COMMUNITY NEWS
| Muscatine County, Iowa COMMUNITY NEWS | |
Source: The Iowa City Citizen, Iowa City, Iowa, Saturday, April 15, 1911 pg 1
Submitted by Lynn McCleary, February 22, 2013
Muscatine Situation Unchanged
Manufacturers Refuse to Recognize Union – Check Arbitration
Picket is Threatened
Adjutant General Logan Stops Knights of Pythia Parade Scheduled for Next Sunday
Did Operators Scheme to get Militia Out?(By United Press) Muscatine, April 15. – The situation has been unchanged during the past twenty-four hours. The national guardsmen are maintaining peace and no crowds are allowed to congregate at any place. A picket on the banks of the Mississippi river last night was threatened but on is command to “move on” the would-be-trouble-makers left him alone. Every attempt to solve the trouble by arbitration is met with cold shoulders and the employers refuse to recognize the union in any form. Many statements are being made that the button manufacturers imported the twenty-five strike-breakers especially for the purpose of creating trouble so that the state troops would have to be called out.
Adjutant General Logan has ordered the Knights of Pythia parade scheduled for tomorrow to be postponed.
The strikers held a meeting this morning at 10 o’clock and voted unanimously to maintain law and order and to continue the strike. The soldiers are patrolling the streets and the neighborhood of the factories with fixed bayonets and are having little trouble in keeping the crowds scattered.
President A. L. Urick of the state federation of labor has organized a union of woodworkers of the city.
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Strikers and Curiousity Seekers Gather Around Factory Last Evening but Are Cleared Away
and Workers Escorted Home by the Soldier Lads.(Special to the Daily Citizen) Muscatine, Iowa, April 15. – Company I of Iowa City last evening saw little of real service at 6 o’clock when the factories closed which the members of the company were guarding. A large crowd of curious spectators and strikers had gathered outside of the factory doors and set up a shout and demonstration when the whistles blew for closing. The members of the guard were ordered to clear away the crowd, which offered no resistance to the soldiers. The factory workers were then escorted to their homes by the soldiers without molestation from the strikers. The demonstration did not assume the proportions it reached the evening before when the hotel was stormed.
Capt. Elliott in Command Today
Captain Leroy Elliott I Company is provost marshal today in charge of the companies under Major Ball. This position is held in rotation by the four captains of the four companies of the first battalion who are in the city.
Company I Doing Guard Duty
Captain Leroy Elliott of company duty of guarding the factories of the Automatic Button company and of the Hawkeye Button company. The factories are running their full force out four days of the week and yesterday and today are running only part forces. There are about twenty or twenty-five employees in each of these two factories today, and there will be full forces at work the first of next week as usual. A large proportion of the employees are girls.
Quiet Today
Today all is quiet and there are no crowds gathering around the factories. The four companies are kept constantly busy on guard duty and are worked in four hour shifts. At 5 o’clock I the evening, just before closing time, special shifts are ordered out in order to have greater numbers on duty as the factory employees return to their homes. Last evening there was no demonstration at any of the homes, but an air of general excitement prevailed upon the streets. However, since the taking away of the special police yesterday morning the main cause of the disturbance seems to have been removed.
Sleep in Armory
All four companies are making their headquarters and are sleeping in the armory of Company C, the local company. Last night the men were packed in the room like sardines in a box, but were shifted each four hours. Only one-fourth of the men are on duty at any one time except at quitting time in the evening when special guards are put on duty.
Men in Good Health
All the men of Company I are feeling fine and are in good health and are enjoying the work. The strikers are keeping men on picket duty about the factories all the time.
Will be Away Several Days
The companies will be kept here at least until the middle of next week. If everything goes well they may be sent home at that time. Otherwise, they may be kept here an indefinite length of time as the officials in charges are determined to preserve order.
Page created February 19, 2013