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Labor spy report by Agent #106 to Broussais Beck, December 20, 1919
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| Title | Labor spy report by Agent #106 to Broussais Beck, December 20, 1919 |
| Author | Unknown |
| Date of Publication | 1919 |
| Notes | In this report to Broussais Beck on December 20th, 1919, "Agent #106" relates portions of a conversation with "Hylan of the printers" who informs him that the printers strike, which began on September 1st, has been a success because it is employed across the whole trade and along the whole Pacific coast. Hylan points out that the daily newspapers no longer carry ads for the "open shop", and explains that this is because the printers refused to print them. He tells #106 that, when the daily newspapers agreement expires, they will demand shorter hours, and shut down every paper but the Union Record and the Forge to get that agreement signed. Hylan claims that, every time the authorities shut down the Equity printing plant, when it re-opens business is better than ever. He also shares his belief that the only "hundred percent Americans" are the men who defend their homes, as the Industrial Workers of the World (I.W.W.) did in Centralia. Later, #106 speaks to "Mahoney of the I.W.W." who tells him that the authorities, out of a desire to prevent the defense of the workers on trial in Centralia, have prevented mailed donations from reaching the union. He insists that this is increasing their determination, and will not hinder their efforts in the long run. |
| Contextual Notes | Broussais Coman Beck (1886-1936) was a prominent Seattle businessman and rowing enthusiast. He was educated at the University of Washington and at Yale, graduating from the latter university in 1911. He returned to Seattle later in the 1910s to work as the store manager for the Bon Marche. In the wake of the Seattle general strike of 1919, Beck paid spies to infiltrate the labor movement in Seattle, and received frequent reports from his agents (often accompanied by clippings or ephemera relating to labor organizations) in 1919 and 1920. Due to the information acquired through these reports, the Bon Marche was centrally important to the alliance of Seattle employers who organized against labor, a group called the Associated Industries of Seattle -- and, consequently, the Bon Marche became the target of increased pressure and boycotts by organized labor in this time period. |
| Subjects (LCSH) | Beck, Broussais C., 1886-1936; Labor movement--Washington (State)--Seattle; Labor unions--Washington (State)--Seattle; Business intelligence--Washington (State)--Seattle; Union busting--Washington (State)--Seattle; Strikes and lockouts--Printers--Washington (State)--Seattle; Industrial Workers of the World; Centralia Massacre, Centralia, Wash., 1919 |
| Geographic Coverage | United States--Washington (State)--Seattle |
| Digital ID Number | PNW00889 |
| Ordering Information | To order a reproduction or inquire about permissions contact: photos@u.washington.edu. |
| Digital Collection | Pacific Northwest Historical Documents
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| Repository | University of Washington Libraries. Special Collections Division. |
| Repository Collection | Broussais C. Beck papers. Accession No. 0155-001. Box 1/18 |
| Object Type | Typescript
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| Physical Description | 1 leaf; 28 x 21.5 cm. |
| Digital Reproduction Information | Scanned from original text or image at 150 dpi saved in TIFF format, resized and enhanced using Adobe Photoshop, and imported as JPEG2000 using Contentdm software's JPEG2000 Extension. 2011. |
| Restrictions | For information on permissions for use and reproductions please visit UW Libraries Special Collections Reproduction & Use page: http://content.lib.washington.edu/sc-use.html |
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