The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1903-04-30
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bers, and assuring steady employment
at fair wages the HERALD is in per-
feet sympathy. It's right TO make and
lawfully enforce demands TO that end
is universally recognized, as it oueh,
to be. Rut when its demands go h,
yond that legitimate limit, ard in =
poses restrictions upon employers
which are unreasonable, demant s
which amount to dictation of general
policies to be pursued in the conduct
of the business of such employers, it
forfeits public approval, and str'k'
a severe blow at its own welfare.
Such seems to be at present the i'm
pending cnnditio MS relative to the CON
ducto,s aud trainmen of the Great
Northern road in the demands made
upon that company by comm tte' s
representing these two organizations.
The original demand made upon the
company was for an increase of twenty
per cent. in the schedule Of wa9hs -f-
fective in 1902. and double pay fol
double-heade trains of thirty cars Oh
more-trains drawn by two engines.
This demand for increase for ordinary
train service was subsequently re-
duced to fifteen per cent 70" freig h,
men and twelve per cent for passenger
men. F. E. Ward, General Manas GER
of the road, promptly granted the
wage request as modified, but declined
to consider the matter Of dounIin. the
pay of men employed ca dOnble-head-
ers, setting forth his reasons therefor
very clearly and, to the public, very
cCnviocingly.
1t should be stated, incidentally,
that early in 1892 the Great Northern
road voluntarily increased the wage
scale of it's employees, without solicila-
ton of any kind, to a point higher
than was then paid by any other
trans-continental road, aud to This
higher scale the present advance is
conceded by the company.
The only point at issue at present be-
tween the men and the company is the
clause relative to double-Eeaders.
which the company declines to yield
as it. involves a matter of princip.e
pertaining to the management of it's
business. AS a matter of fact the
Great Northern road is the only one
of the great coast lines which does not
use double,headers in its ordinary
business, but has expended millions of
dollars in reducing gradients.
STRENGTHENING curves and providir o
heavy motor power to the end of ecc-
nomic transportation. Only in IL e
mountain districts re two engines
mood over short stretches Of steep
ar.dients-so practically the emplo-cs
would Gain nothing by the concessi
while the company would surrend, r
the right to conduct its business as it
deems for the hest Interests of itself
and its patrons. For, if employees may
demand double pay for douhie-heaG-
ers, involving n o more labor on their
part than operating a train with one
engine, as a logical sequence they
may demand double pay for work
with a train hauling more than Civ
en- number of tons arbitrarily fixed by
themselves.
In short, during the conference, Mr..
Garretson, the chairman of one of the
committees, frankly stated to Nj.
Ward that the real reason for the d.
mani is to create condition which
will make necessary the employment
of more men to transact given
amount of business. In other words
the employees demand that the road
shall gain nothing for itself or it's pat
rons by it's enormous expenditures
in improving the physical condition
of its property which make it possible
to maui heas Ter trains, and consequent
ly to transport freight at less cos,
but that this advantage shall accrue
to the employees without their giving
any extra service therefor--or, that
more men than is necessary to do the
work shall be employed, s@
1t is the same old contention which
became acute when the steam engine
was first put into service in England,
and which led to labor riots, the men
contesting that the machine displaced
manual labor. 1t again cropped out
when the Arkwright spinning ma
chimes were introduced, disturbances
and destruction OF property followed.
In more recent times when the type
setting machine became operative,
one machine taking the place of a
half dozen printers, the same objec-
tion to it was made, although no acts
of lawlessness ensued. And what
were the results in the cases cited?
The steam engine greatly decreased
the cost of manufactured goods to the
consumers, and SO, stimulated produce
ton that more labor than ever was
required to meet the demand; the
spinning machines created like de-
mand by decreasing cost, and stimu-
lating labor at better wages, and to-