Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1894-10-11

Chicago, Oct. i0--The feature Of the
Union League club meeting was the
speech OF Carroll d. Wright. United
States labor commissioner. on the sub
Jcct Of arbitration OF disputes between
employe and employer. In substance
Mr.. Wright spoke as follows; Il must
limit myself 10 compulsory arbitration
as applied to compulsory industry. The
nrst great question ~, Shall a man
have IA right to do what he will with
his ownT We say now he may not
II he wishes to do with It so that II
~ likely to lnjure the property or
health Of his nelghbor. A man must
submit to the wishes OF the community
In regard to his own property.
"A third Limitation Is likely to be ad-
ded to the answer Of today, The ans.
wer VIII soon be No. not II you inJure
the standard OF living Of your neigh
bor' How. then shall this last ans
wer be met when II comes. SO that In
dustry shall not be killed by Its conse-
quences2
mo way has yet been devised to pre-
vent strikes. The most that can be
done is to reduce them In number and
severity. Arbitration cannot prevent
them Voluntary arbitration seems "A
logical answer
81 pass the compulsory arbitration
The advocates OF this say that. first.
both parties to n dispute must be com
pellcd 10 come Into court, and that. Sec
und, when the court issues It's decree
IL must be enforced as any other de-
cree would be enforced. Let us see how
this Win work. A is a manufacturer
who pays his men on an average OF BE
day owing 10 some cause he finds
he cannot pay this any longer and re-
duces wuges to $3.50 The men oppose
this, They say they cnnnot live ON less
than g. The employer SAYS he cannot
pay more The matter IA taken M by
compulsory court OF arbitration sun
pose the court says the men must take
the $50. How can this be enforced
say there are 5000 employees, Who can
make them work. The constables. tho
sheriff the posse comltatus, the mill
tnry forces may all be called out but
none can make them work The do
cree Is dead from the beginning.
suppose the court says the manufnc-
turer must pay the So But. IL no
really cannot afford TO DO 30, what
must hoppenG The employer must do
one OF two things. Either he must
adulterate his goods TO make I'm The
difference, or he must combine with
other employers In q trust to keep nm
the prices, The law will have 10 com.
pei one Of these things.
There Is also an economic question
to be considered. IL the state saws tho
employers must pay a fixed price for
work, II has practically fixed the price
OF the commodity. The law san nx
the price, but 1t cannot compel tho
consumers 20 buy at that price.
THE next logical step Is to make n
penal oftense not to buy at that price,
(Applause)
Then why not let the law TX the
prices OF everything directly. II would
be cheaper to do this directly thnn
through the cumbersome machinery of
compulsory arbitration. The workman
would be slave under compulsory ar
bitratlon He has little freedom OF con.
tract now He must submit TO the rui-
ing prices But compulsory arbitration
VIII destroy what little he has left. II
Will establish the prices at which hc
can sell the only commodity he poss
esses--hls labor. He must accent 81 so
or not work at all, IL the court tells
him 10 DO So even " the actual cost on
living Is 81, on whatever side we lool,
compulsory arbitration means cramped
Industry and enslaved labor. There
may be some change In the future de-
velopments, but l do not know IL now
There should be n protest by the com
munity against II. Few labor orRanI-
cations endorse II. a fcw scholars and
thinkers are the only ones who really
endorc II, Their result win 20 back 10
the ages from which we have been al
vorecd II would be going back to a
worse barbarlsm than we ever had on
this continent There would be no life
no survival OF industry under IT."