An Unequal Clash 132 The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord rhetoric, the imperatives of winning the strike had clearly impacted the Lake Carriers' policy.47 Though denied by the association, the trade publication Marine Review recorded a startling surge for 1909 and 1910 in strandings, groundings, and collisions compared to previous years. For example, collisions leaped from 59 in 1908 to 125 in 1909, a massive increase and reflective of the strike's impact during an era when such incidents since 1905 had followed a long-term decline. It is also worth noting that these were events worthy of reporting and do not include minor harbour accidents during unloading and docking. While storms like November 1913 receive the greatest attention for their loss of life, incidents such as these reflect the hazards of routine operations and the need for experience.48 Concerned by the sheer size of the strike, state arbitration boards of New York, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan offered to mediate and the seamen's union moved quickly to announce their willingness to negotiate.49 Lake Carriers' president William Livingstone in reply to the board stated: "As we are defending a fundamental principle which does not permit arbitration we must decline to attend."50 The arbitration boards appealed to the National Civic Federation to see if they could achieve a breakthrough. The Lake Carriers' Association brushed aside the overture with Livingstone stating even more unequivocally: "I have no intention whatever of answering the letter of the seamen's union asking for a conference...The letter was not written in good faith and its senders expect no answer." As to the statement issued by the unions, Livingstone dismissed them as a "tissue of misstatements" unworthy of his response. 51 A few owners came to the meeting, but to no result. As the strike continued, the recurrent problem of labour solidarity further eroded the strikers' resolve. The longshoremen's new leader, T.V. O'Connor, had replaced Daniel Keefe but continued his pro-business policies.52 Throughout the winter O'Connor's union had watched the Lake Carriers' preparations for a sustained conflict. While the longshoremen understood that the strike would 47 "Cannot Hire Relatives," CPD, 26 February 1904; "Report Sailors Leave Vessel,"DNT, 7 May 1909; "Fourteen Men Drown When Ship Goes to Bottom in Lake Superior,"DNT, 13 July 1909; "14 Lose Lives in Sinking of Boat Near Soo," Saginaw News, 13 July 1909; "The Great Lakes Dispute," Special Bulletins State of New York Department of Labor Vol.II "1909," Nos. 40-42 (Albany, State of New York, 1910), 132-158. 48 "Much Time Lost By Collisions," CPD, 5 February 1907; "Boiler Explosion on Steamer Hoyt," MR 38:15 (June 1909), 161-163; "Two Boats Damaged," CSJ, XXIII, No.44 (20 July 1910), 9; Annual Report of the Supervising Inspector General to the Secretary of Commerce, 1910-1911 (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1911), 244-245; "Accidents Reported During Sailing Seasons," MR 46:3 (March 1916), 92. 49 Lake District Grievance Committee, ISU to Joint Board of Mediation and Arbitration, 18 May 1909, Box 2, Folder: Minutes of Meeting / Receipts and Disbursements, 1908-1909, ISU-DPL. 50 "Board Will Not Meet Again," DEH, 17 May 1909. 51 "Strike Will Continue on the Great Lakes," Marquette Daily Mining Journal (MDMJ), 2 June 1909; "The Great Lakes Dispute," Special Bulletins State of New York Department of Labor, Vol.II "1909," Nos. 40-42 (Albany, 1910), 132-158. 52 "Casey to Clarke, 11 May 1909, Box 2, Folder: MFOWBA, 1909, ISU-DPL; Larrowe, 38.