OPINION
DREW
Judge.
Plaintiffs, for a cause of action, filed the following
petition:
"The
petition of Mrs. H. Dehan, John Dehan, Edward Dehan and Julia
Dehan, respectfully shows:
"1.
That they are residents of Shreveport, Caddo Parish,
Louisiana.
"2.
That they are the owners and operators of the Majestic Cafe,
located on Milam Street, Shreveport, Caddo Parish, Louisiana,
which business they have owned and operated for a number of
years, and which is a thriving restaurant business in said
city.
"3.
That the Cooks & Waiters Local No. 183 or Hotel and
Restaurant Employees and Beverage Dispensers Local Union No.
183, is an unincorporated voluntary association domiciled in
the city of Shreveport and is a union organization of
organized labor, of which Lawrence Galloway is the president
of the local union, and that the Central Trades & Labor
Council is an unincorporated voluntary association domiciled
in the city of Shreveport, of which John Howatt is president.
"4.
That your petitioners operate their said business in a legal
manner and as a high-class restaurant should be operated, and
are paying and have always paid the prevailing wage scale
paid by the restaurant industry generally in Shreveport.
"5.
That within the last few weeks the Cooks & Waiters and other
employees of restaurants in Shreveport have organized a local
union, No. 183, and are endeavoring to compel your
petitioners and other restaurant owners and operators to pay
a higher wage scale than heretofore paid, and a wage scale
which your petitioners cannot pay and successfully operate
their said business.
"6.
That your petitioners have complied with the Restaurant Code
of the National Recovery Administration and are paying the
scale of wages required thereby, which is higher than the
scale of wages previously paid by them, and are making the
deduction of $ 3.00 per week for meals from the wages of said
employees under said Act, as is permitted by the Restaurant
Code and as they have always done prior to June 16, 1933, and
as was the prevailing custom prior to said date, which was
the date of the inauguration of said Restaurant Code, and
your petitioners are in every way endeavoring to comply with
said Code.
"7.
That your petitioners are perfectly willing to employ members
of the local cooks and waiters union and have never objected
to any of their employees being members of said union, but
they are unwilling and unable to be coerced into paying wages
which are more than their business justifies them in paying,
and as a result two of their employees have recently left
their employ who were members of the local Cooks and Waiters
Union.
"8.
That your petitioners have no objection to the employment of
union labor, provided
they will accept employment at the wage that petitioners can
afford to pay and they have never declined to employ or
discharged anyone because of his affiliation with any
organization of organized labor, and that they are not unfair
to organized labor, but on the contrary, have done everything
within their power to be fair to it in their dealings with
labor and in all other respects.
"9.
That they are helping to maintain a living wage for those who
labor for them, and are paying the wages prescribed in the
Restaurant Code of the National Recovery Administration.
"10.
That, notwithstanding these facts, the officers and members
of the Cooks & Waiters Local No. 183 or Hotel and Restaurant
Employees and Beverage Dispensers Local Union No. 183 and the
Central Trades and Labor Council began, without any cause
whatever, on Friday, December 1, 1933, and have continued
since that date an organized boycotting and picketing of
their said place of business on Milam Street in the city of
Shreveport, and are engaging in the following unlawful
practices: that they constantly maintain on the sidewalk
directly in front of their place of business two or more
persons who stop and hand out to every passerby on the
sidewalk, circulars, reading as follows:
"
"Stop and Read.
N.
R.A. (Emblem) We do our Part.
Are you
willing to help maintain a living wage for those who labor?
If so,
patronize those who help support it.
The
Majestic Cafe Does Not, and is Unfair to Organized Labor.
The
Cooks & Waiters Local No. 183, solicits your support and
patronage for better workmanship and living wages.
Sponsored
by Central Trades & Labor Council, Affiliated With American
Federation of Labor.'
"Copy
of which circular is hereto attached and made a part hereof
which said pickets endeavor by every means possible to
dissuade patrons and customers of their said restaurant from
entering and patronizing the same.
