Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-10-05
cUMMlNS ANALYZES ADAMSoN
EIGHT HOUR LAW STATUTE
FORCED BY WILSON,.
LAW DOES NOT MAKE
SHORTER LABOR HOURS
Merely Fixes Basis OF Compensation
Senator Praises the Brotherhood
Chiefs-Says They Did Not coeree
Congress Effect of Law Will
Lengthens Hours.

Des Moines, Oct 81 might say
that if that piece Of legislation were
drug and were branded Eight Hour
Law it would be a crime to carry 1t
from state to state said Senator A. b.
Cummins in an explanation and de-
nunCiation of the Adamson law at a
banquet of the manufacturers bureau
of the chamber of commerce held
in the chamber rooms last night.
Senator Cummins introduced num-
Der of new points of history on the
progress of the measure thru the
senate committee of which he was a
member, regarding the writing OF the
bill, the form in which it appeared pc
fore the committee and the reasons for
it's alteration to the form in which 1t
went 10 the president for his sigma
ture.
No Coercion Of Congress.
In the course of his address he de-
clared that congress was not coefced
by the brotherhoods into passing the
bill. that the bill makes no pretense OF
limiting the hours Of labor OF the
trainmen, that it's effect will be TO
lengthen the hours OF labor and that
after the. period of ten months allowed
for an investigation Of its operation by
the commission. which it creates the
entire problem will remain unsolved
and neither railroads nor railroad train
men will be bound by its provisions.
In his predatory remarks Senator
Cummins stated that he had been
consistent advocate Of organized lanor,
that he believed strongly in labor
unions and that ne had had a personal
acquaintance with the chiefs OF the four
railroad brotherhooas. conferences
with whom had resulted to his own
great personal advantage.
Praises Brotherhood Chiefs.
He declared that he believed them
al Ito be men of high integrity ana
that he mentioned these facts only
that it might not be said OF him that
he had changed his views with regard
to organized labor.
He then traced briefly the progress
OF the strike situation that led up to
the passage of the Adamson law. He
had been entered into between the
railroads and the brotherhoods as
establishing that 400 miles OF less or
ten hours or less should be regarded as
a days work.
When failure of the conference IN
New York was inevitable both brother
hoods and railroad managers felt con-
strained by good citizenship and pa
triotism to accept the invitation OF the
president to go to Washington though
both did it somewhat reluctantly, Sena-
tor Cummins said.
Doesn't Shorten Hours.
"This bill has no tendency whatever
to shorten the hours Of labor" he con
tinued. "But instead of limiting or
shortening the hours Of labor this Dill
will lepgthen them If mere greed or
avarice be the motives that inspire the
employers of labor AS it is we have
fixed merely the basis Of compensation
and have made it more profitable than
ever to employ men during the entire
period of sixteen hours in twenty
four allowed by federal statute"
BY the way Of illustration Of his
point the speaker took the example
Of a train running from here to Coun-
Gil Bluffs. If the train crew had com
pleted it's eight hour day when the
train reached Atlantic, but was obliged
to run on to Council Bluffs il the run
could be made within the sixteen-hour
limit, it would be paid for the last
eight hours at the same rate as for the
first eight. If the railroads were
obliged to change crews at Atlantic 1t
would have to have the second crew
waiting there. But while it can keep
a crew working>at one rate Of pay, 1t
is cheaper to run the train the whole
distance with one crew than with two
and the roads will always adopt the
cheaper method, thus lengthening the
hours Of labor.
Problem, unso!ved.
"The country will discover soon
that the legislation is not bottomed
on humane consideration" he said.
And the country will come to know
that it will not shorten hours Of labor
but lengthen them. And the country
will come to know that thirty days
after the report of the commission the
whole problem will remain unsolved.
at Is so plain that the wayfarins
man, tho a fool, will ultimately under
stand that congress passed this bill
and compelled the railroads to pay the
increased wages, simply to avoid the
strike do not say that these con-
siderations ought not to have had any
weight with the congress, but I am here
to say that the legislation without any
investigation, merely to avert strike,
Is so cowardly that was Inundated
to know that congress would lend itself
to such 8. thing.
Another Way Possible.
81 do not think that this was the
only way to have averted the strike.
am still insisting that it was not the
men who demanded such legislation
There was way without impairing the
rights Of the men and without infring
ing upon the rights of the railways"