Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1919-03-23
Covenant Of Peace Bound to In
cIude Recognition of Work
ingman's Rights; Unions
Firmly Represented.
BOcHE LABOR DELEGATES
PASS UP COL DEN CHANCE
Arrogance of ENJOYS at Berne
Conference Increases Antag-
onism of Fellow Conferees;
Refuse to Admit Hun Guilt.
BY WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE,
copyright, 1919, by The Wheeler Syn

BY WILLIAM ALLEN WHITE,
copyright, 1919, by The Wheeler Syn
dicate, Inc.J
Paris, Feb. 2S.-(By Mail)-The
maintenance of peace since the begin
ming of time has been the job of gem
tlemen with clubs and guns and "ships
and sails and sealing wax" gentlemen
In wigs and uniforms and regalia, un-
til now. Now enters a bustling sun
famed man in overalls with a trowel,
or a saw, or an oil can. or a pneumatic
drill. or pick, or union card, and
soys, Il also am on this job" Justice
for labor is written into the covenant
of the league of nations, and while that
covenant will be more or less amended
as the discussion wakes about it, the
recognition of labor as one of the par
ties at issue in any peace pact never
VIII depart from the covenant of peace.
Two expressions of the labor movement
within the last few weeks have been
made. In few points are they dissimi-
lar. One expression is that of the
commission on international labor leg
islation, more or less directed by Mr..
Gompers, and the other is the Berne
conference of the International Social
lists.
The points of agreement in common
are, first, a violent antagonism to Boil
shevisb. Mr.. Gompers and his group
would not associate with the Social
ist party, because they feared the So
cialists would recognize the Bolshe-
visits. And the Socialists in their
Berne conference were most violent in
their denunciations of Bolshevism.
Both Mr.. Gompers' group and the
Berne Socialist group declare for the
eight t-hour day, and a minimum wage
which will give the workman and his
family all the comforts of modern civ
ilization and enable him to live de-
cent. self-respecting life in his COM
munity. Both groups demand equal
B pay for women in industry doing the
work of men. And both groups demand
the right to organize 1nions, and that
the product of child labor shall not be
permitted to enter into international
commerce.
FOR YEARS TO COME.
These common demands of labor,
worldwide in their acceptance, 1t may
be assumed must be the labor program
for the next half a decade, before the
law makers of every civilized country.
For it is obvious that unless labor con-
ditions are standardized in the civilized
world. the knife edge of competition
+, will cut into labor, and make such
Industrial unrest that the peace of
the world will be threatened. For war
is a social disease, and if it breaks out
in one land. 1t may spread to the other
And the importance of having labor
conditions just and equitable in the
world is as great as having naval and
military programs among the nations
Just and equitable. Hence the inter-
national labor commission in the league
Of nations.
The Gompers group, in addition to
demanding Of civilized nations the
program just outlined in common with
the Socialists, make also demands for
the following labor program Trial by
jury rather than by injunction. the
rights OF seamen to leave their ships
at any port, the abolition of convict
labor in International commerce, rec
ognition in law and in practice that
labor Is not commodity or article of
commerce. the prohibition of articles
in international commerce made in
private homes. This program may be
considered fairly a conservative labor
program. 1t is the minimum which
labor expects. Yet the Berne program
should not be considered as the maxi
mum Of labor. For 1t is so far bahind
the Bolshevik program that in Berne
the Bolshevist agents denounced the
4 international Socialist program as
: tory. reactionary and capitalistici
Moreover. Swiss labor would not affili-
ate with the International Socialists
because the Socialists were too con-
servativel The Swiss had little
coup d'ctat which was lost In the
shuttle last November because 1t oc-
CURED during the armistice. u
eWlSs LABOR DIVIDED.
Swiss labor made certain demands
which the government was inclined to
accept: among other demands was one
for an eight-hour day. Now the Swiss
farmer with two dozen cows on 10
acre tract who puts in an IS hour day
looking after his milk and stabling and
4 feeding his cows. regarded this labor
demand as q bit highty-tighty, and
coming down from his mountain home
with his gun, which he could use with
precision and enthusiasm. rounded up
the government In certain hotels and