Cigar Makers' International Union. He also stated that the manufacturers would refuse to consider the cigar makers demand that "no firm shall discharge an employe without first consulting the grievance committee". Rothfuss claimed that the wage increase would raise the price of a ten-cent cigar to fifteen cents, while William Collins contended the increase would be less than 1/4th of a cent. Collins blamed the manufacturers for increased prices, stating that from 1906 to 1919, cigar manufacturers have increased their prices by $30 per 1,000 cigars, while cigar makers had only received a raise of $3.80 per 1,000 cigars made. Waitt & Bond cited increased wages of cigar packers, tobacco stripers, and general workers, increased federal taxes on cigars, increased tobacco prices, and other increased expenses, including freight and insurance rates, as the reason for the increased price and went on to state that Boston's cigar manufacturers were operating at the lowest profit since the establishment of the industry. Departure of manufacturers On August 13, 1919, Waitt & Bond announced that they would move from Boston to Newark, New Jersey as a result of the walkout. Prior to the strike, Waitt & Bond had employed 1,200 cigar makers and had a weekly payroll of $30,000. Upon moving to Newark, Waitt & Bond operated on a non-union machine production basis. Other cigars makers followed suit. C. C. A. also moved to Newark while Breslin & Campbell moved to New York City. Both switched to machine production. Co-operative Following Waitt & Bond and C. C. A.'s departure, the Boston Union Cigarmaker's Co-operative was formed. The Co-operative began with 50 cigar workers and $90,000 worth of capital. Morris Becker, a cigar maker who had put himself through Suffolk Law School, was the Co-operative's first manager. Its factory was a former bowling alley. Although all of the Co-operative's employees were union members, the union officially had nothing to do with the business. The Co-operative operated on a "one-man, one-vote" system, which entitled a member to only one vote no matter how many shares he held. By February 1920, 100 cigar makers were employed. By that December, the co-operative was the third largest cigar factory in Boston. On October 8, 1921, five creditors filed a bankruptcy petition against the Co-operative. According to the February 18, 1922 issue of Industrial Relations "Lack of business training, acumen and experience seems to be the generally accepted reason for