The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-08-15
A DEFINITION WANTED


1t is gratifying, il not wholly reas-
surfing, to read Glenn Plumb's indig-
nant denial that the Brotherhoods
have any intention to force the bill
that bears his name upon the nation
by threats or acts of violence. No
doubt this is their full and firm inten-
ton, but strikes, and especially rail
road strikes, have displayed an incon-
venient way of getting out of hand
that will have to be reckoned with in
the future as in the past. Starting
with the perfectly honest intent to
adhere to law-abiding courses as far
as the officials and the wiser heads OF
the labor party are concerned, strikes
have been known to degenerate into
exhibitions of violence so menacing
to the public as to call for govern
ment interference to ensure the safe
conduct of the United States mails.
1t is generally understood that the
Plum plan has been introduced in
such a way that it is not trusted to
secure adoption wholly on the unaid-
ed excellence of its merits. An i'm
preston has gone abroad whether
iustifiable or not there seems to be
no very clear proof, that if the Plumb
bill fails to pass through congress, its
failure will be followed by general
strike Of railroad workers throughout
the United States. 1t is true that
the mere act of calling strike does
not constitute a threat of violence,
but such strike as this would have
for it's object nothing short of coer-
cion, and where coercion becomes
factor in the problem violence does
not linger far in the background.
Whatever may be the intrinsic merits
jof the Plumb plan, under which the
railroads are to be handed to the joint
control of the public, operating Off
Gals and the employes-the public
being admitted to the triumvirate pre-
sumably to perform the same func-
ton that it fills under the present
system of government ownership,
namely Ito hold the bag" or make up
deficits-it will recommend itself
neither to congress nor to the nation
at large by the tone of pictorial final
ity that has been adopted by Mr..
Plum in his speeches before the com
mittee.
MIR. Plumb would have done better
to have introduced his bill as ten
tative and debateable effort to solve
"a problem that has occupied the at
tention of some of the wisest states
men in the United States not only
since the government took the rail-
roads over but for many years pre-
viously. The demand for govern
ment ownership has been heard for
at least the past two decades. II has
at last been given practical trial,
not, it must be admitted under ex-
actly fair or favorable circumstances,
and the country has decided almost
with one voice that the great expert
ment must be adjudged failure.
There are, of course, other alterna-
tives besides the absolute returns of
the roads to private ownership. Both
the owners and the government are
prepared to admit that some kind Of
government regulation and, possibly,
some measure of public financial as
sistance, will be necessary to make
the roads efficient and to save them
from imminent bankruptcy if they are
returned to the owners. But while
the discussion is still proceeding, and
the best technical minds in the coun-
try are addressing themselves to the
task of finding solution for this vex-
ing problem, along comes Mr.. Plumb
and tells congress that he has dis
covered the infallible specific and
and that the nation must swallow his
dose forthwith under pain of rail-