The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-04-08
Heads Of Unions |
Labor and the War
American Federation Of Labor Sf1ies LIS Post
ton IN Present. Crisis.

The declaration of American labor's
position in peace or in war was agreed
TO ot a conference Of trade union 1ex-
ecntives on March IL at the A. F. Of i
building, Washington.
There were present the executive
council Of the AT. Of I. and l4s dele
gates representing 70 national and In
ternational unions affiliated to the A.
p. Of L.: the five A. F. Of L. depart
ments and the following unaffiliaes:
brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers,
Order Of Railway Conductors Of Amer
lea, Brotherhood Of Locomotive Fire
men and Enginemen. Brotherhood OF
Railway Trainmen and the National
Window Glass Workers. The DECLARE
ton reads as follows:
The Declaration.
We speak for MILLIONS Of Americans.
We are not a sect We are not a
party. We represent the orgaIiza-
tons held together by the pressure OF
our common needs. We represent the
part of the nation closest to the fun
damentals of life. Those we represent
WELD the nations tools and grapple
with the forces that are brought un-
der control in our material civilization.
The power and use OF Industrial tools
Is greater than the tools Of war and
will In time supersede agencies OF de-
strvction.
world war Is on. The time has not
:, yet come when war has been abolished
Whether we approve 1t or not We
must recognize that war is situation
with which we must reckon. The
present European war; involving as 1t
does the majority of civilized nations
and affecting the industry and COM
merce of the whole world, threatens at
airy moment to draw all countries, in
GLIDING our own, into the conflict. Our
Immediate problem, then, is to bring to
bear upon war conditions instructive
forethought, vision. principles of hui
man welfare and conservation that
should direct ours course. in every
eventuaiity of life. The way to avert
war Is to establish constructive
agencies for Justice in times OF peace
and thus control for peace situations
and forces that might otherwise re-
suit in war.
The methods OF modern warfare, it's
new tactics Its vast organizations.
both military and Industrial, present
problems vastly different from those
of previous wars. But the nations
problems afford an opportunity for the
establishment of new freedom and
wider opportunities for all the people.
Modern warfare includes contests be-
tween workshops factories, the land.
financial and transportation resources
of the countries involved and nec-
essarily applies to the relations be-
tween employers and employees and as
our own country now faces an inn
pending peril 1t is fitting that the
masses of the people of the United
States should take Counsel and deter
mine what course they shall pursue
should crisis arise necessitating the
protection of our republic and defense
of the ideals for which 1t stands.
In the struggle between the forces
of democracy and special privilege, for
Just and historic reasons the masses
of the people necessarily represent the
ideals and the institutions of tlemoc-
racy. There is in organized society
one potential organization whose pur-
pose is to further these ideals and in
. stitutions-the organized labor move
mert.
In no previous war has the organ
lied labor movement taken directing
part.
Labor has now reached an under
) standing of its rights, of It's power and
resources Of its value and contrfbu-
tions to society. and must make def
mite constructive proposals.
1t is timely that we frankly present
experiences and conditions which in
former times have prevented nations
from benefiting by the voluntary,
whole-hearted cooperation OF wage
earners in war time. and then make
suggestions how these hindrances to
our national strength and vigor can
> be removed.
War has never put stop to the
necessity for struggle to establish and
maintain industrial rights. Wage
earners In war times must, as has
been said, keep one eye on the exploit
ers at home and the other upon the
enemy threatening the national gov
erpment. Such exploitation made it
impossible for a warning nation to
mobilize effectively its full strength
for outward defense.
We maintain that 1t is the funda-
mental step In preparedness for the
nation to set its own house in order
and to establish at home Justice In re-
lations between men. Previous wars.
for whatever purpose waged. devel-
oped new opportunities for exploiting
wage-earners. Not only was there
failure to recognize the necessity for
protecting rights OF workers that they