Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1916-08-18
In a Matter Of Life and Death

er's eye the President of the
United States may have succeed.
ed in effecting a settlement of
the dispute between the railroads
and their men. Somebody will
have to effect it, for the thing
has got beyond the bounds of an
economic dispute. It is a matter
of life and death. Hang up the
railroads for a week and people
would die like flies in our great
cities especially the sick, the
aged and the children.
Legally there is nobody con-
cerned in this dispute but the
railroads and their men. The
oretically the men have a per-
feet right to walk out if they
feel 80 inclined; but practically
they have no right to condemn
scores, perhaps hundreds Of in
nocent people to death by disput-
ing over their wages. Theoreti-
cally the railroads have a right
to discharge every one of their
men, and hang up traffic indefi-
nitely; but imagine what would
happen to the railroads if they
were to try 1t.
The attitude of the men, as ex-
pressed in Monday mornings pa
per, is that they have the power
and consequently are going to
exact their demands to the ut
termost farthing. If they throw
two million other people out Of
work, why, that is the lookout
of the two million. If the cities
starve, why, that is not the rail
road employees affair. They fig
ure that they have their hands
on the throat of the railroads
and they intend to squeeze until
they get what they want.
But have they the power?
There are 400, 600 of them, it is
true-but there are 100, 600, 600
of the rest of US. The country
is not looking for a fight. The
last thing it wants is a fight.
The country's President is toll
ing like a ditcher In the effort to
prevent a fight. But if the rail-
road men are spelling for row,
and will be content with nothing
else, they should be dealt with
like any other enemies of the
people of the United States
that is to say, smashed with all
the power of the government of
the United States.
We take no position here on
the merit of the mems cause.
We hope there is something left
Of conscience, something of equi-
ty, something of justice, in the
American people; certainly there
IS left much sentiment, and i'll
nclines to the physically weaker
,ide in any contest, as a rule.
The people are not prepared to
admit that power any force, old
,r new, consisting of mere weight
" contrivance-is to the meas
Ire in the settlement of dis
,utes. The question of the JUS
ice of the demands of the men,
IF the unrighteousness of the
Dads refusal, are not properly
n order SO long as either side |
efuses to submit them to trial
n some competent tribunal rest
ng its jurisdiction in the con-
cience of the people of the
United States.
Until the best effort that hui
nan intelligence and orderly JUS
ice can make has been made to
determine them, there are in
his quarrel between the men
nd the roads no issues of right
nd wrong before the people.
'ut the proposed method of
lighting any wrongs the men
nay suffer is in itself so gigantic
wrong against the whole coun-
ry, that the good that might be
ccomplished by a strike is q
rop compared to a very Attain
c of iii that would attend it.
There must be no strike, if it
{ humanity possible to prevent
(; but II there is q strike any
ow, the side whose stubborn
sss caused it must feel the full
eight of the anger Of the peo-
e. Greensboro Daily News.