Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1916-09-21
Editorial Comment
The Victor.
(Collier's).

NSOAhCl
1t is said that the brotherhoods Of rail-
way employees are grateful to the Ad-
mlnistration for it's surrender to their de-
mands. They have no more reason for
this feeling than a litigant has for graft.
tude toward judge who gives a deci-
sion in his favor because the Judge is
AFRAID OF him. They ought rather to con-
graduate themselves on the intelligence
that led them to select leaders of such
ooldness. diligence, and ingenuity as the
-FOUR men who sat in Washington during
the last week in August, and by a threat
OF a general strike forced the Administra-
ton to put through Congress in three
days a piece of legislation of the most
serious Importance and the most far
reaching possibilities.
In the memory Of man there never had
been lazier Congress It had been in
session for nine months and had shown
no sign of haste in dealing with any of
the hundreds Of measures that came be-
fore it. It took eight months to pass the
navy bill. The most trivial routine bust
ness which usually is transacted in the
first few weeks Of the session dragged on
for months. But when this bill, as i'm
portant as anything that has come be-
fore Congress in a generation, a measure
whose consequences it is impossible to
foretell. was sent over from the White
House. 1t was rushed through with
scarcely as much consideration as would
be spent on a private pension claim
There was no debate worthy Of the name
no study, no weighing Of the conse-
quences, no investigation of the principle
supposed to be involved. The determined
men who pressed the case for the unions
simply said to the President: I'VE give
you three days to compel Congress to
pass this bill" The President said to
Congress-: You must pass this bill be-
fore Monday" And Congress passed it.
Nothing like it has ever been known In
the history Of American legislation. or in
any other kind Of political negotiation
since Bismarck imposed this terms on
the Northumberland Theirs after the
Franco-Prussian War. 1t is true that 1t
was case Of foresight dealing with ex-
pediency. of intelligence dealing with
misunderstanding, Of courage dealing with
cowardice, but in all these respects It was
victory for character. And no one who
recognizes vigor in human action should
hesitate to acknowledge the wide differ
ence between the labor leaders and the
politician they confronted. They waited
for their hour, they wisely chose their
fighting ground. they detected with quick
intelligence the weakness Of the adver
sary. they delivered their ultimatum OF
unconditional surrender" and watch
t.
to come out. And it came. We have on
ly respect for the men who fought SO
shrewdly for the cause they represent
and in the interest Of their own group of
about half million workmen brought
the Government to its knees and upset
the theory Of deliberative legislation up-
on which Is supposed to rest the we'll
being of 100000 people.
1t was a great achievement and others
who are not so well represented must on
w the railway men. The only thing thar
dininishes the glory Of the victory is the
character OF the vanquished. Yet it 10
all the more to tho credit Of tho labor
leaders If the gun they held at the Presi-
dents head wasn't loaded. II Is pretty
certain that If Mr.. Wilson had demanded
time for patient consideration Of a most
involved question. instead Of begging for
few hours grace. they would have
found means Of postponing the strike.
But 1t appears they measured their man,
1t is interesting to guess what the out
come would have been If A. B. Garretson
had happened to be President Of the
United States during such a crisis and
the unions had been represented by
woodrow Wilson.