In Aug. 1919, although forbidden by their national officers, the railway shopmen called a strike because of the delay of the Wage Adjustment Board to reach a decision on the demands of the men for increased pay. The strike began in Chicago and spread to New York and Boston; 250,000 men went out. After six days the strike was called off and the men returned to work. At the request of President Wilson the demands for wages in- creases were postponed. Other strikes not authorized by national officers of the union were those of employees of the General Electric Company in four cities in 1918 and of the New York local of the International Typographical Union in 1919. For 1917, 72 "unauthorized strikes" were reported, 58 for 1918, and 125 for 1919. Those in 1919 involved 1,053,256 strikers.
In Nov. 1919 435,000 bituminous coal-miners struck for wages increases of 60 %. They also demanded the 6-hour day, and the 5-day week in order to distribute the work through the year. The miners at first refused to arbitrate the dispute as they feared the delay would give advantage to the employers. An injunction was issued to prevent the use of union funds for strike benefits. An award of an impartial committee was accepted in March 1920, which granted an average of 27% increase in wages, but the 8-hour day was retained.
About 93% of the policemen of Boston struck in Sept. 1919 for the right to organize and affiliate with the American Federa- tion of Labor. The city was subject to rioting and crime until the National Guard restored order. President Wilson declared a police strike to be a crime against civilization. The police com- missioner filled the places of the strikers with other men. In Aug. 1919 there was also an actors' strike, in which the stage hands and musicians joined in sympathy. An " outlaw " strike on the railways in April 1920, due to the delay of the President in appointing the Labor Board provided by the Transportation Act, was opposed by the brotherhoods. In 1919 and 1920 there were strikes on the Brooklyn Rapid Transit road, and in 1919 also on the Interborough Rapid Transit of New York.
A strike and lock-out in the men's clothing industry in New York of six months' duration was settled June 2 1921. The settle- ment may be regarded as a victory for the union, and for the principle of trade agreements. Since Sept. 1920 negotiations had been carried on between the employers' association and the union. Business depression gave an advantage to the employers, for whom a lock-out would not mean such a loss as if it had come a year earlier. On. Dec. 2 the employers presented an ultimatum to the union stating that unless piece work, a reduction in wages and the employer's full control of employment and discharge were accepted before Dec. 6 the manufacturers would put their own programme into effect, regardless of the decision of the im- partial board. The union rejected the ultimatum. The reply of the employers was an announcement that the impartial machin- ery had ceased to function. Stoppages of work by employees and lay-offs and shut-downs by employers followed. By Dec. 13 the union instituted picketing. An offer of mediation by the state Industrial Commission was accepted by the union, but rejected by the manufacturers. The manufacturers' association resigned from the national federation. In Jan. 1921 one of the employers began suit for an injunction against picketing, $500,000 damages, and dissolution of the union because of its alleged revolutionary character. The suit for dissolution was dismissed on March 29. By March 27, 425 shops had reopened under agreements with the union, so that 25,000 of the 60,000 clothing workers were again at work. On April 5 the union announced that $1,000,000 had been raised toward their defense fund. Early in May certain of the employers resigned from the association, and the remainder reached an agreement with the union, by which the bargaining machinery with the impartial chairman was reinstated. The workers accepted a 15% cut in wages. The union brought suit for Si, 000,000 damages against the employers on the charge of attempted boycott of union members.
BIBLIOGRAPHY. A. M. Bing, War-Time Strikes and their Adjust- ment (1921); P. R. Brissenden, The I.W.W. (1919); J. H. Cohen, Law and Order in Industry (1916) ; U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Monthly Labor Review. ' (J. R. Co.)
STRINDBERG, AUGUST (1849-1912), Swedish author (see
25.1038), died at Stockholm May 14 1912. His plays have been translated into English by E. and W. Oland (1912-3) and H. B. Samuel (1914).
See A. Henderson, European Dramatists: August Strindberg (1914); C. D. Marcus, Strindbergs Dramatik (1918); C. L. Schleich, Erinnerungen an Strindberg (1917).
STRYPA-CZERNOWITZ, BATTLE OF. The fighting in the
area between the River Strypa and Czernowitz (the capital of
the Bukovina) in the winter of 1915-6 comprised an important
scries of operations on the eastern front between Russia and the
Central Powers.
In the middle of Nov. 1915 the fighting activity in the Russian theatre of war had died down (see EASTERN EUROPEAN FRONT CAMPAIGNS). Both for Austria-Hungary and for Germany the war against Russia became of secondary importance in pro- portion as the war of annihilation against Serbia progressed. The Central Powers had for the moment no offensive in view against Russia, who was exhausted after the heavy fighting which had gone before. Both belligerents now settled down to a war of position, which enabled them to restore their armies. This lasted until Christmas.
In the middle of Dec., Ivanov, who was in command of the Russian S.W. front, prepared for a new great offensive. This was, no doubt, with the view of raising their fallen prestige and regain- ing the confidence of the wavering Balkan States; above all to relieve Montenegro, whose overthrow by Austria-Hungary was imminent; and not least to serving the advantage which a Rus- sian victory would have in influencing Rumania, which was still vacillating, to join in against the Central Powers.
Three Russian armies the VIII. under Brussilov, the XI. under Shtcherbachev and the IX. under Lechitski, with 32 infan- try and 13 cavalry divisions as well as some Reichswehr forma- tions attacked the Austro-German front S. of the Polesic in E. Galicia and in the Bukovina.. From N. to S. there stood opposed to the Russians the main body of Linsingen's group of armies, Bohm's group of armies and Bothmer's and Pflanzer- Baltin's armies, counting roughly 40 infantry and 13 cavalry divisions. The approximate strength expressed in rifles was in the proportion of 450,000 Austro-Hungarian to 480,000 Russian. The Austro-Hungarian infantry divisions were on a lower estab- lishment than the Russian.
Whereas on the N. wing and in the centre no particular actions took place, the main attack, assigned by Ivanov to Lechitski's and Shtcherbachev's armies, was delivered against Pflanzer and Bothmer on a front stretching from the Rumanian frontier to Burkanow on the Strypa. The main burden of the attack fell on Pflanzer-Baltin's army, which was fighting with 8 infantry and 5 cavalry divisions against the Russians' 10 infantry and 6 cavalry divisions.
Not without reason had the Russians selected the S. wing as the point of attack. A success which should give them back the capital of Bukovina could not have failed in its effect on Rumania. And besides, an advance into Bukovina was the shortest cut to the Carpathians, the reacquisition of which was among their most cherished ambitions. They hoped, by defeating Pflanzer's army, to roll up Bothmer's and Bohm's fronts.
The preparations for the attack on the Bessarabian front had been evident since the middle of December. Lechitski had during that month assembled 4 corps in front of Pflanzer's S. wing between the Pruth and the Dniester. A sharp watch was kept on this section by the XI. Corps under von Korda, general of infantry, with 3 infantry divisions and I of cavalry. Pflanzer was prudently preparing for the anticipated attacks by organizing the positions so strongly as to compensate for the deficiency in numbers. Reinforcements did not arrive until later.
On Dec. 23 an attack on Papp's brigade was repulsed with heavy Russian losses. In the following days small enemy attacks multiplied themselves at numerous points of the front. On the 26th heavy artillery fire began, and on the morning of the 27th, heralded by a heavy bombardment from at least 200 guns, the Russian mass attack was launched on the Bessarabian frontier
