The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-09-24


had benefited labor. With this con-
Guiding sentence Mr.. Taft aroused
three hearty cheers for himself
IF am elected president, as / hope
and believe l shall be. / propose. and
il will be one OF my pleasant duties TO
devote my time and all the ability /
have to the construction of legislation
which shall place the laborer on an eX-
act level ard give a square deal, and
no more than a square deal"
Following is the speech of Mr. Taft
TO the Order of Railway Conductors In
this city tonight:
I am glad TO meet so many members
OF organized railroad labor. j have ac-
cepted this opportunity to address an au-
dience of members of the brotherhoods
in order that l may take up question
which has been given great prominence
In this campaign, and in which L must
say that every effort has been made I'M
justly to arouse the prejudice OF organ
lied labor against the Republican party
and its candidate.
Laws for Railroad Men.
in the first place. l wish TO affirm,
without fear of contradiction, that the
Republican party has done vastly more
than the Democratic party, both in state
and national legislation. for protection and
in the interest OF labor. II passed In
General Harrison's administration the
e1Bht-nOur law Tor government WOrkInen
and gave an impetus to a reduction OF
hours In other employment. The safety
appliance acts. by which the railroads
engaged in interstate commerce were re-
qJfired 10 make provision for fhe safety
of their employees and thus to reduce
the shocking loss of life and limb of
railroad employees, were passed IN the
same administration. Amendments to this
act. making more detailed specifications
for improvements in safety appliances,
including especially the fire pan, have
been passed in the present administra-
ton. An act for the promotion of arbi-
tration between the railroads and their
employees in interstate commerce is also
one of those acts of beneficence to both
employer and employee. The last con-
gress enacted a law which was declared
unconstitutional, and then in its second
session re-enacted the law TO avoid the
constitutional objections. By this act
railway employees who bring suit for dam
ages against the company cannot now be
defeated on the ground that the neSli-
gence was the negligence of a fellow
servant. II he Is shown to be guilty OF
negligence himself in a slight degree he
does rot forfeit his right of action, but
it is left to the jury TO apportion the
damages and reduce them as equity shall
justify.
I'm addition to this. a law limiting the
hours of labor of interstate railway en-
ployes has been passed. A bill was also
passed by the last session of congress
ment employees for injuries received In
the government employ. 1t is an made
quate law and will doubtless be improved
by coming congresses. An issue. how
ever. has arisen as to the attitude of the
two parties on the subject of injunctions
in labor disputes"
Denied Bryan's Statement.
Judge Taft gave a detailed history OF
the labor injunction cases that came be-
l. hill
tifying his decisions. He continued:
Mr.. Bryan says | am the father OF
injunctions in industrial cases. This is not
true. The use of Injunction was in ac-
cases which / cited, both in the Arthur
case and the Phelan case. am not apol-
ogiZing for what | did in those cases,
for they were in accordance with my duty
as a judge.
Another point which I distinctly de-
cided in these cases was that no tempo
rary restraining order or injunction could
issue to prevent mans leaving the en-
ploy Of a railway, and therefore, that
no injunctions could issue to restrain men
from acting in concert and going on a
strike.
lnjunctions Justified.
objection is made to the use of the
injunction in such disputes. All l have
to say on that point is that precedent
justifieS il, and that the man whose bust
mer employees frequently has no other
remedy which is at all adequate. The
owner of business, whether railroad
business of any other, is entitled to be
protected in his pursuit of it and to i'm
munity from unlawful injury to it. To
take away from him the remedy by in
junction which has always been his rem
edy because 1t sometimes leads to the
punishment of those who violate the in
junction with trial by jury is to introduce
into the law class legislation in favor of
employees and laboring men and is TO take
them out of the ordinary operation of the
civil remedies because they are laborers.
l say that that kind of class legislation is
pernicious.
Legislation Should Be Just.
1--WE are interested in that legislation
against the railroad should be just and
only properly restrictive. We are inter
ested that there should not be unjust
and drastic legislation preventing their
earning proper income. We are inter-
ested, OF course, that they should charge
only proper rates. but we are also inter
ested that they should not be made to do
business on less than just rates. I have
noticed with great deal of interest that
the railroad laboring men are beginning
to realize that the property Of the rail-
roads is as much in their interest as il is
In the interest OF the stockholders and the
officers of the road and that they propose
hereafter to be heard upon the political
issue as to the character of the legislation
that shall be passed with reference to the
regulation of the railroads. With this d.
rect interest that railroad laboring men
have in the prosperity of railroads can
they not see that it is of the utmost i'm
portance to prevent the election of the
man whose record will make returning
confidence and prosperity impossible?
Railways and Prosperity.
THE whole country is dependent upon
the prosperity of the railroads. The truth
is that the railroads are the greatest sin