The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1886-07-07
LABOR Arbitration BILL

k0OOUl 0UuOU ! Uub1u uOV OuIk
SPEECH OF GEN. WEAVER IN tine
HOUSE On MARCH 81.
Mr.. Chairman, wish 10 reply to
what has been said and 20 submit nv
own views upon tho merits Of ths bill
and the substitute, and upon the situa.
ton TO which these bilk are intended
70 apply. Let mo state some Of tho
difficulties that meet 10 at the threshold
Of this problem. Here il great rail.
road System dominated BY . sipsle
mind. That system has ii ID employ
from eight to ten thousand men. A
controversy arises between the manage.
ment Of the read and it, employees.
Now, in attempting TO provide By law
Tor arbitration No must necessarily
meet face TO face with grave dificulties.
Il were impossible TO create . court
that Ahall have jurisdiction Of mon Who
are not parties to the record. To illus
trats, the present difficulty Tor the one
happily adjusted on yesterday, . we
are informed BY tho morning pApers1
arose over the discharge Of one Hall,
Who was in the employ Of the Texas
Pacific Railroad Company. The other
laborers employed il that system O.
polsed his cause and refused 70 work
until Hall was relnstAted, or until an
arbitration should ensue, which in
volved his right 70 be reinstated i the
arbitrators should 20 decide. Now. this
body may have the power to create .
court to take jurisdiction Of . caso n
which Hall and his employer may IS
parties, but an adjudication between
Hall and Gould could not bind the 1899
other men who have struck in the in.
terest Of the rights of HALL for the
plain reason that they would NOT be
parties Of record nor in any way.bound
BY the arbitration. II you provide Tor
compulsory arbitration (Which y . mis.
nomer) you could not il any event
bind any one except Mr.. Hall, and per
heps Mr.. Gould, and that would depend
upon the nature 0f the matters in
v0lved.
In no event could the award reach
the great body Of laborers, except . it
might tend to arouse public sentiment
ana public opinion. No court nov ia
existence or which 10 may create can
say to Mr.. Hall, you shall work for M.
Gould; nor can : court say 70 Mr..
Gould. you shall employ Mr.. Hail.
These men may agree concerning these
things themselves. and resolute, organ
ICED labor may open Mr.. Could, eyes.
until he can see clearly that il 10 10 hie
interest to yield; but you cannot reach
the difficulty BY statute. II u clear be.
yond the sphere Of either legislative or
judicial tribunals.
TINxERIN0.
So this whole question must b left
to public opinion after ell, and / am
frank TO state to the House that I am
opposed in judgment to al legislation
with regard 10 these strikes, because In
ito very nature it cannot DO effective
and cannot afford tho remedy We do
sire. Sir, / am not believer in the
power Of legislation TO cure the evils 70
which society ID heir-I mean direct
leghlation. am believer in the kind
Of legislation that will create conditions
out Of which prosperity may be evolv.
cd and under which evils may die
away. Now, what are the primary
causes Of the present dscontent
throughout the conntry9
/ assert here and maintain that they
result because Of . neglect on the
part Of the law.making power Of this
country to make suitable provision to
preserve the prosperity Of the Repub-
lie. will be specific and point out in
stances Of such neglect. The Oonstitu-
ton Of the United States provides that
Congress shall have power TO regulate
commerce among the States. What Ia
commerce9 What does that provision
of the Constitution meant Does il
mean that Congress has power 70 az
tho price Of cattle raised IN Iowa and
sold in New York and shipped to Ar
kansssl Certainly not. Does il mean
that Congress has the power to 6x the
price Of cattle raised in Iowa and sold
IN New York; Certainly not What
does it meant Il means this, that Con.
gress shall have power to regulate the
great iaaruMesste through which com.
merce il carried on.
What are those instruments! They
are three in number, namely, money,
transportation, and the transmission Of
intelligence. These ale the three great
instruments OF commerce, and without
them, or without any ono Of them
commerce, - understood in modern
times, were impossible. Now, the Con-
stitution says that Congress shall exer-
else that power. II il in its very nature
exclusive and has % been held BY Ill
the courts. II can be exercised By Con-
gress and by nobody else; yet during
the psst quarter Of century, which
has Witnessed the upgrowth Of these
mighty JrpOratiOns, Congress instead
Of regulating inter State commerce has
abdicated and relegated that power to
: few syndicates and the heads Of great
cor por atoms, who are regulating COM
mercs, but regulating it in their own
interest and 70 the detriment Of the
people.
The evils are properly chargeable "a
Congress-. We are sworn to support
the Constitution, and yet We have re-
fused to exercise the sovereign power
with which the G institution clothes us.
The grant Of power carries with it the
corresponding duty on our part to ex
ercise it. The neglect or refusal q
discharge these plain duties has allow.
ed monstrous evils to grow up unmo'
leste1 until today they have control ol
the entire machinery Of Government
and are stronger, it would seem, thar
the Government itself. Their promot
era. however, will fad that they are no,