New York 16 74 Ohio 4 16 Pennsylvania 15 44 Rhode Island 1 7 Tennessee — 2 Virginia 1 1 Wisconsin — 1
- Twenty-two organized trades in New York and vicinity sought wages increase in 1864. The establishment of labor papers is another sign of active interest among the workers.
- 124. Was there any connection between the local unions in the war period?
- There were local connections. These were "trades assemblies." The first of these "was organized in Rochester, N. Y., in March 1863. Boston and New York followed in June of the same year. Albany, Buffalo, Louisville, Philadelphia, Pittsburg, St. Louis and San Francisco had trades' assemblies by the end of 1863. At the end of the war trades' assemblies existed in every important centre."
- 125. How did these assemblies function?
- They endeavored to organize the unorganized workers, by employing organizers, calling mass meetings, etc. They also, in some instances formed co-operatives. The assemblies of Albany, Boston, Chicago, and Troy helped establish stores that dealt in groceries alone. The nature of this form of co-operation is significant; it shows that the workers believed they were exploited as consumers.
- The Chicago German Trades Assembly, the Philadelphia, and Troy assemblies established free libraries and reading rooms.
- 126. Were these assemblies of advantage to the workers?
- These assemblies were instrumental in winning many local strikes. The employers feared them, which is a good sign of effectiveness. The bosses organized to oppose them in New York and other centers. The Employers' Committee sent out a questionnaire to their fellow employers in which eleven questions were asked, of which the fifth and sixth are as follows:
- "5. Would a combination of employers engaged in one business be able to successfully overcome a strike of their
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