The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1908-10-09
.TAEI LAB0RlS FRIEND
LIE Ia ED .AlIIl ARBeRcAsE


Advice Given Indulge Tsfss Decision
Adoptsa BY ths RailWay srother..
hoeds Democratic Politicians Use
Trisksr f. psssiys tie ToiIsss.
The members Of fhe various Srosi1ert
hoods connected with tue great raiis
road systems Of the country nre gen.
orally regarded as possessing more
than the average degree Of hitellI.
geEee, ,Ileit calIlngs aud the oBliga.
stions spfInglng from those eaIlIngs
make the possession BY them ofifs iligii
order OF intelligence Indispensable.
Notwithstanding this fact the same
system Of absurd falsehootl Is relied on
to deceive and trick them into with.
drawing their support from the Rcpub.
lean party that Is in geheril use hy
Democratic politicians to Influence even
the conmonest and most Ignorant OF
the unsktiied iaborers Of the country.
One form which this system Of trick
cry most frequently takes Is that of
limiting at what terrible things VII
liam H. Taft did against labor organ
izatlon and Its members while he was
on the bench.
The one official act and declaration
Of Judge Taft which is being used in
that way on railroad men is bis decI-
Sion In What Is known us the Toledo
Ann Arb0r case. Yet In that case
through his decision Judge Taft rem
dered an actual, tangible and really
Invaluable service to the cause Of labor
Organization. His advice given TO labor
organizations In that case has been
generally adopted by the various broth.
eriioods und their members. One Of
the rules OF great labor organization,
the Brotherhood OF Engineers, which
was the cause Of the trouble (rule l2l
/ has long since been voluntarily drop
ped as being contrary to the best inter.
ests Of both the public and the organ.
izatlon Itself,
More than all thnt. Judge Taft's de-
cfsion In the Toiedo-Ann Arbor case
contains as good, broad and sound la.
Dor doctrine us ever found its way into
print.
Now, what was that Toledo.Ann Ar
Dos case? Most enlightened rnilrond
men know all about IT. Many of them,
particularly the younger generation of
them, do not.
| a strike OF locomotive engineers pre.
vailed on the Toledo. Ann Arbor and
North Michigan railway. One of the
rules of the brotherhood (rule l2) re.
CURED in substance that when SO or
dered by the head of the organization
the men Of the brotherhood or other
roads should refuse to handle the cars
of the road on which the strike pre-
vailed.
This rule was dangerous one. 1t
probably never should have been
adopted. The attempt to enforce It in
this case brought eight or ten railroads
Into court. They sought protection
against what on its face was at least
an unwise policy for any body of men
to adopt and involved in operation a
possible stoppage of the carrying COM
merce Of the entire country.
1t was n case sympathetic strike.
And the sympathetic strike stands to-
day. from choice. repudlated by all re.
sponslble organizations of laboring peo-
pie and their members.
The principal outcome Of that Ann
Arbor case was that the right Of EN-.
ployees to leave their cmnioyment
whenever dissatisfied with Its condi,
lions was fixed beyond all possible IN.
ture question and some admirable adj.
vice given to the members OF tue or.
ganization. to which they have faith.
fully lived up. both individually and
collectively, since.
I'VE wish to make plain ls we car"
said Judge Taft In his decision. ito the
Intelligent and generally law abiding
men who compose the Brotherhood OF
Locomotive Engineers, as well as to
their usually conservative chief officer,
what we cannot believe they appreci.
ate-that, Notwithstanding their per-
feet organization and their charitable,
Temperance and other elevatlng and
most useful purposes, the existence and
enforcement OF rule 10 under their or.
ganlc law make the whole brotherhood
criminal conspiracy against the laws
of the country"
That the rendering OF this decision
by Judge Taft was, then, in result an
enduring service to all railroad men
Instead OF embodylng anything con.
fiictlng with their rights and privileges
before the law must appear plain to
any ordinary man. II there still re.
manned any doubt on that score it
would be removed by the reflection
that the rules laid down by Judge Taft
In that case are now made part Of
the contracts aud agreements of all
great railroad brotherhoods.
President Roosevelt on Tafss Judiela.
Record.
Mr.. Taft's record rs a Judge makes
the whole country his debtor. His ac.
tons and decisions are part OF the
great traditions OF the bench. They