The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-08-10
The Des MONIES Strike Decision

1 possible to obtain an injunction to
prevent strike before it occurs. OF
course. unless the court order took
cognizance of the trouble and at the
same time outlined some way for the
adjustment of the difficulty, an injunc-
| ton before strike, or after it has oc
CURED probably would be fought to
the last ditch.
Waterloo Courier: II the Des
Moines street car company is right, \
/ board of arbitration will stand back
OF 1t and enlist public sympathy on
Its side. II 1t Is wrong 1t will fear ar
bitration and refuse 1t or else 1t will
give the public and the authorities a
chance to ascertain the merits Of the
case. Thus far it Is wrong because IL
has refused to be decent and the pub
lie is dead against 1t. There should be
law In this state that any party to 2
labor controversy which refuses arbi-
tration should be absolutely denied all
police and military protection. AS the
law stands today the state and NUM-
cipality pay out good money to protect
the anarchy of big interests which re-
fuse to arbitrate How long will
commonwealth Of white people stand
for this?
Creston Advertiser: The right of
the public to interfere is being recog-
nized more and more and there 10
some reason for hoping that the
courts action will result in protecting
the interests Of the public. The men
have obeyed the mandate Of the court
and the strike, which threatened to be
very serious and turbulent, is temper
arily settled. Neither the employees
nor the company know just how to
take the order, as they are uncertain
as to what the final result will be but
they are obeying it just the same and
each side is hoping that it will ter.
inmate satisfactorily. 1t is quite posi-
BILE that both sides regretted the stub
bornness which resulted In the strike
and will welcome the order Of the
court as a satisfactory way out of the
trouble. 1t is to be hoped that such
will be the case.
Cedar Rapids Republican: Local
labor leaders. among them "Rarie"
Stewart and Jock" Conrad, believe
that Samuel Gompers shot wild in his
remarks on the Injunction issued by
the Des Moines judge in the strike
case. The writer spent some time as
a law student, but he does not feel
entirely competent to criticise either
the judge or Mr.. Gompers. However,
if it shall turn out that a judge has
right to order men back to work
and to put them in jail If they refuse
to do SO, then we shall have new
power in this land and the courts will
be more supreme than they have ever
been before. That is the right of in
junction carried into the nth power.
Laboring men have before complained
because courts with injunctions have
ordered them to desist from acts of
violence or interference with others,
but if they are now willing to accept
on the part Of the courts power to or
der them back to work when they
have gone on strike, they are ac-
cepting the extreme application of the
powers of Injunction. We fear that the |
local labor leaders do not mean to ac-
cept that doctrine, but they see in the
present case merely the temporary
victory represented In the discharged
employe, over whom the trouble
came, being returned to his job. The |
Injunction was victory for Mr.. Hiatt,
as long as it lasts, but we do not see
IN 1t victory for labor as a whole.