The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-10-15

out regard TO them; securing the con-
sent OF former political opponent, eN-
President Grover Cleveland, to serve
at the head Of that commission. saw
the Acknowledgement OF tho army
and arranged with him that IL neces-
sary ! would put the army in possess
sion of the mines and would treat him
as receiver TO run the mines, and TO
see that neither side interiered with
the running. When II became evident
that ! meant what said. that both
sides could count on my endeavor 10
do strict justice, and that they could
also count on my insisting that the
public needs be Immediately met, the
capitalists yielded. and the commits
sion was appointed.
You know the rest, you miners here!
Work was resumed in the mines i'm
mediately, on the old terms, which con-
tinued until the commission report
ed. The commission consisted Of rs
able and as impartial men as there
were in the country, including the
head of the Order Of Railroad Conduc-
tors, Mr. Clark. II also included
among others, a federal Judge, skilled
engineer, a trained labor expert and
beloved friend of mine, Archbishop
Spaulding, OF Illinois, whose interes,
in the welfare Of the worklngmen was
genuine and sympathetic. and who also
understood with entire clearness that
in the long run justice to the work.
ingman could he permanently secured,
only II II was made part of a scheme
to secure justice for everybody con-
cerned.
Arbitration Successful.
The arbitration was successful. 1
understand that with slight modifca-
tons, you have continued to operate
the mines under its terms up to the
present day. More important still, it
set the precedent for the course that
ought to he followed in all disputes
OF this nature hereafter. Mr.. Wilson,
on the contrary, has set a precedent
which he himself admits must never
hereafter be followed II Justice is to
be done This is vital point OF diff
ference between the conduct of the
chief executive in one case and in
the other When fourteen years ago.
/ acted. there was no precedent for
me to follow. and no established in
strumentalities through which TO work.
had to Create my own instrument,
the arbitration commission. MIR VIII
son had before him the precedent
had created, and he had as instru-
ments ready to hand the arbitration
board, and the Interstate Commerce
Commission, with its enlarged powers.
But he failed to follow the precedent,
or to use the instruments which were
ready to his hand. |, although lack
ing the agencies Of law for the APP
plication of the principle, nevertheless
applied it and established arbitra-
ton in the settlement on their merits
Of Industrial disputes. Mr.. Wilson,
with all the agencies OF the law sub
ject TO his command. ignored them, de-
stroyed the principle OF arbitration
IN the settlement Of industrial dis
putes, and put premium on securing
this settlement by threat and duress
president Wilson, in his speeches
of August 20 and September %, has
furnished his own condemnation out
of his own mouth. In them he ex-
plicitly condemns exactly what he has
done and actually demands legislation
which will make impossible the repe-
tition of such a proceeding! This is
so extraordinary an attitude that |
quote his own words. He said he
wished to provide" against the re-
currence OF such unhappy situations
In the future" by securing the calm
and fair arbitration of all industrial
disputes in the days to come" This
is an explicit assertion that arbitra-
ton of all industrial disputes is the
right emthod of action; and there
fore that he had adopted the wrong
method of action-althOugh in the case
Of the anthracite coal strike he had
an exact precedent in point, by fol-
lowing which he would have enforced
the right method.
The Worst Way.
President Wilson further says, This
is assuredly the best way of yndicat-
ing principle, namely, having failed
to make certain of its observance in
the present to make certain Of its OBJ
servance in the future" On the con-
trary, this is the very worst way Of
vindicating principle. Indeed, it is
impossible to devise a worse way Of
yindicatlng principle, than TO finch
ANONYMOUSLY from enforcing 1t in the
case at issue and at the same time to
seek TO cover the ignominy by vocifer-
GUS protestations about applying it in
the nebulous future. The same Pa
per, the New York Times. from which
/ quote the above sentences, contained
statements from the leaders Of the
brotherhoods, whom he was befriend-
ing. in which they said that they
would never consent to legislation pro-
viding for future arbitration for which
President Wilson asked; and President
Wilson kept a weak and nervous ST.
lence about this defiance. He did not
get the legislation which he declared
was essential to "vindicate the prin-
ciple" in the future. All that he &C
complishcd was the violation Of the
principle in the present, in the con-
crete case at issue. The only law he
secured established the precedent OF
violation Of the principle, All that he
did was to establish tic most evil Of
all prccedents for a democracy, the
precedent of violating a principle un.
der the duress Of threat and menace
1t is a precedent which will return to
plague us throughout all future time
whenever we have in the White House
president who is tlmid in the face
of threat of physical violence or who