The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-08-14
UNIT OF EFFICIENCY.

It is never perfectly clear at the outbreak of strike what the merits of the conflict are. So 1t Is early to speak with deflniteness of the causes of discomfort which have led the teie- graphers to leave their keys at the blowing of whistle, having the day before agreed to take time to further consider their best policy. It is equal ly difficult if not impossible to foretell the consequences of a strike of this character. The cessation of the tele- graph or Its serious interruption may not only mean the loss of millions to innocent parties but the dangerous en- |couragement of government owner |shiA The pity of 1t all is that the principle of arbitration was not re- sorted to.
 The action of the striking telegraph CTS points with great emphasis to two forces which confront unionized labor | if it is to retain it's organization and continue to do for the wage earner for his advantage what has been done in the past upon more than one occasion, because the concern of one was the the concern of all. In the first place union labor must more and more de- pend upon arbitration as a means if not of actual settlement of it's troubles of making clear the justice of it's cause While admitting the usefulness and necessity of organized labor un- der modern industrial conditions the people of the country are more intol- erant than ever of strikes which are caused by impulslve leadership, The Photographers, to use the nearest H. Ilustration, have done more to conpro- mise their position by failing to pro ceed in an orderly way than if they had after a free discussion of their al- legged wrongs undertaken to fight to a finish. If the principle upon which they have acted is to be accepted as a reliable principle of organized conduct the industrial structure which has ben reared in this country with such Icare will not last year. To be sue cessful permanently organized labor must recognize that having under taken to control the labor market the responsibility resting upon its should. CTS is exactly that resting upon tho shoulders of organized capital, and ot all branches that presumably repre-
 senting the intelligence and orderli
 ness of skilled telegrephers ought tt
 behave the best at critical moment
 still another phase of the assump
 ton of organized labor relates to it ability to give better service and nor
 reliable service than can be had iron
 individualism in the labor market, must more and more prove that abil
 ity or 1t will fall through It's ow
 short-sightedness. The average em i, ployer of capital Is not so much con
 cerned with the number of hours hi
 men work or the amount of dollar
 given them. His concern Is the et
 ficiency of their labor The moment 1T
 efficiency takes the place of eff1cienC the investment begins its slide dow
 the hill to insolvency. If union lab would undertake to keep the labor
 controls efficient and to that extel
 act upon spirit of partnership wi the owners of the business 1t wou
 do more for itself than could be a
 compllshed in any other way. 1T
 courts and society have recognized t right of men to organize for their m
 tual advantage and to refuse to wo
 when the conditions displease them, b 1 tIldL IS US uO Hldildlel ol HledilS all LII
 i worth working for. The real a # should be to gain the confidence of t .e employing public and thus comma .- the situation because 1t deserves y co mmand. Nothing will hasten this 8 It uation more than arespect for arbitr l. ton, on the one hand, and the reali7 .- tion, on the other hand, that the Ill s of efficiency is worth It's weight ,e gold,
 l. .1-----=------ -e-----e-@-s----