12 



THE HARDWOOD RECORD. 



THE IRBEPKESSIBIiE CONFLICT. 



For a couple of weeks past the lumber 

 dealers of Chicago have been threatened 

 with a strike of their teamsters. During 

 the past few montlis all those teiimsters 

 have been brought into an organization 

 and early in the month a notice was left 

 with each lumber dealer setting forth the 

 demands of the union and giving a certain 

 time for the lumbermen to comply with 

 these demands. 



After a number of conferences and much 

 discussion a compromise was effected 

 wherelay the wages of the teamsters were 

 advanced to $11 a week for driving a one- 

 horse team, $12 for driving a two-horse 

 team and $13 for a three-horse team. They 

 will receive 221/2 cents an hour for over- 

 time for single and double teams, and 

 25 cents an hour for overtime for three- 

 horse teams. A year's contract on this 

 basis was signe<l by both parties and a 

 serious strike was thus, in all probability, 

 averted. 



In this case, as in almost all other con- 

 troversies which have occurred between 

 capital and labor m Chicago during the 

 past couple of years, the matter of the ad- 

 vance in wages was not the main issue. 

 Employers are generally willing to concede 

 that in the conditions of increased cost of 

 living and inci'eased general prosperity 

 their men are entitled to an increase of 

 pay, and there is not usually much con- 

 tention over this matter. There was, we 

 understand, practically none at all in the 

 case between the lumber dealers and their 

 teamsters except in regard to overtime. 

 The original request of the teiimsters was 

 for time and a half for overtime, but was 

 objected to on the part of the employers 

 because the work of the teamsters is al- 

 most entirely done beyond the sphere of 

 observation of the boss and the extra pay 

 for overtime would be a temptation to 

 "soldier" on their trips. A compromise 

 was reached in this matter, however, with- 

 out much difficulty. 



The bone of contention in this adjust- 

 ment, as in all others of recent date, was 

 in the matter of the recognition of the 

 unions. The recognition of the union is 

 a recognition of the rights of the employes 

 to a voice in the management of the busi- 

 ness. At present the unions do not ask 

 much of a voice, it is time, but ouce the 

 .principle that they have the right 

 to any voice at all is conceded the 

 entire system under which business 

 has been done since the beginning 

 of history is weakened, and such 

 action carried to its logical conclusion will 

 eventually lead to the entire destruction of 

 that system and the erection in its stead 

 of a system in which labor aud capital are 

 equal jjartners, or even to a complete re- 

 versal of present conditions, to a point 

 where labor will bo the dominating influ- 

 ence. 



The immense numerical superiority of 

 the laboring classes gives them such an 



advantage in this world, where might 

 makes right, that only their lack of in- 

 telligence, education and capacity has pre 

 vented Ihem from taking matters in their 

 own hands long before this, and if the 

 present system of education be continued 

 another generation will remedy these de- 

 fects in the make-up of the laboring peo- 

 ple. 



The methods of many of the labor union?s 

 of to-day are very enide and their claims 

 and demands uni-easonable and in many 

 cases ridiculous. Such conditions exist in 

 unions in a dii'ect ratio to the ignorance 

 and lack of intelligence on the part of 

 the members and their officers, and it is 

 the crudity of the methods and unreason- 

 ableness of their demands which bring 

 them to disaster. It is in such unions that 

 you find large bodies of ignorant foreign- 

 ers, but the children of these men are at- 

 tending our public schools and in the next 

 generation, because of the work of these 

 schools, the free libraries and the penny 

 neuTspapers, the laboring man who has 

 not a fair education and a fairly intelli- 

 gent conception of existing conditions will 

 l>e the exception. It is the case at pres- 

 ent that those unions having the highest 

 average of intelligence among their mem- 

 bers are the easiest to deal with; when 

 they make a demand it is usually a rea- 

 sonable demand and they know how to en- 

 force it without resorting to sti'ikes or mob 

 violence. 



There is a gi'eat revolution in industrial 

 conditions going forward. At the present 

 rate of comsolidation and organization it 

 seems only a matter of a comparatively 

 few years until the bulk of the cai)ital and 

 the bulk of the labor of the country will 

 be arrayed against each other in two com- 

 pact bodies struggling for mastery. What 

 cour.se events will take or what the result 

 will be we do not hazard a guess. 



