Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-09-06
SATURDAY s. SEPTEMBER 6, 1919
THE SANE WAY.

Emotional leadership is usually
dangerous. The dealist is rarely
practical He recognizes certain in
equalities and injustices. and he pic
lures the ideal often in a way that
stirs the community TO action so hur-
red as to be harmful.
Steady advance with all ground
held, is better plan than attempt to
establish an ideal with consequent up
setting of the even course of things.
We get a glimpse of this in the
course of Samuel Gompers. He has
not always been right. Sometimes he
has been frightfully wrong, as for
example when he went to great
lengths in the defense of the Nc
Namaras, only to have them confess
their guilt later and accept penl-
Tertiary sentences instead of the gal
lows TO which their crimes entitled
them. They should have been hanged.
When the threatened strike of the
shopmen came, Mr.. Gompers fastened
back from Europe and he has been
busily engaged in trying to clamp the
lid on The Plumb plan had just been
submitted, and Mr.. Gompers has care
fully refrained from saying anything
even squirting at endorsement of it.
On the other hand. he has not con-
demned it publicly, doubtless fearing
that the radical sentiment in its favor
might sweep him out of power and
thus leave the radicals to tear down
what he has so carefully and skillfully
built up.
But Gompers says frankly that labor
is entitled to participation in business
results; but he says also that the way
to obtain that larger recognition is
not by revolution. but by constitu-
tional advance. Mr. Gompers has no
use for Bolshevism that, under color
of the I. W. w. attacks the flag in
this country. To him the flag is a
sacred thing, while to the Bolshevist it
is a rag to be spurned and tramped
upon. To the Bolshevist the flag rep
resents capitalism. tyranny and every
thing that is reprehensible. and the
men who followed it in France were
so many fanatics or fools. The Boil
shevist sympathized with Germany in
the war, just as its great leaders
Lenine and Trotzky. were in German
pay, as was shown by our own state
department
Gompers has idealism made prac-
teal.
We believe that labor is to have a
larger income. Mr.. Gompers realizes
as do the rest of us who think calmly,
as the right sort of employers realize,
that to attempt to bring about such a
result in two years would upset the
whole order of things and lead to a
breakdown, but in ten years an adj
justment can be worked out that can
be maintained without break in the
more prosperous conditions of every
body.
There is much radicalism afloat
The man who never has employed
large numbers, and knows nothing Of
Athe difficulties that constantly arise to
keep machinery going. is not the one
to voice the immediate procedure, if
we are all to remain as well off as
we are.
The course of procedure should
rather be the expression OF sane labor
leaders joined with employers, who
realize that there should be a new
basis of operation; these men, if
listened to, will keep the country going
and, at the same time. make advance
toward the new basis.
We have today some employers who
still regard labor as a commodity. We
have on the other side some labor men
who believe that government should
be by force. Both of these views are
equally wrong, and both will equally
suffer by the application of either.
A large number of employers are in
favor of working with labor toward
a better system. A great many labor
leaders are in favor of the same thing.
The presidents plan for a confer
ence of representatives of employers
and employees is move in the right
direction and should assist in bringing
about more satisfactory conditions.