New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-02-07
ENLON P4CIEIC EECEICERS.

|
The coincidence of an order issued mt Omaha
Inv Judge Dundy At the instance of the receivers
of The Union Pacific Hallway Company chJoih'
| ing the employees of the company from strihlhs
| against a cut in wages. with another order from
| the same judge granting 10 each or the hVe
receivers a salary of $4,000 per annunl, Is uil-
| pleasantly suggestive. 1t is one or those oc-
| c,rrcnCes which do more 10 emDitter the 'iiI'""!
strained relations between employers anu 'ni-
ployed and increase the difficulties III the wa!
| of any amicabc adjustment than can ne uhdohe
| by wears of concilatory effort. Whatever Hl'!
be said Of the necessity for cur III wages oi
| the railroad employees caused by the depression
| in business and decrease in earnings ana HOW
| ever unws,. il NAV seem for the employees To en-
| gage in strike AT time when so many 'ho"-
! sands of willing laborerS are out Of work. one
thing is absolutely certain: that Is. 'hat me-
| chanics and workingmcn earning two or three
dollars a day by the labor of their hands VIII
not consent without protest to a reduction OF
| their own wages while five men are paid $50
| dav. present or absent. for doing the work Of
| one or two and muddling with multitude OF
| counscllors the management Of affairs which
would much better he intrustcd 10 one or TWO
competent persons 1t seems to them rank III
| the money. the judge who awards ii. the Gov
eminent and the laws that permit it. and the
| corporation that has not the courage to oppose
il. these men naturally have no friendly feeling.
| The compensation awarded the receivers
| would. no doubt under any circumstances seem
| high 10 the workingman laboring for day wages.
| Sixty dollars a day would seem extravaganza
| pay even if the work was constant and Inc
| hours as long as the labOrcrs. II seems more
| so when il is taken into account that some or
| the receivers average hardly three or four hours
| n week; still more when it Is considered that
| nj least two Of them are not only supcriiuouS,
| but a hindrance; and the extravaganza becomes
| All exasperaton to the workingman WHEN he
| reflects that his own small wages must he re-
duccd TO meet the useless outlay. He is no more
| reconciled 10 IL when Is pointed ont that the
! expenditure of $4,000 Il year on receivers Is
| really an insignificant tem not worth mindlng,
| in the affairs of a company with gross earnings
| Of Sl0OOOOOO per annun, being little more than
| onc-tfth Of one per cent Of the total. He only
! soos that under the order Of a United States
Judge the company is paying more Tor law ana
less for labor and lie doesn't like II. II Is prob
| ably no great consolation TO him that the re-
| ownership has furnished the President of the
| United States an opportunity to I'LL with per
sonal friends, without the need Of confirmation
by the Senate. three places the salaries Of which
| are more than twice much as those or CAD
met officers or Supreme Court Judges, while the
duties Of two at least merely nominal II
does not comfort him To think that the sal
| aries instead OF coming ont Of the Federal
Treasury, are taxed upon the company's en-
ployes.
The business conditions which have brought
lat, t,,,t,a
the last year bear more grevously upon the
workingmcn than any other class. The cut In
wages which has been made necessary has Gre
atel widespread discomfort, as might have been
expected Ordinary prudence would suggest the
exercise Of unusual precautions against any
course Of action on the part Of railroad man
ayers and receivers which might furnish the
excuse for organized strikes, the effect Of which
would be to make the situation Infinitely worse
than it now is The effort Of persons in au
| thorty should be to aay prejudice and pas
sion and reconcile all their employees TO the
sacrifices they are obliged TO undergo by all the
means in their power They make very seri-
Gus mistake when they put in operation policy
Of retrenchment which affects only the men
whose labor Is absolutely essential TO the opera
lions of the road while increasing their own
salaries and charging eXOrbitant fees. The
Union Pacific furnishes fragrant instance OF
this unwise and short-Sighted policy, and II
seems to us extremely unfortunate that 1t should
have the apparent Endorsement and approval OF
the United States Government and the Fed
| eral courts. The point where retrenchment
should begin when failure to earn fixed charges
compels it, should be at the top. Above all
| things to be avoided Is an Increase i'm the cost
| of administration at the expense Of the wage
earncrs employed in the daily operations OF
the road.