Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-07-23
Little Prospect
OF Settlement.

Montreal, July 22.-The end of the
| fourth day of the strike of the Grand
| Trunks conductors and trainmen sees
but little prospect of a settlement in
| sight. The attempts of Mackenzie
King. minister of labor to secure a
cessation of hostilities by a resort to
arbitration have so far resulted merely
| in a reiteration by both of the parties
that they are willing to arbtrate on
the lines they suggested on Monday
afternoon just before the strike was
| ordered
President Hayes of the Grand Trunk
yesterday wrote the minister of labor
that the position of the company was
the same as it had always been. He
proposed now what he had proposed
on July 10 to which the latter had re-
piled
Il regret that it does not seem to me
that I have the requisite authority to
take either of the courses you suggest.
nor do ! believe it would be in the
public interest to do So"
Mr. Hayes remarked that while the
attitude of the minister appears to
have changed, Messrs. Murdoch and
Perry. the representatives of the men.
seem to occupy the position they have
taken from the beginning. Mr.. King
did not find this communication or that
received from the representatives OF
the men a satisfactory answer to the
request he had made them that they
tell him whether or not they would
accept arbitration and this morning he
| telegra pied both parties telling them
| so, putting it this time in the follow
| ing words:
whether as representing one of the
parties to the present dispute you will
| now be willing to refer the existing diff
| ferences to arbitration. provided board
| of arbitratorS. mutually acceptable can
| be secured and the necessary expense
| incidental to such board met by the
government
To this Mr. Murdoch. vice president of
the trainmen, replied:
II answer yes and believe that our po-
| sition in that connection has been fully
outlined in previous correspondence"
To this. however, the following was
| attached:
TT should be understood. however, that
the two words mutually acceptable from
|
tration offered by us previously and now
offered would only appear to be satisfac-
tory to the employees" Mr.. Murdoch went
| on to point out that this was the decis-
| ion of the committee arrived at prior to
its departure from Montreal and that
without additional instructions from it he
was not prepared to go further.
The offer to which he refers is that the
dispute shall be submitted to F. f. Clark
of the United States Interstate Commerce
| Commission and r. II. Morrisey of the
Railway Employees Association.
| The reply of the Grand Trunks presi-
dent to the second communication of the
minister of labor was not made public to-
night, but 1t was stated by a leading Of
| fetal that it was ridiculous to suppose
that the Grand Trunk would for one mo-
ment consider submitting such a vital
question as that involved In the present
case to board of arbitration composed
Of former heads of the two organizations
involved. Mr. Clark having been for many
| years head of the conductors order and
Mr. Morrisey chief of the trainmen. The
company was. as it had always been, he
said, willing to arbitrate before board
composed of men acquainted with the
details of the railway business and able
to understand the technicalities of the
matter at issue. 1t would appear, there
| fore. that if any progress is to be made
| by the minister it will be necessary for
him to persuade Messrs. Berry and Muir
dock to reconvene the general committee
| It's permission to deal with the arbitra-
| ton question in new form might then
be secured.
| The company succeeded in moving some
freight today on most of it's divisions and
promises to do much better tomorrow. II