West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1916-09-28
NEW EIGHT-HOUR LAW
is FULLY EXPL LAINED

7
proportionate TO the gifts OF Americans
and the resources OF America. and
that in the times to come, partly be-
cause of the unhappy circumstances
of recent years. but chiefly because
America is now about TO release her
energies, the scope of American bust
ness will be what men have hitherto
not dreamed OF. IL American men know
how to take advantage of the oppor-
| tunity.
The problems that are before
American business are world prob
lens rather than American domestic
| problems. America must understand
the world in order to subject it TO it's
peaceful service. And yet when we
look upon the field Of American bust
ness there are some things that dis
turb us. Some men seem TO think
that the way TO advance American in-
terests is TO walk backwards and to
attempt again the provincial policies
which have characterized an age when
we shut our doors against the inhu-
| ences of the world.
But the chief cloud that is upon the
domestic horizon is the unsatisfactory
relations OF capital and labor. There
is only one way. gentlemen. in which
the relations of capital and labor can
be rendered satisfactory-tha is by.
in the first place. regarding labor as
human relationship OF men with men.
and, in the second place, to regard la
Dor as part of the general partnership
OF enerby which is going to make for
the success of business men and bus
mess enterprises in this country. So
long as labor and capital stand autago-
nistic. the interests of both are in
jured and the prosperity OF America
is held back from the triumphs which
are legitimately its own.
you know that we have been leg
| alistic people. say with all due re-
spect TO some men for whom l have
a high esteem that we have been too
much under the guidance of the law
yers, and that the lawyer has always
| regarded the relations between the en-
ployer and the employee as merely a
contractural relationship, whereas, Il
is, while based upon contract, ever
much more than contractural relation
ship. 1t is a Relationship between one
set of men and another set OF men
with hearts under their jackets and
with interest that they ought to serve
in common with persons whom they
love and must support on the one side
and on the other.
Labor is not a commodity. 1t is a
form OF cooperation, and If can
make a man believe in me, know that
| am just. know that l want to share
the profits OF success with him, / can
get many times as much out OF him
as IL he thought was his antagonist.
And his labor is cheap at any price
THAT is the human side OF IT, and
the human side extends to this concep-
tion, that that laboring man is a part
ner Of his employer. II he is a mere
tool OF his employer, he is only as
| serviceable as the tool. His enthus-
iasm does not go into 1t. He does not
plan how the work shall be better
done. He does not look upon the as
pect of the business or enterprise as
whole and wish to cooperate the ad-
vantages OF his brains and his inven-
! tion 10 the success OF It as a whole.
Human relationships, my fellow citi-
zens, are governed by the heart. and
IL the heart is not in It, nothing is in
| t.
81 have recently been through an ex-
perience which distressed me. I tried
to accommodate a difference between
some Of the employees OF the American
railways and the executives OF the
American railways, and the distress
sing thing discovered was that on
the one hand there was unlimited sus-
/ piclon and distrust on the one side.
and that that suspicion and distrust
was returned by the other side In full
measure. The executives did not be
lieve in the sincerity OF the men. and
| the men did not believe I'm the sin
cerity and fairness OF the executives,
and while arbitration was being dis
cussed / had this sad thought: Arbi-
] tration Is a word associated with the
| dealings OF hostile interests. II is an
alternative Of war
There Ougnt 20 ne no such thing
as the contemplation OF hostility az
between men whose interests are the
same and who should cooperate to-
gether And, therefore. Il came upon
me with a force that # had never had
before that the real problem of CAPT
tai and labor was to bring the two
sides to understand and to believe
I'm one antoher; that the problem
OF the next generation, II America
we're really 70 release her energy, wal
to he this real, genuine, fundamental
reconciliation between capital and
labor
81 did not realize until 7 held those
conferences just how far apart they
we're in that particular and indispen.
sable part Of our national life, the
transportation Of the country. and
when dld realize Il. ! saw that there
was q great task that was worthy ans
mans while ahead Of us TO bring tho
minds OF the country together. TO sec
that men understood one another, t.
see that they had some assurance thaf
they were speaking the truth to one
another.
II never had franker conferences II
my life than had with the represen