The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-07-29
PUBLISHERS STATEMENT.
What the Newspaper Said of Situa-
ton Before Strike.

S4OA 0OAO4o SbA4aO.
Spokane, July 2S.-The following is a
statement made in the Spokesman-Re-
view July 81 preceding the printers
strike:
Perhaps no event of the past week in
the United States Will be more far
reaching in its results than the meeting
in Spokane of President James M.Lynch
of the International Typographical I'M
ion and Frederick Driscoll, industrial
commissioner of the American Newspa-
per Publishers association.
Those interested in the relations be-
tween organized labor and employers
can not but have their attention arrest
ed by the remarkable developments of
this meeting.
These officials came here as a nation
al board of arbitration, at the instance
of the Spokane printers union, to hear
an appeal by the union from the decis-
| ion of a local board of arbitration pre-
sided over by Rev. w. NJ. Jones of the
/ Unitarian church of this city, which
( lowered the wages of printers on daily
newspapers in Spokane.
Both the local arbitration and the
consideration of the appeal therefrom
were provided for by an arbitration
contract signed by President Lynch
for the typographical union and by the
Review Publishing company. Presl-
dent Lynch and Commissioner Driscon
constitute a national board of arbltra~
ton to hear appeals whenever for any
reason either the local union or the
publisher is dissatisfied with the award
of the local boards n 49,
The arbitration contract provides that
when these two national arbitratOrs
disagree they shall appoint third
arbiter, who shall be chairman of their
board. and whose decision. with that
of either of the other two, shall be
final.
The contract further requires all
three of the arbitrators to sign the de-
cision arrived at by any two of them.
regardless whether the third arbiter
assents or dissents-
If in any case President Lynch or
Commissioner Driscou disagree as to
the meaning of any part of the arbi-
tration contract. they are bound by a
supplementary written agreement.
signed by both, to submit such question
of Interpretation to a third disinterest~
ed person.
At the Spokane meeting of the ma
tional board, before naming the third
arbiter, Commissioner Driscoll and
President Lynch agreed to hear state
ments from both sides in support of
and against the decision of the local
arbitration board. This decision, which
made a reduction in the wages of the
printers. was declared by President
Lynch to be invalid. Commissioner
Driscon declared that it was entirely
proper and in accordance with the con-
tract. President Lynch then objected
to the appointment of a third arbiter
to pass upon their differences of
opinion.
BY this refusal he blocked the award
of the local board.
This arbitration contract between the
International Typographical Union and
a large number of American publishers
is the most conspicuous attempt yet
made to arrive, by voluntary arbitra-
ton, at a Leaceful solution of wage
disputes. There have been a number of
arbitration proceedings under this con-
tract with the International Typograph-
ical union in eastern cities, but none of
the decisions lowered wages except
recent decision at Minneapolis and the
one at Spokane.
At Minneapolis President Lynch and
Commissioner Driscoll sat on the board
of arbitration. They agreed upon
third arbiter, who was suggested by
the Minneapolis printers union. Com
missioner Driscon and the third arbi-
ter voted to lower the wages, whereup-
on President Lynch declined to sign the
award. The contract requiring that the
award of the national board should
have all three signatures, it was evil
IDENTIFY President Lynch's purpose to
block the award in Minneapolis, as he
has done in Spokane
The annual convention of the Inter
national Tvpographical union will be
held in washington City next month,
and those interested in the plan of set
Ting wage disputes by arbitration will
be much Interested to see if the printers
of the country generally approve Pres
lident Iynch's course of refusing TO
abide bv the results of arbitration when
that arbitration has gone against the
printers and when such arbitration
has been entered into deliberately and
with the full consent of both sides