The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-05-08
Sunday Street Cars.
Ought Their Operation to be Prohibited by Lawa
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thelr position as employers of labor, or
at least as persons who have the power
to control the conditions of labor of a d,
considerable body of men directly, and
OF large number indirectly. We re-
gard this point as OF so much import
ance that we shall deal with It at some
length The fear that street car SER
vice on seven days of the week would
be retrograde step in lengthening the
hours Of labor cannot be regarded as
groundless. 1t is true that legal ma
chinery has been created by which the
city council may prevent the continu-
Gus employment of men. other than the
superintendent and one assistant, the
electrician and one assistant, and six
roadmasters, more than 60 hours, or
six days, per week, except in cases of
civil commUtions,' which may mean
strikes, exceptional accidents 'unusu-
al storms and during the twelve days
OF the Industrial exhibition. If other
men be employed on other occasions
Tor more than six days in the week.
and the City council move in the mat
ter Tor the purpose of preventing 1t, the
city engineer may decide as to wheth-
er or not there were exceptional acci-
dents, civil connections, unusual
storms, or other causes justifying such
continuous employment Within two
weeks after the city engineer shall
have given his decision and communi-
Gated ii to the. couacil and to the com-
pany either party may appeal to the
county judge. who shall have pover
to summon witnesses, demand the pro-
duction of papers and perform all the
acts necessary to judicial routine.
Within one month after the county
judge shall have reported the evidence
his decision thereon and the grounds
thereof to the City council, either that
body or the Street Railway company
may appeal to the court of appeal for
Ontario, which sits four times a year
If that body should decide that a sub
stantiai breach of the covenant re-
garding hours of labor has taken place.
and that 1t could reasonably have been
avoided or if such decision should
De given by the city engineer or the
county judge, and the time for appeal
he allowed to lapse, the city council
may within three months after such
decision impose a penalty on the COM
pany or not more than $500 nor less
than 500. If the penalty be not paid
Withlh seven days after it has been
imposed the city council may recover
IL IN any court having Jurisdiction to
the amount of the said penalty The
city council has still another resource.
Instead of imposing a penalty it NAV
by resolution deprive the Street Rail-
way company of it's right to run cars
on Sunday. If the company does not
then suspend it's Sunday service the
city council may obtain an order and
injunction of any court of competent
1ur1SdiptiOn' "A hot 70
vice be not then discontinued some
one, perhaps a motorman. NAV be COM
mitted to Jail for contempt.
o
Those who understand the actual
position of workman-the threat of
unemployment which must continually
hang over his head under existing con-
ditions--will be apt to regard these
elaborate safeguards as practically
worthless. a motorman or conductor
would no more undertake to move the
city council to move the judiciary to
move the corporation employing him
than he would undertake to move n
mountain. And If a trades union or
Phllanthropic organization undertook
the work he would probably beg of
them to drop it, Much as a man would
dread the loss of his day OF rest he
would dread the loss of work still more.
Employees entitled by shop and tac-
tory laws to certain privileges have
begged OF those moving in their baLalf
&c drop the matter lest a far worse
lnfltction, dismissal. be brought upon
tEem. Employees will generally ex-
press a willingness to work seven days
week, whatever may be their private
feelings, if such willingness Will win
favor and make toward the Derma-
neEce OF their occupation There are
street railway employees cage to work
seven days a week in the mistaken he
lief that 1t will permanently increase
their returns. Such work is like lin,
Killing pace assumed by piec e-workers
In other callings. Ii leads TO a cut in
price, or the feature of an Increase
when conditions would otherwise have
brougt it about. Another influence
which would make toward continuous
labor is the disnclination os foremen
TO be bothered with restrictions Impos-
ing unnecessary changes. The spare
man is rarely wanted anywhere except
10 influence wages. Directors of work.
men desire the minimum of change,
restriction, annoyance and inconveni-
ence, and they find trouble and bother
enough without having to care lest
workmens hours overrun a bylaw,
With all these influences at work
against an unWieldy safeguard with a
Judiciary having perhaps no sympathy
with such laws nor with the men who
force them through parliament it is
not unreasonable to infer that seven
days continuous street car service per
week would mean seven days work for
other than the specified employees at
other time than exhibition weeks. Even
if the legal machinery be put in mo-
tion it would be easy to find that the
encroachment was not 'substantial,'
that it could not reasonably have been
avoided or that some of the more def
mite loop holes were open.
ut is scarcely necessary to argue
against any change likely to involve
the loss OF day OF rest to a large num-
ber Of workmen. That its influence
would be lowerlngi physically and
mentally, no one will question. Were
workmen in a position to afford and to
secure reasonable relaxation Sunday
labor could be introduced to a greater
extent without any such material dan
ger. But that is, unfortunately, not
the case. Sunday work under the con-
ditions of modern life has become a
question Of degree. Every departure In
that direction is urged as a precedent
for more necessary work, the boun-
dairy Of necessities being incapable of
definition.
That the introduction of a Sunday
That the introduction of Sunday
street car service would greatly in
Ia. .F IL.