Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-09

initiate whole people when only par
tcular class is to be reached, cannot De
tie action intended, and should be guard
ed against in every possible way. more
opportune moment than the present can
hardly be desired for reaching better un-
Outstanding with China on the subject of
Chinese immigration and for adjusting our
policy in this regard to the demands or
justice and equality. This could De done'
not by making it any easier for Chinese
la borers to enter. but by so framing our
laws and treaties as to make admission the
rule and exclusion the exception. while
preserving at the same time, in all its in
tegrity the present policy of the laws,
and even strengthening where necessary
the real prohibitory features thereof.
through a full and explicit definition of
the excluded classes.
The bureau of corporations has con-
tinued the work prescribed in it's organic
act in the investigation of corporations
engaged in the great interstate industries.
In Nay, 1907, the present commissioner
submitted to the President Part 1 of
report on the petroleum INDUSTRY, dealing
with the position of the Standard Oil
Company in that industry. The bureau is
occupied, as current work. with making
Investigations into the steel, lumber and
tobacco industries, as well as with fur
Their work, on the petroleum industry, and
with inquiries connected with canals.
coastwise and river navigation, cotton ex-
Company and in making xspecia1 inves-
tigation relating to patents held by gov
eminent employees upon articles in use by
the government 1t is believed that these
Investigations will set before the public a
number of important economic and finan-
cial facts and tendencies that will be of
the highest value in dealing with great
industrial problems.
bureau of labor has been carried into a
new field owing to the invoking of the So
called Erdman act.
Settling a Strike.
The most conspicuous test of the use
funess of the law occurred in March,
1907. The Order of Railway Conductors
and the Brotherhood of Railroad Train
men had been in conference at Chicago
for some two months with committee
of general managers representing practi-
cally the entire railroad mileage in the
United States west of Chicago. The con-
ference was for the purpose of settling
wages. hours of service and other con-
ditioEs of employment for conductors and
railroad trainmen on all the railroads in
the territory extending from the Illinois
Central railroad to the Pacific coast. All
efforts to reach an agreement between
the railroads and their employees had
failed, and the two organizations or en-
ployes had submitted the dispute TO
vote of their membership and that vote,
with practical unanmity, had declared in
favor of strike in the event that sat
isfactory settlement of the points in 'dis-
pute could not be reached
This was unquestionaby the largest
and perhaps the most important indus
trial dispute that has ever arisen in the
United States, and the disastrous results
that would have followed a general strike
of such magnitude are incalculable.
The committee OF general managers in
voked the mediation provided for in the
Erdman act and the commissioner of
labor and the chairman of the interstate
commerce commission went to Chicago in
person. and through their efforts set
Element satisfactory to both sides was
reached within ten days.
In June. 1907. a serious injury to the
commercial and general public interests
was threatened by a general strike of
telegraphers against the Western Union
and Postal Telegraph companies. Re-
peated efforts were made and everything
that could with propriety be done by
representative of the government was
done to bring about a settlement of the
difficulty. but these efforts proved en-
tirely fruitless.