LUMBER INSURANCE REDUCED. 



On JanuaiT 10 of this year the Board 

 of Underwriters in Chicago, proceeding 

 along the lines of a general increase in 

 rates of insurance on all properties, ad- 

 vanced the rate on hardwood lumber in 

 Chicago yards $2.50 per $1,000. On the 

 old rates there was considerable dissatis- 

 faction, and when {he increase was made 

 a gi'eat many of the dealers concluded and 

 served notice that they would discontinue 

 a large portion of their insurance at ex- 

 piration. 



In the eai-ly part of June Mr. H. JI. Gar- 

 diner, who, on account of his long connec- 

 tion with the "lumber trade in this city 

 and his particular acquaintance with the 

 insm'ance features of the business, know- 

 ing the injustice of the advance, brought 

 to the attention of the Chicago Hardwood 

 Lumber Exchange a plan for presenting 

 the matter to the Underwriters' Associa- 

 tion in such a way as to convince them of 

 the unfairness of the increase on this com- 

 niddity. Mr. Gardiner suggested that with 



the consent of the Exchange he would take 

 it upon himself to compile statistics show- 

 ing the record of the hardwood business 

 as pertiiining to insurance for a period of 

 25 years, feeling sure that such informa- 

 tion would accomplish more with the in- 

 surance association than anything else that 

 could be done. In accordance with this 

 plan, the following letter was drafted and 

 sent to the different hardwood yards in 

 the city. 



As there api)ears to be considerable dis- 

 satisfaction among the liardwood yard 

 dealers of this city, over the recent ad- 

 vance of rates for fire insurance, and, be- 

 lieving that statistics will show that in- 

 surance on hardwood yards in this city 

 has always been a source of profit to the 

 insurance companies, it has been suggested 

 that the Hardwood Exchange prepare a 

 comparative statement of the premiums 

 paid and losses incuiTed during a i)eriod 

 of twenty-five years and present same, 

 with other convincing arguments, to tlie 

 Chicago Underwriters' Association, with a 

 request that the recent rate advance — on 

 hardwood yards— be withdrawn and reduc- 

 tions be made on the old rates. 



In order that this matter may be gone 

 into at once will you kindly favor me with 

 answers to the following questions l)y re- 

 turn of mail? 



What is the total amount you have i>aid 

 for fire insurance on your hardwood lum- 

 ber yard during the last twenty-flve years, 

 or for such time as you have been in the 

 hardwood yard business in this city? 



In case you have not carried a full line 

 of insurance at all times, state the amount 

 you would have paid had you been con- 

 tinuously insured? 



Have you ever had a loss by fire on your 

 hardwood lumber yard? If so, state when 

 it occurred and the amount of money col- 

 lected from the insurance companies. 



Do you know of any hardwood lumlier 

 yard fire that has occurred in this city 

 within tlie last twenty-five years? If .so. 

 give name of yard and about the year loss 

 occuiTed. 



What is approximately the insurable 

 value of your present stock? 



Tlie answers received from this com- 

 munication, as well as personal visits 

 made among the trade by Mr. Gardiner, 

 showed that the hardwood trade had 

 paid out approximately $500,000 foi- prL>- 

 niinms during the past 25 years, while tlie 

 actual losses did not exceed $0,000. Other 

 features were brought out as a result of 

 this inquiry and the following letter was 

 prepared and sent to the manager of the 

 Underwriters' Association: 



Chicago, July 3, ]!K)2. 

 H. H. Glidden, Manager Underwriters' 



Association, 159 La Salle street, Chicago. 



Dear Sir:— At a meeting of the Chicago 

 Hardwood Luml)er Exc-hange held yester- 

 day for the purpo.se of discussing the ques- 

 tion of insurance rates as affecting the 

 hardwood yard dealers of this citj-, it de- 

 veloped that, on account of the excessively 

 high rates (i. e., high in proportion to the 

 actual hazard involved as compared with 

 any other class of insnirable iiroperty) 

 charged by the companies for insurance 

 on this class of risk, many of our dc-ilers 

 have for a number of years been carry- 

 ing their own insin-ance and, on account 

 of these rates having been put at a still 

 higher figure in tlie early part of this year, 

 other dealers have concluded, that unless 

 SMbstantial concessions — justified by the 



