The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-10-15

w lines BARRE, Pa, Oct. 14.-For-
mer President Theodore Roosevelt
spoke here tonight as follows on the
Adamson bill:
have accepted the invitation 10
come TO Wilkesbarre to discuss the
Adamson law. because Wilkesbarre is
the headquarters of the great indus
try in connection with which | myself
as president was brought into close
and intimate touch with the labor
movement In this country. II what /
have 10 say Is OF any value ii must
be not only because IL represents
what in the abstract is right, but also
because in the concrete / applied, in
actua' practice, when | had power.
the principles which | criticize Mr..
Wilson for not applying now. There
fore, ! want TO recapitulate to you just
what occurred in connection with the
anthracite coal strike and TO contrast
1t with what Mr.. Wilson has done in
connection with the law for the in
crease of wages on railroads.
Admires BrOtherhOOds.
At the outset, wish to express my
very nearly admiration for the BROTH
erhoods. ] am proud of the fact that
! am an honorary member of one
of them. | have usually been in en-.
tire sympathy with them. While /
held public Office found myself in
the vast majority OF cases able to
support them in their demands, be-
cause these demands were right. But
now they have demanded legislation
raising their wages to be taken with
out investigation and without the ex,
ercise of that form of judgment shown
by competent arbitration commits
sion; and such demand is wrong, and
! stand against it because it is wrong,
exactly as | have stood against the
demands OF bankers and lawyers, and
mine-Owners and railroad presidents
when they were wrong. | believe in
labor unions. ! am proud that | am
myself an honorary member OF la
Dor union. But l believe first OF all
in the union to which all of us be-
long, the union OF all the people OF
the whole United States.
In the case Of the settlement of the
anthracite coal strike. the action
took was Of precisely the kind which
President Wilson now says the law
should make obligatory in all similar
cases in the future. But Mr.. Wilson
himself admits that his own action
was so bad that it ought never to
be repeated, for he has assured the
public that although Congress has
adjourned without doing anything, il
is his intention when Congress meets
10 see that it does something to rem
der it impossible for another presi-
dent ever to repeat exactly what he
has just done. In other wdrds, ! stood
and stand by my action as the prop
cr action, constituting the proper pre-
cedent for future action. Mr.. Wilson
himself confesses that his action was
wrong and that the precedent there
by set is so evil that legislation must
be enacted rendering it impossible
for another president ever to repeat
the action.
Another Point.
There is another point of difference
and vital point. The action ! took
was intended to meet the situation
at once. The action that Mr.. Wilson
took has been deferred so that II
shall not take place until consider
ably after election.
Fourteen years ago the great anthra.
cite coal strike had occurred in this
region. From the beginning | put
the governmental agents in touch with
the situation and kept myself thor
oughly informed, so that | should be
able TO act Immediately IL 1t became
necessary for me to act. l hoped that
it would not be necessary, and that
the parties themselves would come TO
an agreement; for l was very loath
10 interfere II it could be avoided.
But cold weather approached, a coal
famine menaced the entire eastern
section Of the United States, and there
was not the slightest symptom Of
an agreement being reached by the
cOntending parties felt that the
time had come for me 10 act. on the
one side were the greatest and wealth
lest mine-owners Of the country init
mately connected with the wealthiest
and most powerful Industrial and rail
road corporations In the country. The
financial strength of Wall street was
behind them. These men absolutely
refused to arbitrate They said there
was nothing TO arbitrate, that had
no power under the constitution to
act, and that the public could not in
terfere, nor the representatives Of the
public with the way in which they
managed their business. The repre-
sentatives of the mine workers, of
labor, on the contrary. expressed their
entire willingness to arbitrate and de-
manded nothing except that as one
of the conditions of arbitration there
should be some representative of or
ganiZed labor to sit together with the
representatives of capital and the pub
lie at large. made every effort to get
the two sides TO agree. When failed,
| decided that would act myself. !
held that where the public necessity
was national and imperative it be-
came the duty of the chief Of the ma
ton to act. held that in any such gil
gantlc controversy between labor and
capital, containing such a threat to the
welfare Of the great body of our peo-
pie. there were three parties in in
terest: viz, the capitalists, the work.
ingmen, and the people as a whole;
and that where the public need was
vital that need must control.
Threatens Use of Force.
held, moreover, that in any case
of such Importance and such interest
we must have full knowledge before