Arizona republican., 1916-10-01

certain hour at the dictation of certan men who sat in the gallery
 with their watches in their hand threatening ruin and disaster to the
 nation if there was omitted the smallest detail to satisfy their de- manGs.
 Roosevelt And Labor Troubles
 As President l dealt at various times with both corporations and la
 Dor unions. In every case according to the best of my ability l stood Tn favor of the corporation or union that was doing right, and against the corporation or union that was doing wrong. For example. I stood agalnst the Western Federation of Miners at one time, just as I stood against the
 richest and most powerful corpora tions of Wall Street at other times. l am therefore not asking any public servant to take a stand which l my self did not take when l was in pub
 lie office In particular l ask you to
 remember the Anthracite Coal Strike, because the menace that strike con tained was even greater than the
 menace of a general tie-up of the transportation systems of the coun
 try; for it meant the possibility of actual death by cold to hundreds of | thousands of our people. At that
 time the great and wealthy mine l owners, backed by the heads of the wealthiest and most powerful indus trial and railroad corporations in the country. refused to arbitrate. The
 men struck. Winter was approach ing, and fell disaster threatened all
 the Easetern half of our country. The representatives of the mine own | CTS in response to my request in sisted that there was nothing to ar | bitrate; and through their counsel | also insisted that l had no power un- | der the constitution to act. and that
 the public could not interfere through | the representatives of the public with
 the way in which they managed their business I took the opposite view. l
 held that where the public necessity
 was national and imperative. it he- i came the duty of the chief of the
 nation to act.
 When Arbitration Was Forced
 i l held that in any such gigantic
 controversy between labor and cani-
 tai as to threaten the welfare of the nation, there were three parties in in- terest, viz: the capitalists. the work 1 ingmen, and finally the people as a | whole; and that where the public need
 was vital that need must control. specifically took the view that before final action was taken on the points at | issue, we must have full information given to the public and the repre-
 sentatiVes of the public by an un-
 biased body after a thorough study
 of the situation; that the power of
 the Government must be used to
 make effective the findings of this
 body, and that, pending it's finding
 the work of mining must go on. be-
 cause the public need so demanded and that therefore I would use the , entire power of the nation to see that the work went on, that there
 was m arbitration by dispassionate experts, and that the conclusions oi this arbitration were accepted. Wher the mine owners, backed by the mos powerful financial interests in New
 York. refused to arbitrate, I pro-
 ceeded to appoint an arbitration com l mission without regard to them. ant { l secured the assent of a political op- p ponent, Mir. Cleveland, an eX-Presi l dent of the United States. to serv . as head of that Commission. l say l the Lieutenant- General of the Army 9 and arranged with him that if neces sary, I would put the army in pos D session of the mines, and would Urea t him as the receiver to run the mines l and to see that neither side inter t feled with the running. Fortunatel Q when it became evident that I woul a put my program through at no mat S ter what hazard or difficulty, tn Q hazards and difficulties both van d ished, and I was able to secure a @ agreement for arbitration and for tn r. return of the men to work pendin 2 the result of the arbitration.
 V Not a Fixer of Wages
 st The case at issue is preeminentl d one that comes in the category C IS those that can be settled only afte if careful investigation and full con If sideraticn of many important conflict l., ing clements. l believe in the eight -e hour day, on moral and sociologic; m grounds. as being the ideal toward L. which we should strive. l believe ,e wages being just as high in ano l. business as is compatible with squal 1t treatment to the other parties in il .d terest But if the Government is 10 intervene in order to secure short' id hours and better wages it must le so only after full knowledge and m III merely under the duress of threat l. Moreover the issue must be honest if stated. The Government must m of be used really to get higher wage as when the nominal and surafce d, o mands seems to be for fewer hou n of labor. It appears that what i'd this case is demanded is not real he a day of eight hours labor. but V. higher rate of pay for the eight hour yn or a higher rate of overtime ps rv beyond eight hours. In other wor, SC it is not a law to limit hours ,le labor in the sense that we use ly speaking of an eight hour day f lll women. or an eighthour law f
 three shifts in continuous industI rv It is primarily a bill to secure de advance in wages; the securing of Ter eight-hour day is wholly secondaI lie and as regards many employees wou mt probably not be brought about or NV sired.
 CT The Interested Public
 be When any labor trouble becomes IS. such size as to involve the publ h. the public has a right to interfe ,us to insist that there shall be no i or reference with the welfare and sal is ty of the public and theTecore to Of sist on arbitration, that is for jl 1ly decision by the government. after nd. investigation conducted through ble commission which will get all { old facts and lay them before the E list ecutive and Legislative represent ,n- tives of the public for what acti his they deem necessary. These were of principles which by actual deed. WI ilf- I was president, I upheld in rec teeth of violent opposition from Iit- most powerful corporations in the la ars representing the employers intert as The opposition of these great e for ploying corporations was asserted
 every possible way against
 throughout the period when I h md public office or was a candidate