The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-06-22
PERPETRATORS HOLD MEETING Meeting Place Was
 Denied Them. FIRST SESSION IN HOTEL Geofgia Railroad Board Failed to
 Get in Federal Building. Chancellor Barlow Is Formally Msds Umpire--The Firemen Arc To He
 Considered In The Lights of
 Pisistiffs.

the controversy with the Georgia Rail- road before tha. arbitration committees this aftsrnoon, Attorney Reuben Ar@ mold declared:
 we are going to insist upon tha arbitrators taking into oonsideration the scale of public opinion in this strike. do not mean by that that the arbtrators are to be influenced in their decision by this state of publio opinion. but I do say that this com misaion will have to take into oonsid- so far as 1t affects the safety of pas sengers or the safety of other employees of this railroad.
 we propose to prove that the people of this State are so bitterly innameG against the negro dremen that were you gentlemen to restore them to their position or were the railroad. under your decision. to put them on tho en- zines again, that there would be vio- lence and bloodshed and that the lives of neither empioye nor passenger would be safe. We will bring here the May oFs of cities and others who have in vestfgRted and who know. They will tell you that the people of the state will not stand for the negroes in the cab and that if you try to force them there there will be trouDle.N Any negroes running nowT' inquired Arbitrator Hardwiok.
 Yes" said Arnold. but only pend ing decision by this commission. and to gst even this concession, vice-Presl- | dent Kelly had to so down the line and explain to the people that the res- toration of the negro was only tern- porary."
 The arbitrators were evidently i'm pressed by these statements of MT, Arnold. The attorney made it at ths end of his summing up of the c0nten- tions of the nrensen. The contentious number six:
 First-lThe absolute discharge of all
 negro nremen.
 Gscond--Fireme must have three | years experience before being pro- noted to engineer.
 Third--All firenen when hired must be put tn yards and on hostlerg job. Fourth--AIl hostlers must receive present rasa Of pay.
 F1fth--PassenEer, through freight and ether desiFnbls runs must not be blocked by non-promotabls men tne- I groes).
 ssxth--so farernen shall be required to flag crossings or throw switches at crossingB. thus leaving engine with only one man at most dangerous places
 ArnoId's argumentswas the races will not mix; that the negro. made nrer man and never an engineer. gets fhe best run because he becomes the senior who cannot pass. k&eause he is nonS promotable, To become an engineer, a fireman must know the run, and he cannot know them unless he gets g chance to Ire on them. The committee adourned after Ar mold concluded. until 70 .. m. tomor- row. when the firernsn will begin their testimony. About 100 subpoenas were issued tonight for service in this and other towns on the Georgia Railroad. The commission will meet after tonor- row ct c. m. and set until b;sO ?. m- each day.
 Because they had forgotten 10 se- cure permission of the Treasury De- partment to use the United States court room. the Georgia Railroad Arbi- tration Board was refused admission to the Federal Building today by the custodian when they assembled 70 hold their opening session. Ex-Secretary Herbert and Represen- tative Hardwick. the two arbitratora selected by the Georgia Railway and tthe striking firemen. reached here last night, and when Chancellor David c. Barrow arrived this morning, they pros ceeded to the United States court room | When told that the law forbade their occupancy of Federal property withous permission. they wired for the permit and adjourned to the Piedmont Hotel where they organized and began their | laborg.
 Chancellor Barlow was formaily made umpire but at his request Mir. Herbert presided. The latter opened the session by announcing that tha arbItrators had sworn one another, had chosen a stenographer and had secured the services of two deputy United l States marshals as officers of the board
 Reuben Arnold. counsel for the fire- men, said he was ready. but as it was required that the arbitrators sign all subpoenas, he suggested an adjourn ment until tomorrow.
 poenas, he suggested an ad1ournmene until tomorrow.
 T think that request reasonabie.' said Chairman Herbert, but before we do so, there are Q few Issues to De settled. Some one should be the ple sn- tiff upon whom will rest the burden of proof, and who will open and close the case. As the firemen are the ones who seek a change from the existing order of things. I suggest that they be considered the plaintiffs" This was agreed to, also that couu~ sel on both sides should make an open- ing statement, Of what they expecteu to prove.
 we have decided" said Mfr. Herbert that We will not enforce all the technical rules of evidence but we do not want any irrelevant or heresay eyi- dence."
 "And we do not want any evidence of what public opinion on the case is.' said Counsel Cummings for the rail- road. We will fight the introduce ton of such testimony"
 And we propose to offer it,' re- torted Arnold. We do not expect lt to influence the arbitrators but we do expect 1t to show the greater or less danEerS which the employees must face under the conditions imposed by the railroal and thus 1t would be very per- tinent."
 We will take up that issue when we reach it." was Mir. Herbert's comment.
 Counsel on both sides declared that they would not require the five days allowed them unless something unforas seen happens. They declined, however to say how long they would take "a nreEeut theIr casa