Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1915-02-24

and disclosed for the benefit Of the
board that either the schedule was
misprinted or the witness was miscon.
STRUNG it. The same condition devel-
oped regarding transfer service and
it's pay on Mr.. Trenholm's road.
Both of the railroad arbitrators-
w. L. Park, vice president of the ILL.,
nois Central and H. E. Byram, vice
president Of the Burlington flew to
Mr.. Trenholm's rescue and helped
him over the bunker. Replying to q
question of Mr.. Park, Mr.. Trenholm
remarked: 81 think Mr.. Shea in ask
ing the questions he has was unfair.
think he was trying to make me ad-
nit was breaking my own sched-
ule."
| Arbitrator F. A. Burgess in ques-
tioning the witness developed later in
the day that engineers and f1remen
have contributed between $30,O00,O 900
and $40,000,000 to the railroad COM
panies in overtime work which has
not been paid for. Mr.. Burgess bas-
ed this calculation on the companies
own exhibits and while the witness
preferred not to make any admission
that the money actually was coming
to the enginemen he intimated that
fhe felt the figures were about right.
Mr.. Trenholm, however, backtracked
by claiming that the railroads fire.
quently pay enginemen money for
time they have not worked.
A surprising admission was made
by Mr.. Trenholm while testifying
Tuesday. He declared with some en-
phasis that he favored standardiza-
ton of compensation of all Western
railway employees, his exact words be.
ing:
II would like to see Standardization
throughout the Western country;
Standardization of pay, standardiza.
ton Of rules, all taken together. Fair
equitable rules both for the railroad
and for the man."
| Standardization both up and
DOWN." asked Grand Chief Engineer
Stone.
"Both ways" answered Mr.. Tren.
holm.
The witness took occasion to pay
high tribute to the character and in
tegrity of Western engineers and fire
men, saying that he had discovered
that they were as apt to surrender
benefits already gained in exchange
for others as any set Of employees in
the country.
It was at Tuesdays session that
Mr.. Trenholm actually began a dis
cussion of the brotherhoods' sixteen
requests, taking up the first article re
garding hours and wages. He objected
y; to time and half pay for overtime
principally on the ground that II
would put a premium on dishonesty
as he put it, although he hastily add
ed that he did not believe any engi
neer on his road would delay trai1
in order to get pay for overtime.
An interesting feature of early ir
the week was the presentation by the
companies of their "Cost of Living
Exhibit Ray Vance, of st. Louis, ar
expert statistician who has been iden
titled with the Bureau of Railway
Economics, took the witness stand tt
elucidate this exhibit and on cross
examination virtually admitted tina
it was of little value because based
first, on inaccurate data regarding av
erage compensation to engineme1
and, second, for the reason that thu
statements relative to cost Of light
rents, and fuel had not been sworn t.
by the persons making them.
President Carter of the firemen''
> brotherhood informed the board tina
the brotherhoods' exhibit on the same
topic contained no data that was no
backed by an affidavit. Mr.. Carter al
> so attacked the declaration in tn
companies exhibit to the effect tina
the average daily compensation of en-
ginemen increased lib per cent ant
of firemen ia per cent during tn
three years ended, 1913. The broth
erhood official also claimed that thes'
average wage figures, being base'
upon reports Of the railroad to the In
terstate Commerce Commission, wer
WHOLLY Enthusiastically inasmuch a
the railroads themselves have admit
ted that such reports did not disclos
so.called average wage and hour cor
ditions upon their lines.
l Incidentally Mr.. Vance put forwar
: the proposition that the prices Of tn
: principal articles Of food were grea'
er in Western territory by 1875 pc
cent in 1913 than in 1910-an admi'
+ sion that the cost of living, so far q
food is involved, has gone up NOR
rapidly in those three years than, a.
s cording to the companies own exhi1
l. it, have the wages Of engineers an
> firemen.
s 1t has been stipulated by both side
l. of the controversy that the time linn
X of Feb. 9th, which has been in effe'
= as to the completion of the awar
Il shall be extended to April goth.
n Mrs. Geo. A. Coppersmith ente
d tanned ten of her lady friends at h
IN home last Friday afternoon The q