The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1916-10-26
RAILROADS LIKE
ADAMSON LAW
And the Only Hope of Trainmen
is That It viii Be Declared
NulI and Void.
(Ry Charles Brooks Smlth.l

WASHINGTON. Oct. 26.-The rail-
roads Of the country are going to ac-
cept the provisions of the AdAmson
law literally, and avail themselves
OF all their Fights Under It's provision.
This Information was given to me
today upon any authority whose In
tallibllity on this matter is not to be
questioned
More explicit and official announce
ment Of this fact will. l am told, be
given to the public within the next
week. Tho readers OF this dispatch
may conhdntly expect II shortly, and
hence Will be OF that number OF per-
SONS who Will not be surprised.
AT the big new building OF the
American Federation Of Labor au-
thorititave ncws Of what Is about to
happen had arrived today, and every
where there was excitement and con-
ferences innumerable among officials.
Representatives OF President viii
sons campaign were also astlr. There
was something doing" OF the live
Hest kind in organized labor and
Democratic campaign circles.
In short, beginning January !, 1917,
which Is the date set for the Adnmson
| law to go into effect, an eight hour
work day for railroad trainmen-th
| brotherhood mGn-will be an eight
hour work day, and nothing else. II
will be taken as the one and only basth
upon which to computo the wages OF
the trainmen after the first day. OF
January next The extent OF mileage
worked over will not be taken into
/ IL, Ntrha n
wage scale under the new law, Mile
age, in fact, ceases to DO a. factor in
| il on the new bsls Of all eight hour day.
| Wages viii be adjusted as riSidly as
conditions will allow on the basis or
eight hours pay for eight hours work,
and not ten hours pay for eight hours
work, as brotherhood men hayo been
led to believe by President Wilson and
the leaders Of the trainmen brother
hoods. and Sam Gompcrs, head of the
American Federation of Labor, whose
open deal to deliver the laboring vote
OF the country to President Wilson is
now national scandal.
The effect Of this determination OF
the railroads to conform strictly to the
Adamson law beginning the first day
OF the coming year on railroad train
men in West Virginia will he as plainly
obvious To- the public in that state as
in any other. All existing contracts
and agreements now existing between
the railroad companies and the broth
erhoods. pass ont Of existence auto
matically when the Adamson law be-
comes effective. II will be compare
lively nm easy matter for the conlpan-
les to mako the change in West Vir-
gInia. easier than in some other states.
where conditions MS to distances be-
tween terminals are not SO great. The
railroads not only have the right under
the Adamson law TO do what they in
tend to do. but they are compelled by
the provisions of the law to do IT, The
law penalties them II they do not. ~
Adylces from all parts OF the country
arc rolling in here which tell OF a
sweeping reversal OF opinion among
railroad trainmen as to the Adamson
| law. Just what the law means seems
to have been gr4sped by them clearly
in all parts of the nation at about one
praise for It, every report telegraphed
here indicates that opposition is sub
shutting itself for commentator.
kilograms for its repeal are swamping
the local telegraph Offices. Many Of
these kilograms are expressive OF an
ger, intimate betrayal, and finding
fault that the railroad brotherhoods
have been brought into this plight.
Handed lemon" and "goldbricked"
which are two Of the explosive slang
words which have been used by men
who early foresaw Just what is happen
ing now, are most frequently made use
of.
The talk here today is that the
brotherhood men not only see that
present satisfactory working condi-
lions are to be done away with when
the new law goes into effect, but that
they have surrendered to Congress. the
right to bargain for them as 10 the
wages they shall hereafter receive; in
short, regulation by government Of
wages of the brotherhood trainmen,
which is long step for government
regulation OF the price labor shall re-
| ceive on n more extensive scale.
The only hope Of the trainmen ac-
cording to sentiment expressed here
| today, Is that the law can be speedily
tested and declared unconstitutional
| by the United States supreme court
but that is only hope and there Is
no guarantee that the decision would
be that hoped for. although the pre-
ponderance Of opinion is that 1t would
be. Nor is there any guarantee that q
test can be made and decree obtained
within a year. Judicial procedure In
the highest court Is customarily slow.
sneed, Bill Smith, T. e. Smith, John
b. Stone, Charles N. Showalter, Miss
Virginia Shelton. Miss Sybilla Shoe
maker, G. L. stuher, Domenico sa-
verio.
Monroe Tomaso. Steve Tlmko, Mrs.
Lumy Griffin Turner, John Ta'can,
Herbert Taylor, Arthur Talbot, VIII
liam Taylor.
Mrs. s. C. vanscoy.
Howard Wright, Mrs. ]. H. Will
son, i. Wamsley, Mrs. Walden, Jes-
sic Windon, George Washington, II.
Wells, Mrs Ella Wright, Amy Wade.
Earl Yerkey, James A. Young.
Mrs. H. D. Zarrow, Joseph Zotti
When You Take Cold.
With the average man a cold Is a