remained unharmed.
Strikers boast strong union support with over 100 members joining the union as barn and shop workers follow. Labor HQ says many conductors and motormen are idle, while others not yet in the union stay off the job. Toklas-Singerman & Co. contributes 100 dollars to the union treasury with more pledged if the strike continues. Popular sympathy appears to lean toward the strikers.
Public school operations show no effect from the strike though high school enrollment has declined with students from distant areas and suburbs unable to attend.
A Northern Pacific passenger train struck a team owned by A R oCleod injuring driver M J Burk who was thrown clear as one horse was killed by the impact The surviving horse bolted dragging the injured animal nearly two blocks before stopping Eyewitnesses say the train sped about 20 mph with no warning amid frequent dangers on Railroad avenue and flying switches.
Mayor Humes declined to deploy officers to guard non union workers during a strike. A delegation of strikers asked for protection, but he said he would act only if there is clear threat to peace or destruction of property. He stressed his role is to keep the peace.
A 9 year old boy, son of Charles Robbing, drowned today at noon while fishing near the river. The body has not been recovered despite a search at the scene.
Superintendent Kempster and Chief Sullivan outline police and sheriff protection plans for Beattie Electric Company amid a strike. Officials anticipate outsiders may cause trouble, plan 12 hour patrols, and deploy deputies to guard property if violence can be avoided.
The first arrest linked to the strike is Martin Thomson of Georgetown for cutting a trolley rope on Fourth Avenue and Pike Street. Police say he admitted acting after being told to cut the rope.
Lou Storme a dressmaker jumped from a second story balcony at the Spalding house on Fourth Avenue and Yester Way this morning. She survived with severe shock and possible internal injuries, was taken to Wayside Mission hospital, and appeared likely to recover. No bones were broken. The act followed a breakup with her lover and heavy drinking. two friends restrained her briefly before she escaped again.
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