The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1912-01-05
WALL STREET
KNOWS WHY
HIDDEN AWAY IN STOCK RE-
PORTS rs THE STORY OF
THE LOSING BATTLE OF
THE HARTMAN LINES
AGAINST SHOPMEN.

The monthly financial report of the
| Union Pacific for November of S ,000,-
10000 loss in net earnings and of South
ern Pacific a net loss of $7l5,0O0 has
shocked the foundations of Wall street.
Hid away in the conglomerate mass of
financial news we find the frank and
| truthful statement, "The strike of shop
men on the Hartman lines is under
stood to have been an important factor
in the result" Compare this statement
with the one which we may read
in the press day by day: "There is so
| far as we can see no STRIKE" or "The
strike on the Hartman lines is thing
of the past" etc. NO, THERE is NO
STRIKE. The Southern Pacific's in
crease of 100000 in expenses in No
vember was due to the purchase of
Thanksgiving turkeys for free and in
dependent workmen; the purchasing of
Christmas presents to be presented to
the wives and children of those en-
ployes, who ceased work because they
stood for principle. The principles that
| labor, being a party to a contract has
right to say under what conditions
| they shall labor, the hours they shall
labor, and the returns they shall re-
ceive for those hours of labor. The
~ tn ho po1,
you will that these gigantic expendi-
lures were made as "an act of charity
The shopmen of the Hartman lines
know better-40,000 men forced to cease
work and suffer all the privations CON
tingent thereto or suffer the humiliation
of sacrificing all that goes under the
title of honor-ask any of these men
where this $2,500,000 from the treasury
of the combined Hartman lines went.
They will tell you.
OF the gathering in all the large
metropolitan cities, of the riff, rail- OF
the slums, herding them by team loads
armed and under armed guards, to all
parts of the affected lines, the building
of stockades and bunk houses into which
these men were driven as cattle, fed and
kept under conditions of peonage; of
the shooting down without provocation
of striking shopmen by hired thugs; of
miles of dead engines and bad order
cars; of injmctions from federal courts
that mean get off the earth, so drastic
in their provisions that to visit singly
or in groups an employee in his home is
a violation of the same, and item and
item of the same nature are the Thanks
giving turkeys of the Hartman lines.
December will show even greater
net loss, and the only question is how
long can the stockholders stand the
steam-as the stocks come down, down
down, the clamor of "stop loss" orders
will grow louder and louder, for nc
stockholder will consent to have his in
terest wiped out to satisfy the whim OF
Parks or Markham.
In closing this article without refer
ence to a few matters of record bearing
to us a great lesson on the advisability
of federation and united action on all
parallel lines of railroad at one and the
same time, we find that every western
trunk line outside the Hartman lines
have enjoyed an increase in business OF
from s to 20 per cent over the same
month of the previous year There is
no good reason for this, other than that
the loss of business on the Hartman
lines has been distributed to these other
roads.
| The lesson is bitter one, but it is
safe to say that the ultimate aim OF
federation of all railway shop crafts on
all lines west of Chicago, north and
south, will be brought about as rapidly
as conditions will warrant Each move
must be made certain and sure, but the
federation having come to stay, will tri-
,mph.