Bisbee daily review., 1908-03-29
HARTMAN, 50,
 WILL REMAIN
 AT HE HELM
Still Too Many Moves Left, He Says, to Allow FullfiIment of Last Years Declaration Duties Keep Him at It.
(New York Times.)

NNeW 1Orh I1meS.)
 Edward H. Hartman at 60 is mucl
 too busy to think about retiring iron the railroad business. On his last
 birthday a year ago, he thought that
 another twelve month would find hin
 ready to quit the game, but yesterday
 he told Times reporter tat there
 are still too many moves to be made He doesn't, propose to stop even to consider retiring until the complfca tions on the 1 industrial chessboard have been resolved sufficiently to en able him to see clearly a little dis tance ahead. Until then Mir. Harri man thinks he owes it to 10000 stock holders and 150,O00 employees in his
 system to stay "on the job"
 This definition Of his position Mir Hartman made in the course of his afternoon constitutional along Fifth avenue yesterday The reporter met him coming out of his house, and asked how things looked from MT. Harriman's viewpoint of 60 years. Il was the railroad man who spoke oI the chessboard.
 q wouldn't undertake to say" said Mir. Hartman. No sensible man would undertake to now to predict what is going to happen or to make a comprehensive statement of present conditions. There are too many moves yet to be made before any de, gree of stability is reached to make such a survey possible"
 Who is going to make them?"
 You know as we'll as l do," re- turned MT. Hartman sharply. "The people of this country have got to be brought to a proper appreciation of the inter-relation between the various factors in industry. Then they must see to it that the administration of law is conducted in their interest and not as, matter of personal caprice" !"
 And you are going to stay in the game until this comes about, Mir. liar the reporter asked.
 q don't want to say how long I shall stay in harness. A year ago, when the Interstate Commerce Com was at work, said some thing about retiring in another year. Well, it isn't case of changing my mind, but of not having had time to think about retirement. l looked then for some falling off in business, but for nothing like what has occurred. didn't expect to see 50 per cent ot the decrease that has been realized. Under such conditions there is noth- ing to do but stick until matters get into competent hands, at least, and until confidence has been restored.
 Just now we are hearing about the wage problem. But do people appre- eiate that, with given opportunity Tor the development or business, the more we have to pay for capital, the less there is to pay for wages? I am not referring to the scale of wages, put to the amount that we can spend for wages. And in order to get capi- al on reasonable terms We have got :o have good credit, and credit must 1e maintained by surplus earnings. she'll.
 "A wrong idea prevails in good many quarters about &this relation ship of capital and labor We men who manage the roads are not the capitalists. The security holders rom whom We borrow the money are he capitalists, and they are in part lership with the wage eaTners in try ng to make fair profit out of serv- ng the public. It is our duty as man gers of the roads to preserve the lroper relations between the different actors so far as we can. But what of our efforts when unwise interference, resulting n such condition of distrust as pre- 'ails at present, jumbles up all the actors in one conglomeration?
 Be careful, not to confuse the erms. By surplus earnings I do not mean the payment of dividends, but he ability to earn something beyond Fhat is required to meet bare charges md expenses. So in speaking of the between the wage earn ITS and the stDckho' ders. do not linn t myself to the relations that exist ,r that may exist between the cor ,orate organizations on the one side ! nd the labor organizations on the ,ther. I refer to the fundamental re- ations between those who furnish the unds for investment and those who i've their services to make the in- estment probable.
 Tt is quite obvious that restrictions | f business brings about uneconomic- ! } conditions throughout the indus rial structure. When men are work [ ng on part time, or under limitations | $ to hours and conditions, there is a tremendous waste in earning capacity nd productive energy. The whole abric of industry contracts. There } less money to be spent by the 'orkers and consequently less busi- ess to be done to supply the wants hey can afford. A family makes one az of flour go where two were used efore; the old clothes are made over lstead of having new ones bought.
 Multiply this by eighty million and ou can see what 1t means to have le Nation economize. Add the dis 'ust naturally produced among tnose -ho have the money to invest, and lere is a combination of forces at f -ork with cumulative effecc the rt. ut of which it is hard to forecast. arnings decrease because of the Iackening volume of business; cap al becomes timid and rates for loney high, and there is correspond lgly less to be paid for the labor ecessary to carry out the work that e have before us. The question of neither wages will decrease does not epend upon my attitude or the atti- Ide of any other manager of indus y toward labor. It depends upon neither We are going to have the loney to pay labor to do the work lat we ought to do
 T believe that things will right lemselves when people nave had a lance to understand the situation, 'ovided that we eliminate the self seker. What we have got to have in 'litical and in business life is the