Glass Bottle Blowers Strike, Brookfield has put out its fires

GREEN GLASS BLOWERS WITHDRAW FROM THE KNIGHTS OF LABOR.

On Saturday evening, 4th inst., a conference was held in Odd Fellows Hall at Glassboro, N.J., which was attended by representatives of green glass blowers from Salem, Millville, Glassboro, Clayton, Williamstown, Brooklyn, Bridgeton, and Camden.

It was decided to withdraw from the Knights of Labor District Assembly No. 149 and return to their former organization, the Glass Blower's League. Their action was unanimous.

A temporary organization was effected, and two weeks hence in Camden permanent officers will be elected. The meeting lasted from eight o'clock until eleven.

It was stated that information was received from factories not represented that they were in sympathy with this movement.

When the Glass Blower's League consolidated with the Knights of Labor last July it was with the understanding on the part of the League that its constitution as a League was to become its by-laws with the Knights. One article of its constitution provided that no strike could be declared except by a unanimous vote of the delegates. The convention where Coffey succeeded in having his wish for a strike carried into effect was called together hastily, and several important sections of the division, among them from Baltimore, were not represented by delegates. The vote on the question of striking stood 27 in favor and 20 against. As the matter was understood by a majority of the glassblowers. Coffey was thus defeated. He claimed, however, that the Knights of Labor never consented to let the Glassblowers League retain its constitution as an authority, and began at once to enforce his strike, notwithstanding the fact that an agreement had been made with the manufacturers to work until the end of the blast, July 1. Not a factory in New Jersey, it is claimed, has violated that agreement.

Those who are well acquainted with the feeling toward Coffey and the Knights among the New Jersey blowers say that although the charters from the Knights of Labor cannot be returned while ten or a dozen men object, yet there is nothing prevent the majority from withdrawing and reorganizing their former League.

One of the glassblowers said that the question at stake was not now one of apprentices being employed or a reduction of wages, but of honor. The men had their fight over the apprentices and the reduction, compromised with the employers, and agreed to work until a certain time. Both these matters were thereby settled until the period for which they had agreed to work was passed. Then they might be taken up again with no breach of confidence. But until then any order to strike ought to be resisted by every man among the blowers. In his opinion a good many of the blowers were in the same frame of mind as the Old New Jersey glassblower who advocated a strike just because they were then "something of a novelty," and because there had been for a long time no trouble between the employers and the men.

W.F. Dorflinger, president of the Hawley Glass Co., of Hawley, Pa., was in this city and said that his men had been influenced to strike by Master Workman Coffey very much against their will. Like the glass blowers in other factories, these men had at first refused to obey Coffey's orders to go out, but when he came in person he compelled them to strike. One of the workers told Mr. Dorflinger that the men would return to work as soon as Coffey left town.

M.H. Hagerty, president of the National Association of Green Glass Bottle Manufacturers, was also in the city and held a consultation with President Brookfield, of the Eastern division of the association.

Mr. Brookfield has put out his fires and will not resume work until he is assured that his men will work out the time for which they had engaged themselves. Above all, he would not open his factory, but leave it closed for five years if necessary, until he was assured that neither Coffey or the Nights of Labor will interfere with the employees whom they boycotted. Messers. Hagerty and Brookfield had heard that most of the men, especially in Southern New Jersey, had left the order of the Knights, and had surrendered their charters.