The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-02-18
NO SIXTEEN HOUR BILL.
Railroad Men Lose the Contest for
Shorter Hours

Washington, Feb. 1s.-The house
committee on interstate commerce has
reported back the La Toilette bill
limiting the hours of labor of railway
trainmen, after stuffing it so full OF
amendments and changes that neither
the author. who has been working
hard to get it through this session. nor
the president, who has been urging it
with vigorous industry, could recog-
nize it.
While reports have been circulated
recently that the president was about
to commence change of attitude on
the subject of railroad legislation, he
has been putting in hard work right
along on all the railroad legislation
now pending in congress, the principal
part of which is this hours of labor
bill.
The railroads came very nearly kill
ing it in the senate, La Toilette win
ming out by the narrow margin of two
votes. Now the house committee, of
which Colonel Pete Hepburn is the
chairman, has come powerfully to the
support of the railroads and has
brought in a bill which contains all
sorts of things except the provision
limiting the hours of trainmen. AS 1t
passed the senate the La Toilette bill
prohibited a railroad from requiring
or permitting an employe to work
more than sixteen consecutive hours;
who had been on duty sixteen consecu-
tive hours at least ten hours off duty
before again summoning him for
work, and limited to sixteen the total
number of hours any man could be
required to work in any twenty-fouI
hour period.
The house bill alters the language
so subtly that there is at casual
reading no important difference, but
the meaning has been changed so as
to entirely eliminate the twenty-four
hour provision and effectually destroy
the force of the whole bill, 1t says
that whenever an employe has been
on duty sixteen consecutive hours he
shall be relieved and not again called
for duty until he has had ten hours
off and that mo emplOye who has
been relieved from service of more
than ten hours or less than sixteen
hours" shall be required or permitted
to go on duty again until he has had
eight hours off.
But if he has been on duty only
nine hours, or nine and one-half, he
may be recalled under such a provi-
sion after one hours rest, and that
thing may be continued at the pleas
ure of the railroad. practically nullify-
ing the intent of the La Toilette bill.
To make it more certain that the bill
should be ineffective there is added
with careful skill the single word
"ncwingly," in such fashion that the
punitive features of the measure shall
apply only to those roads which
knowingly" in such fashion that the
employees to work mere than sixteen
consecutive hours. The burden of
proof is laid on the government to
show that the official requiring the
man to overwork knew" that he was
doing so.
The result of this work probably
will be to kill any legislation on the
subject at this session, which is all the
railroads want. The president has
been very active in his efforts to Sc
cure the passage of the La Toilette
bill and has urged both Colonel Hep
burn and Speaker Cannon to see thai
the bill came out of the house COM
mittee with minimum of changes.