The Tomahawk., 1916-09-07
DECLARES CITIES WOULD BE CUT
OFF FROM FOOD SUPPLIES AND
WHOLE cOMMSRcE OF Ma
TON PARALYZED.
PROPOSES AN EIGHT-HOUR
DAY FOR RAIL employees
Chief Executive Urges Measure Simi-
lar to Canadian industrial Disputes
Act for investigation of All Dis
putes Between Railroads and
Their Workmen.

Washington, Aug. 30.-President
Wilson went to the capitol at 2:3o p.
m. to address Joint session of con-
gress, hastily summoned few hours
earlier to hear the executives plea
for action to prevent the threatening
nationwide railroad strike.
Presidents Message.
Gentlemen Of the congress:
II have come to you to seek your as
sistance in dealing with a very grave
situation which has arisen out Of the
demand OF the employees OF the rail-
work day. safeguarded by. payment Of
S %o1k b bd Of se eh for
THE matter has been agitated Tor
more than year The public has been
Of them, and even more familiar with
tho objections OF the railroads and their
now enjoyed by their men and base Of
payment worked out through, many
Years of contest be reconsidered; espe-
Of an eight-hour day. The matter came
some three weeks ago to final issue s'a
and resulted In complete deadlock be-
>" Mediation Falls.
"The means provided by law for mo.
diation of the controversy failed and
the means Of arbitraton for ThGh the
se n Of the railway executives
PROPOSED that the demands Of the men
be submitted in their entirety to arbi.
a M' to pay and
Of employment which seemed to them
to be either closely associated With the
on their own merits: the men absolute.
~ declined arbitration. especially If
any Of their established Provisions oas, were r.,
sompulsion upon them. The 400 go men
from whom the dsmh h,, Proceedded mao
has since been set for. the 4th Of Sep
te nn the ne freght a eraHs ne
every railway in the country.
Would Paralyze Nation.
"The freight service throughput the
united States must ais stand s Sndeed unit
s s ct hes' wifi R0S be cut Off from their
S Se nsn W the Be Thos msn
every sort and occupation will be thrown
out Of employment, countless thou .
# nav T be- to the Very POINT Of starva:
tion, and a tragical national calamity
brought on. to be added to the other
Of accommodation or settlement has
been found.
Spokesman OF Country.
"Just as soon as it became evident
had ad faiied and that arbitration had
been rendered impossible by the atti-
tude Of the men, ! considered 1t my
tives Of both the railways and the
brotherhoods and myself offer media
tion not as an arbitrator but merely
terests Of justice indeed and as friend
of both parties, but not as n judge.
only as the representative of one hun
dred millions Of men, women. and chill
dren, who would pay the price-the in
calculable price of loss and suhertng'
should these few men insist upon APP
preaching and concluding the matters
In controversy between them merely
as employers and employees. rather
than as patriotic citizens Of the United
cepting the larger responsibility which
the public would put upon them
Eight Hour Day Favored.
TT seemed to me in considering tho
the whole spirit Of the time and the
preponderant evidence Of recent eco
nomic experience spoke for the s eig mt
thought and experience of recent years
a thing upon which society is justified
in insisting as in the interest Of health;
efficiency, contentinent and general
Increase Of economic vigor.
The. whole presumption OF modern I'm
;n ts favor Whether there was arb
tration or not, and the debatable points
to settle were those which arose out of
the acceptance of the eight-hour day
rather than those which affected its
establishment
Made Proposal.
ct therefore proposed that the eight
hour day be adopted by the railway
arrangements and put into practice for
the present as a substitute for the ex-
listing ten-hour basis of pay and serv-
ice: that I should appoint. with the
small COM
mission to observe the results of the
change carefully studying the figures
Of the altered operating costs. also the
men worked and the operation of their
existing agreements with the railroads.