"My head," replied Barry, "is safe enough, but about one more adventure like that would send my mind to the scrap-heap."
On a certain day, late in January, Bricky Hoover was
peremptorily dismissed from the employ of the Malleson
Manufacturing Company. It was charged against
him that he had been guilty of gross negligence, of
sabotage, of impertinence to the manager of the mills.
But all of his fellow-employees knew, indeed all of
the wage-workers in the city knew that the real reason
for his dismissal was that he had been too aggressive in
behalf of union labor, and that his aggressiveness and
persistency had resulted in a victory for the men. He
was the first to go because he had been the most prominent.
Others would follow; there was little doubt of
that. It was apparent that the company had started in
on a policy of weeding out agitators and strike-promoters.
The only question was who would be the next one to
be dismissed. Feeling among the men ran high. Sympathy
with the discharged employee was general among
the laboring classes. Resentment over the manner in
which he had been thrust out was deep and wide-spread.
Would union labor stand for it? Of course union
labor would not.
The discharge was on Friday. On the afternoon of the following Sunday a mass-meeting of the Malleson employees was held at Carpenter's Hall, and, with scarcely a dissenting vote, a resolution was adopted to the effect that if Thomas Hoover was not reinstated in his position, without condition, within twenty-four hours from the time of presenting the resolution to the officers of the company, there would be a walk-out of every workman employed in the mills.
The committee in charge of the resolution presented it to the president of the company at his office on Monday morning. He called the attention of his visitors to the fact that his employees had recently signed a