"11.
That the said Cooks & Waiters Local No. 183 or the Hotel and
Restaurant Employees and Beverage Dispensers, Local Union No.
183, and the said Central Trades and Labor Council, also
constantly maintain in front of your petitioners' place
of business on the sidewalk a long tandem bicycle, bearing a
large sign in conspicuous letters reading substantially the
same as the circular above quoted.
"12.
That the avowed purpose of the picketing and boycotting of
their said place of business and of the distribution of said
circulars and of the maintenance of said sign is to harass
your petitioners and prevent customers from entering and
patronizing their place of business, and to destroy their
business and all profit therefrom, and to coerce your
petitioners into adopting the union scale of wages and to
annoy, embarrass, and humiliate the patrons, and would-be
patrons, and customers of your petitioners who have always
patronized your petitioners and who would continue to do so,
but for the maintenance of the illegal picketing, boycotting
and placarding of their said place of business, as above set
out.
"13.
That the effects of the acts of the said parties have been to
seriously curtail and destroy the business of your
petitioners, since the pickets maintain a clock system by
which they check the number of customers who they divert from
your petitioners' place of business, and the result of
their said illegal acts are shown in the fact that between
the hours of 11 A. M. to 2 P. M. on Saturday, December 2d,
142 less customers entered their place than entered between
the same hours on Friday December 1st, and that on Sunday,
December 3rd, 102 fewer customers entered their place than
entered it prior to the picketing of their said place of
business.
"14.
That the said members of the said Cooks & Waiters Local No.
183 and Hotel and Restaurant Employees and Beverage
Dispensers Local Union No. 183 and the members of the Central
Trades and Labor Council are so engaging in said acts
unlawfully and wilfully and maliciously and with the
deliberate intent to injure and destroy your petitioners'
property and business, which consists of their right legally
to earn a living in the operation of the restaurant business
in the city of Shreveport, and that by reason of said
practices the defendants are now and have been continuously
since December 1, 1933, unlawfully, wilfully and maliciously
intimidating persons who desired to enter your
petitioners' business for the purpose of patronizing and
purchasing meals from your petitioners, which said acts are
deterring and have deterred such persons from entering and
patronizing your petitioners' place of business and are
calculated and intended to give notice and does give notice
to all persons passing petitioners' place of business, or
intending to patronize the same, that the said place of
business is under boycott, and that its patronage is opposed
by organized labor, and as a result of the presence of said
pickets and of the unlawful, wilful and malicious maintenance
of said picket patrol, and of said placard, and of the
distribution of said circulars and of the implied threats,
and intimidation, as aforesaid, by the defendants, a great
many of your petitioners' patrons have been intimidated
and as a consequence have discontinued to patronize and will
continue to do so as long as the said pickets and placards
are maintained in front of petitioners' place of business
and as long as the boycott continues, reducing the daily
receipts of petitioners' place of business by the sum of
least $ 50.00 per day, and that your petitioners'
property is injured and destroyed to that extent by the said
acts of said defendants herein.
"15.
That the said officers and members of the Cooks and Waiters
Local No. 183 and Hotel and Restaurant Employees and Beverage
Dispensers, Local Union No. 183, and the Central Trades and
Labor Council threaten to continue their said unlawful,
wilful and malicious acts and conduct and are so continuing
at the present time.
"16.
That the said acts of said defendants hereinabove set forth
not only constitute illegal acts themselves and an unlawful
denial of the right of petitioners to conduct their business
and engage in a livelihood, but also constitute a combination
on defendants' part of an unlawful agreement in restraint
of trade or commerce in the State of Louisiana, such as is
expressly declared to be illegal by the Statutes of
Louisiana, and that your petitioners have both implied and
express rights to relief by injunction against said acts.
"17.
That the said acts on the part of said defendants have caused
and are causing your petitioners irreparable injury, as it is
impossible to ascertain the exact amount of loss which they
are causing to your petitioners,...
