Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-10-28
NEW YORK LABOR LEADER
WRITES TO THE PRESIDENT
Samuel B. Donnelly Commends
Taft's Record.

The White House today made public q
letter from Samuel B. Donnelly. secre-
tary of the general arbitration board of
the New York building trades. to Pres
ident Roosevelt relative to the labor rec
ord of Candidate Taft
That Mr. Taft is an enemy of labor or
bears any prejudice toward any body or
class of American citizens is unbelievab BILE
by those who are familiar with his rec
ord and by every man who has met him
or heard him speak," says Mr. Donnelly
Relative to the Presidents recent letter
to P. II. Grace regarding Taft's labor
record Mr.. Donnelly says:
You have ably shown that Judge Taft
is not an enemy of la Dor and your opip-
ions and conclusions should be accepted
by labor rs a complete refutation of the
charges made against him by his adver-
saries in this campaign.
Judge Taft's Fairness.
Il have personal knowledge of the rec
ord of Judge Taft when his position
placed him in the employers relation to-
ward labor first as governor Of the Phil
ippines, and. later, in Panama. The testi-
mony of the American mechanics en-
ployed in the Philippines. and particularly
of the union printers. unqualifiedly sup
ports your estimate of his character. In
investigating the conditions in Panama I
was gratified to learn of the thoroughness
OF MS knOWleQSe OF TABOR COnQltlOnS ana
the fairness of his decisions.
In an Interpretation of the federal
eight-hour law reported in 1907 he uses
the following language: That law cam
not be eyaded or avoided when ii has ap-
plication by treating part of the regular
time taken as overtime and paying q
regular wage and then a wage for over
time. That law is an absolute limit upon
the regular hours of employment, and
the only legitimate overtime which can
he all ND ,oai6 ic for. ho I,aA
consumed in meeting an emergency
which could not be reasonably antici-
pated. In May, 1907. he issued the Ion
gevity pay increase order. using the fol-
lowing language: . OF all skilled
workmen. engineers. conductors and me-
chanfcs who are from the United States
and who are paid class rate. those who
nave served one year in the class shall
receive for the next year OF their service
an increase of J per cent of the class
rate. and for each succeeding year an ad-
ditional 3 per cent of the class or basic
rate. provided that this provision for vet
eran pay shall not affect The right OF
the commission to change or reduce the
class rate If circumstances arise Justify
ing 1t. / recommend that the commission
be directed to adopt suitable regulations
to carry out this plan. This will add 3
per cent to the salaries of some of the
steam-shovel men and other employees
now, and will inure to the benefit of the
rest If and when their length of service
In the class reaches the required period.
1t VIII furnish motive for their con-
tinuance in the service will give stability
TO the organization. and will moderate
the tendency to frequently recurring de-
mands for increases in the class rates
which the peculiar conditions of work
and life on the isthmus develop
Where are the workingmen who have
been deprived of their liberty by Judge
Taft? They are not to be found In the
Philippines or on the Isthmus of Panama.
Are they among the members of the
unions of bakers, cigarmakers. or print
ers, who have frequently protected their
property. their union label, by the use Of
growth of the United Mine Workers and
the building trades unions during the past
ten years could not have been accom-
plishd had their officers and members
been shackled or even hoppled by the
decisions of Judge Taft.
The professional democratic labor work
ers who have been on the job in all recent
campaigns are running the movement in
the east. There is no spontaneous move
ment against Judge TAFT among the work
ers and none but salaried officers are on
the stump against him. Those of us who
remember the labor conditions during the
last democratic administration are OF the
opinion that IL Bryan is elected the
tariff is revised on the proposed demo-
cratic plan of a tariff for revenue only
we will all have plenty of time for jury
duty