Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1908-04-02

At caucns held In one Of the ward
Of Parsons the other night a man VIII
makes bis living by running small
grocery store went out Of his way t
attempt to introduce q motion tina
the sentiment Of the caucus wal
Stubs for governor. AZ this tint
hundreds Of shopmen, men who con
tribute to the grocer's support, are
out Of work, due to large extent to
the bombastic agitation Of Stubs and
his kind. II is no wonder that the
resolution was treated with contempt
and greeted with jeers. IN,
Railroad employees in every depart
ment are feeling the blows that have
been dealt to the railaoad industry by
drastic legislation, and labor is crying
to stay the rod. Twenty-Five or more
bills to regulate" the railroads are
now pending in congress, and five
chiefs Of national labor organizations
Of railway employees, have appeared
in Washington to plead against radi-
cal Legislation that will affect railroad
revenues. The delegation consists OF
the chief Of the Brotherhood OF Loco
motive FiremeD, the chief OF the
Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers,
the chief Of the Order Of Railway Com
duotors and the Chief OF the Brother
hood Of Railway Trainmen and others.
No doubt these men can show that
the railroads have suffered from the
storm Of attack which has lately laid
commerce and industry low. There
is not a man in Parsons who does not
suffer from the closing Of the Katy
shops, whether he be an employee Of
the company, a business or profess
sional man, or a common. laborer.
All Of Parsons industrial and COM
mercial life centers in the Katy de-
partments maintained here, and from
its shops, switch shanty and station
radiates whatever industrial and COM
mercial life there is in the city. 1t is
the great heart that throws out
the arteries Of trade and in
dustry the life blood Of commerce.
And yet there are those, even in Par
sons, who would give more power to
this man Stubs and his associates
who have contributed to the closing
Of these shops, the laying off Of train
crews and creating present conditions
by their agitation against railroads.
These labor leaders now in Washing
ton represent the very heart Of the
Industrial and commercial world and
their words should be given the
weight that is due them. State leg
Islatures have enacted laws that have
reduced the income Of the railroads !
md at the same time enacted other /
avs for the regulation Of railroads {
increasing their expenses. There ID
not business man who would stand '
or such condition, and the railroads I
ire doing just what any business man i
would do under similar circumstances. O
they are reducing their forces in 0
very department, just as merchant q
vonld reduce his force Of clerks when /
here was deficit in his income, y
Reform is always proper, and no Q
lohbt the railroads needed "regula- !,
ion" along certain lines. But too \
much chastisement is harmful. The Z
fell victim to one OF the per- "
odical crazes that take possession Of n
he American people. But never be- 8,
ore now have these cases Of hysteria o.
cen so expensive to the people. 1t n
J time to pause with the rod SO that
Industry may not be whipped to de-
trnotfon rparanua Cun