The Irish standard., 1894-11-17
IA ()R'S B EHAIl j..
0onciHation and Arbitration Con-
gress Convenes in Chicago.
s .Zhree Interesting Sessions Held - The
Question Of Arbitration Between
Railway Companies and Em-
plOyes Discussed.

!
held its opening meeting Tuesday
morning at Willard hall On the plat.
form when the meeting was called
to order were the chairman, Ly.
man ]. Gage, Judge Vincent and
Prot. E. r. L. Gould, of Johns
Hopkins university, who. was set down
for the first address. A little later
Congressman William NJ. Springer, OF
illinois, arrived and at the invitation
of Judge Vincent occupied chair on
the platform A short address, intro
ducing the first speaker and outlining
the purpose Of the congress-, was read
by Mr.. Gage, after which the audience
listened to paper on the History OF
lndustria! Arbitration in England and
the Continent" by Prof. Gould
Arbitration Discussed.
Judge William a. Vincent presided
at the afternoon session. The first
speaker, James Peabody, editor of the
Railway Review. who was down for
an essay on "Arbitration in Railway
Affairs" confined himself to the
question of interference with trans
portation, holding that the law
was now powerless to prevent the
.crippling of railroads by the strik-
ing of employees, since Justice Harlan
had decided in the Northern Pacific
case that it was lawful for them to
quit in body. Some law was needed,
he thought, to prevent men from quit
ting in body without warning. The
public was more to be considered than
either railroad managers or employees.
L. s. Coffin, of Iowa, ting
the Brotherhood of Railway Train
men, thought railroad employees were
In every sense public servants, As
such they should not cripple the pub
lilo service, but on the other hand, the
railroads should pay them fair wages.
The public was the great general pay
master. If the public did not now pay
enough to the railroads to enable them
TO give their employees good wages, lot
the public be charged more for freight
and passenger traffic. He beloved
that labor should have the, right to
combine and made . strong plea for
Sunday rest for railroad employees.
He opposed state end national COM
missions and declared he was not in
favor of giving them more power in
regard to the settlement of strikes.
Let their work bs merely advisory,
not compulsory on any class. Mr..
Coffin thought the country had seen
the last great railroad strike.
The springer Bill.
Representative William M. Springer
spoke on his bill for arbitration of Ia
Dor troubles between railroad EN-.
ployers and employees. This bill is
now on the congressional calendar
and will shortly come up in congress.
He believed that the difference to pub.
lie opinion of both parties to labor con-
troyersies would make them abide by
any decision rendered by national
labor commission. There could be nc
end to- labor difficulties until the poo
pie believed chat justice was to be
done to them.
Tho Evening session.
Half of the audience assembled al
willard hall for the evening session Of
the congress on industrial concilia tiou
and arbitration was composed Of labor
ing mon. Rev. DR.. John Fl. Barrows
of this city, presided. THE Dis
tinction Between Arbitration and
Cancellation" was the subject OF
paper read by Josephine
Shaw Lowell, of New York. The
epeaker insisted that the general pub
lie knew little of arbitration and had
absolutely no knowledge of concilia.
ton. The best plan, instead
of trying to arbitrate troubles and
strikes, was to prevent them. The
character Of employees and employers
needed to be changed--a christian
feeling should prevail and concilia-
ton was the word that applied.