The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-05-12
RAILWAY ARBITRATION BILL.
Denounced By Senator Allen As a
Trap For Employees.

! Washington, May 11.-When the SEN
ate convened today the national quar-
antine bill was displaced as the I'M
finished business. and the bill to pro-
vide for taking the twelfth and subse-
Quent cenSuSeS, substituted. The CEN
sus bill will be pressed vigorously.
A house joint resolution declaring the
lands within the former Mile Las In
dian reservation, in Minnesota, to be
subject to entry under the land laws
of the United States was agreed to.
Mr.. Chandler of New York offered the
following resolution, which was
adopted: THAT the committee on ma
val affairs be directed to make inquiry
concerning the eXpediency of securing
and establishing for the United States
additional coaling stations at suitable
points in foreign waters, and as to each
coaling station which may be deemed
necessary, to ascertain what are its
dimensions, condition and the expense
of occupancy and maintenance, and
the best method of securing the right
to maintain such station, and report
by bill or otherwise
AT 2:20 o'clock the unfinished business
was informally laid aside and The con-
sideration begun of the so-called rail-
way arbitration bill. After the read
ing of the bill, Mr. Allen discussed it.
the most vicious measures ever brought
before congress. He declared that it
bound railroad employees hand and
foot, and made them the bond servants
of the railroad corporations. He said
that he had been flooded with tele
grams from labor organizations urging
him to support it. He thought, how
ever, that the railroad employees were
being led into a trap in urging the
passage of the bill
Mr.. Fairbanks of Indiana held that
/ if there were defects in the measure,
in the very nature of the case they
would bear with equal hardships upon
both parties to any controversy that
might arise between the railroads and
their employees.
Mr.. Allen doubted the honest purpose
of the bill IF I were employed to de-
feat such a purpose" said he, Il could
not do it better than in drafting a bill
like this
At the conclusion of Mr.. Aliens
speech, Mr.. Kyle, in charge of the BILL
offered and had adopted many minor
amendments. One of these provided
that not only the award of the arbi-
traitors, but also the papers and pro-
ceedings, including the testimony taken
by them, shall be filed with the clerk
of the United States district court. An
other amendment provided that moth
ing in the bill should prevent an en-
ployer from reducing the number of
employees if the exigencies of business
required such reduction.
A new section was offered as a sub
stitute for section II of the bill, Dro-
viding that each member of the arbi-
tration board should receive $40 a day
and expenses, and appropriating not
more than $4,000 for each of the next
two years to pay the arbitrator and
expenses.
The bill was debated by Senators AL
len, Ell1irs, German, Teller, Lodge and
Turner.
To meet points raised by Mr.. Allen
and Mr.. Turner Mr.. Hoar offered an
amendment providing that no injunc-
ton or other legal process shall be is
sued which shall compel the perform
ance by any laborer against his will,
of contract for personal labor or ser
vice. The amendment was accepted
by Mr. Kyle, who gave notice that he
would move again tomorrow to resume
consideration of the measure.
The senate then. at 5:35 p. m, went
into executive session, and ats5:45 ad-
iourned