St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-04-23

/ Tor settlement OF contentious between en-
ployers and employees. Give us the results
and experience of your observations as TO
| how that principle can be carried out prac-
| tically.
Mr.. Gould-Arbitration is getting TO be a
very easy and popular way of settling diff
culties between individuals and corporations
and between corporations and their individ-
ual employees. have always been in favor
of arbitration. / regard employees of Il rail-
road company as upon a different footing
/ from the employees of a manufacturing or
other private corporation. A railroad cor
poration acts in two senses; first as a private
organization, and second as a public cor
poration having a contract with the
state by which it has certain
/ duties TO perform. The duties are 10
| be performed not by the rails and engines
alone, but by the entire organizations, and
they clothe themselves with public duties
/ from the president to the lowest employe.
They clothe themselves with the public duties
which appertain to the operation OF that rail-
road as an entirety.
Mr.. Burnes-Haveyo you considered the ques-
ton as to whether there is any mode by
which the whole working force of a railroad
can be put under the control of the peoplel
Mr.. Gould-Yes, sir, the laws do that now.
The difficulty is only in enforcing them. You
! see that on roads operated by receivers,
strikes are rapidly overcome, because there
/ is respect for the United States courts. The
public has a right TO have railroads operated.
Any law which defines that right and COM
plies with its provisions for arbitration would
be practical solution of the question, but
the arbitration should not be after men had
struck and seized the property OF the railroad
company. 1t should be the duty Of the men
TO keep
ON WITH THEIR WORK.
A railroad is not merely the rails, ties grad
ings, locomotives and cars, but il is the whole
thing. 1t is the duty OF somebody TO man
age it.
Mr.. Burnes-Might not the general govern
ment license and thereby govern and control
the officials of a railroad, from the superin-
/ tendent down?
Mr.. Gould-I think the officials assume that
| to be their duty now. 1t might be made more
distinct by some enactment. and then if any
injustice be done there should be a mode Of
/ arbitration. / have been always in favor of
that.
The chairman reminded Mr.. Gould that
| during the civil war public duties of rail-
road officials were recognized by law in the
fact that they were exempt from cOnscrip-
tion, and Mr.. Burnes mentioned as an an
alogous case the licensing of pilots.
Mr.. Gould.-I think that Mr.. Powderly is
undertaking to do too much. All that / can
do is to manage the Missouri Pacific and
/ have no end of trouble with that Mr.. Pow
derly is running the shoemakers, the men
who make pegs and leather all other trades
men and not only the employees of the Mis-
/ souri, Pacific railroad but of all the employees
/ on 130, 900 miles of railroad. / do not wonder
that he has broken down under the load. i
think the government should have such right
| 10 govern and control railroads as to have
| troubles arbitrated, even without consulting
the companies or its employees.
Mr.. Burnes-You mean compulsory arbitra-
tion?
Mr.. Gould-Public opinion on these ques-
| tions is all powerful. Perhaps voluntary
oata firr1Nu hox m
/ compulsory arbitration.
Mr.. Burnes-And yet for some reason you
and Mr.. Powderly and Mr.. Mcdowell were in
consultation endeavoring TO bring about
SETTLEMENT OF ALLEGED GRIEVANCES
/ and it was not brought about.
Mr.. Gould-Oh, no; was not endeavoring
! to do that.
Mr.. Burns-You were not endeavoring to
arbitrate?
Mr.. Gould-No, sir. We met as individuals
! to have a talk over the situation. The matter
was in Mr.. HoXie's hands audI never changed
it in any shape or form. said at the start
that would not. l so stated in my letter and
have always stated so. 1t is one of the mat
ters of details which do not take up.
Mr.. Burns-Why were not your views that
are friendly to arbitration carried out at st.
Louis?
Mr.. Gouid-Mr. Hoxie has been always
ready to carry them out. That
/ has been always our policy. We
are always ready to arbitrate any grievances
between the company and its employees, but
the Interpretation which Mr.. Powderly put
| upon il was, that the Knights of Labor were
TO step in and oversee this arbitration. There
are 10000 men employed by the Missouri
Pacific company who are not members OF that
order, but are members of other organizations
which deal with us directly. After the strike
! in 1885 we terminated our relations with the
/ order of the Knights of Labor. They had
! taken possession of our road. Then there
was a new DEAL and we put them on differ
ent footing. We took back the men. but we
! took them back as individuals. We did not
ask them whether they were Knights Of
Labor or Methodists, or Baptists, or any
/ thing else. We did not propose TO deal with
the knights of Labor
AS AN ORGANIZATION.
Mr.. Powderly understood that distinctly, be-
cause 1 stated it distinctly in that interview.
Mr.. Burns called attention to the order
referred to in the testimony yesterday di-
recting that no knights of Labor should be
employed as foremen, Mr.. Gould denied
any knowledge of that order, but justified
| it on the principle Of not putting on guard
any except those who could be trusted.
He added:
The last words that said to Mr.. Powderly
were: ''Mr. Powderly, If you have any griev-
ances you may come to my house or to my
Office at any time, but do not bring Mr..
/ Mcdowell but come yourself" i was over
run with people who said to me: "Look out
for Mcdowell; you will have him presenting
you with a bill tomorrow of $4,000 for
settling this strike; and he will put il in the
hands of a lawyer and sue for it."
The committee took recess for quarter
| of an hour and reassembled again, when
| the examination of Mr.. Gould was resumed.
He was inquired of by Mr.. Grain as TO the
ways of construction companies in issuing
stock to themselves out of proportion TO
the work done; but Mr.. Gould denied any
| knowledge of such dark and questionable
| transactions. He was asked his opinion as to
the cause of the strike and the only reason
that occurred to him was the desire of some
| Of the leaders TO gain notoriety and conse-
! quence. He had never heard of and did
not believe in such causes of complaint as
Mr.. Powderly alluded to in the first days
testimony, such as a cheating of employees
in the matter of hospital taxation, home
steads and stores belonging TO superintend-
ents and foremen. Such statements were
ridiculous, and he felt positive that there
were no instances of the kind. He was
inquired of by Mr.. Cultivate as to stock
speculations growing
OUT OF THE STRIKE;
and he said that he knew nothing of the
! kind. and that so far as he was himself con-
cerned, he had not made transaction in
stock. either long or short, since the first
of January, and had no speculative interest
in the market. He was sure that more of
the directors of the Missouri Pacific had
any dealings in the stock of the road on the
days following his interview with Pow
derly.
Mr.. Cuthwaite-You did not intend. or want
to have, any arbitration or offer TO settle any
difficulties with Knights of Labor who had
struck, or were out of your employment at
the time? Was that the understanding?
Mr. Gould-That is it distinctly.
Mr. Rurnac inouirad nc IN fha ralo+;o,.