The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1916-10-13

tlOu Oh iuVltiUS tuS iCW Ao~a1 uh
ions of engineers TO attend a con-
vention for the purpose of estao-
fishing the International Union of
Steam Engineers. So, my friends,
YOU can understand the gratihca-
ton it must give me to find the
wonderful transformation that has
occurred in the life, in the work, in
the character, in the intelligence,
In the ability and the willingness
to fight, if fight is necessary; to
find that instead of the engineers
of America being controlled in their
lives and their work by the whim
and the fancy and the greed OF the
employers that the engineers them
selves are determined to have a
voice in deciding the hours, the
wages and the conditions under
which they shall give their service,
and to find that the International
Union of Steam and Operating Er-
gineers is now shoulder to shoulder
with the men in the great organ
lied labor movement OF America.
1t is some time since / have been
at convention of the engineers.
l am gratifsd beyond measure to
find this convention SO splendidly
attended and evidencing the fact
of the splendid organization of the
rank and file in the local unions
throughout America. You have
realized the important part which
en- ~;neers play in this great indus
trial drama that enacts and portray s
not only the sorrows and the bit
terness and the poverty and the
misery of many of our fellow work
ers, but is shoulders to shoulder
with the organized men and women
of labor of America under the ban
ner. of the A. F. L. 10 fight fol
the rights, the welfare, the freedom
and the attainment of the ideals fol
which the American labor move.
ment stands.
Our friend John Mofitt, who ad
dressed you just now, gave and de.
scribed to YOU some of the thing;
that fave been done. / may say
this to you, by way of supple
mentary word, that prior to his 60.
ing to Alaska he and / conferred
as to the situation there as we best
understood it. The men hac
threatened to go on strike, unwil
ling to permit the work to proceed
in so far as they were concerned
refusing to work until something
Of definite character as to their
wages and hours and conditions o.
labor would be determined. 1t wa.
by the tree use of the cable anc
telegraph into deep Alaska that
was privileged to prevail upon the
men there TO continue to work, fol
had confidence that the men ii
the Department of Labor, from the
secretary, Hor. VIM. B Wilson
to John M9fit and other men woulc
do what they could to settle the
difficulty. | knew that when Johr
Mof1itt would undertake the mis-
sion of endeavor.ng to reach an ad
| lustment Of the controversy be
would Go justice to the men anc
see that the rights of the govern.
ment were not outraged. And sc
he did accomplish, not only for the
department, not only for labor
there, bat for his own credit and
honor piece of work for general
and mutual advantage. The fact
that he brought with him an appli-
cation for charter from your In
ternational Union for local in
Alaska is evidence that, quite apart
from being representative of the
government of the United States,
without interfering with his work,
he was union man in heart and
spirit and proceeded to do his level
best for all concerned.
There is another matter affecting
the engineers to which l want TO
refer; but before doing so I believe
it is only proper to make mention
OF one Of two fundamental achieve
ments CT the American labor move
ment. In one particular I must
express my dissent from state
ment made by brother Mofhtt, and
that is that l secured the legisla
ton to which he referred. helped,
but if it had not been for the great
rank and file of the organized labor