The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-08-25

ference adjourned to meet aga
dent phrased it, the situation is
20 minutes or the matter may g
A statement issued by the railroad
executives tonight summed it up this
way;
at the invitation of President Will
son, Messrs. Hale Holden, Judge R. S.
Lovett and Daniel Willard went to the
White House at noon and held a short
conference with the President"
A conference of the railroad execu-
tives was held at 8 o'clock and new
phase of the situation of some import
ance was laid before the conference by
the special committee.
after considerable discussion
without definite action an adjourn
ment was taken until II o'clock to-
morrow morning In the meantime the
special committee of the presidents
will continue its labors."
| The special committees plan, draft
ed after weeks consideration, would
provide for granting an eight-hour
| basic" day to the trainmen but with
| assurance that every effort would be
made by the administration to secure
| a freight rate increase to recompense
| the roads and the further assurance
| \ oc1y aI 70 aOf
legislation to insure settlement of fu-
ture labor disputes through an inves-
| tigat ting commission.
The entire plan has not been laid
| before all the executives and mana
| gers, but it's points have been dis
cussed at the various conferences 1t
developed after tonight's meeting that
Eobjection had been raised to the freight
\ rate increase feature on at least two
| grounds 1t was agreed by some tARL
| there can be no assurance of
| increase because no one could say Wee
! the interstate commerce commssla3s
might do; and that some of the most
! important shippers of the country ai-
ready have made it plain that they are
/ not in sympathy with any move which
may mean a rate increase. 1t was
pointed out also that although Presi-
dent Wilson has expressed his belief
| that such rate increase should be
granted if the eight-hour day is given
| the employees, no one can tell how the
i next election is coming out and that
there can by no possibility be an in
crease before next March or probably
! later.
CANNOT CONSIDER WAGES
Attention was called to the fact that
the commission hitherto has held that
it cannot consider wage standards in
dealing with proposed rate Increases
although legislation by Congress
might remove that difficulty.
The principal arguments against the
idea of a permanent commission for
the prevention or settlement of strikes
were that it would almost certainly
be fought by labor in Congress and
that while President Wilson might be
entirely willing now to back such
legislation he might not be in po-
sition to do so when it was proposed.
Representatives of the brotherhoods
. VINO nSdTQ Ol lHlS phase "a thO pan
today were plainly against it. count
| err suggestion was heard among the
presidents that strike questions should
be left to the interstate commerce
commission with power to Investigate
and make a public report of their find
ings with a strike held in allegiance
pending the investigation.
The special committees plan has
been tentatively accepted by the COM
mittee of eight and it was the subject
of today's conference at the White
House. Its substance was commune
Gated to the labor representatives
| through Judge William L. Chambers
of the board of mediation and con-
citation.
PRESIDENTS NOT INSISTENT
The railroad presidents are understood
not to be insistent upon the commission
idea for the settlement of future dis
putes and the main difficulty has beer
the working out of operating plans un.
der an eight-hour day and of giving
assurances to the presidents and mana