Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-12-28
TENDENCY TO SOCIALISM.
Commissioner Wright Tells What the
Chicago Strike Demonstrated.

Commissioner Wright Tells What the
Chicago Strike Demonstrated.
Labor Commissioner Carroll D. Wright
addressed the American Economic Asso-
citation in convention at New York yester-
day on the importance of the Chicago
strike
Commissioner Wright said in the course
Of hts remarks.
There is now pending In Congress a
measure which Is state socialism pure
and simple. i refer to the pooling bill
now pending in the Senate. This pend
ing legislation is demanded at the instance
of the shippers and the railroads of the
country. and its passage is being aided ty
a powerful lobby in their service. The rail-
roads base their advocacy of the bill on the
claim that II will be for the interest of the
shippers to have such a law. The bill pro-
vides for a great trust, with the govern
ment Of the United States as the trustee.
When the first bill to regulate commerce
was passed the great ana powerful wedge
of state socialism was driven one-uuarter
of it's length into the timber of conserva-
tive government. of that government which
means democracy. The pending bill, the
moment 1t becomes law, will! drive the
wedge three-Quarters of it's lensl l.. into the
timber. There will then be needed but one
| more blow to drive the wedge home. and
that blow will come at the instance of
business and not of labor-entire govern
ment control of all the railroads of the
country instead of partial control under the
laws now existing or proposed.
Government Control of Roads.
This blow will be struck in the most
seductive way. 1t will come through a de-
mand that the government shall take
charge of the roads. not purchase them
shall take charge of the roads. and out of
the proceeds Of the transportation business
guarantee to the existing stockholders of
the roads small but reasonable rate of
dividend. Under such a seductive move
ment the stockholders themselves. con-
sentative men, men in this hall now, will
vote for the striking of the blow.
II can now answer why 1t Is that the
Chicago strike Is epocLal In its influence
as subordinate pRese of silent revolu-
tion--a revolution probably in the interest
of the public welfare. 1t is because the
events Of that strike logically demand that
another declaration Of law and of the prin-
ciples Of the federal government shall be
made; a declaration that all wages paid. as
we'll as charges for any service rendered
in the transportation OF property, passen-
gers, ETC., shall be reasonable and just. A
declaration of this character backed by
the machinery of the government to carry
1t into effect, would give to railroad en-
ployes the status of quasi public servants.
The machinery accompanying such a
declaration should be modelled on the in
vided that some authority be established
for the regulation of wage contracts on
railroads, not for a compulsory adjust
ment, as now provided for the adjustment
of freight rates. SO that there would be
little inducement unoer 1T on the part of
railroads to pay unjust and unreasonable
wages. and on the part of employees to quit
work when they were just and reasonable.
l think recognize the distinction which
you of the Economic Association would
make between government adjustment of
freight rates and like adjustment of wage
rates, and 1 fully agree that while gov
eminent can fix the compensation of it's
own employees, 1T cannot and ought not to
attempt arbitrarily to fix that of the en-
ployes of railroads; but l further recog-
nize that 1t is the right and duty of gov
eminent to prevent the interruption of in
terstate commerce and the obstruction of
the mails, and that in the exercise of this
right Ii ought to have a voice in making
the terms and adjusting the conditions of
the employment Of the employees engaged
in such service"