" (Henry Phipps in the _New York Herald_, January 30,
1904.)]
The manufacture of steel was revolutionized by the Bessemer
open-hearth and basic inventions. The machinery hitherto employed had
become obsolete, and our firm, recognizing this, spent several
millions at Homestead reconstructing and enlarging the works. The new
machinery made about sixty per cent more steel than the old. Two
hundred and eighteen tonnage men (that is, men who were paid by the
ton of steel produced) were working under a three years' contract,
part of the last year being with the new machinery. Thus their
earnings had increased almost sixty per cent before the end of the
contract.
The firm offered to divide this sixty per cent with them in the new
scale to be made thereafter. That is to say, the earnings of the men
would have been thirty per cent greater than under the old scale and
the other thirty per cent would have gone to the firm to recompense it
for its outlay. The work of the men would not have been much harder
than it had been hitherto, as the improved machinery did the work.
This was not only fair and liberal, it was generous, and under
ordinary circumstances would have been accepted by the men with
thanks. But the firm was then engaged in making armor for the United
States Government, which we had declined twice to manufacture and
which was urgently needed.
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