The Washington times., 1919-10-22
PRESIDENT FORB|DS
CONFEREES TOQU|T

Continued from First Page)
to. present such motion to the con.
ference.
at wasn't planned in advance" he
said.
Chairman Franklin X. Lane bore
out Spargo's statement that the, mo.
tion had not been part of any pro.
garm to force labor TO stay in the
conference.
81 did not know the Spargo motion
was coming. he said. "and later
asked that it be withdrawn"
The Presidents letter was Nad to
the conference at the demand of the
labor group.
! When Chairman Lane was called
itno the council of the labor group
before the opening of the conference,
Samuel Gompers told him that he had
in his possession a letter from the
President Of the United States.
Mr.. Lane replied that the press OF
the country had announced that fact
yesterday. -~--.-'=
When the labor leaders told Mr..
Lane that ii would be necessary for
them to know what was contained in
the letter, Lane is said to have replied:
This letter is addressed to the con-
ference itself. IL you desire to hear
/ 1t, 1t will be necessary for me to read
Ii to the entire conference" ed
The labor group then adjourned it's
session and went into the hall, where
Chairman Lane called the conference
to order and read the letter.
John Fitzpatrick, head of the strik-
| ing steel workers, was in attendance
| at the conference today. and stated:
II don't see any good of the labor
ha
steel fellows didn't think Ithe confer
ence would do anything for sus any
how. I think the labor group ought
to stay in and go on with the farce"
Chairman Lane is in favor of sew
eral days adjournment for the pur-
pose of drawing up comprehensive
| program and continuing discussion
in committees.
One plan of reorganization which
| several clements in the conference
will fav6r will be the enlargement
| of representation to include the 103
individual unions in the American
Federation of Labor. so that the ex-
| act state of feeling among the rank
and file may be better understood
| than IL Is at present.
The. public and employer groups
also would be enlarged proportion
ately, so that an industrial congress
| along the line of that held in Great
| Britain last April would be sum-
moned.
Only slight hope is held now that
the present conference, even IL con-
tinued indefinitely, will have even the
| smallest effect on Industrial unrest in
the United States.
AS the conference now stands, it
has more than forty resolutions be-
| fore it. ranging in scope from the i'm
provement of housing conditions to
! unemployment insurance. The COM
mittees appointed ten days ago to
consider these resolutions have been
so absorbed in the group negotiations :
on the two main controversies that
they have had no opportunity to make
hprogress on their work.
The employers are anxious to have
| the conference break up and to get
away from Washington. They do not
believe anything can be accomplished
| by its reconvening at a later date.
Il is believed a majority of the public
group has arrived at the same conclu-
sion.
At the morning session of the con-
ference, delegates were told that No
vember / may find 100000 workers
on strike. or threatening strike, in
two basic industries. -
Chances seem slight of averting 1t
was emphasized, through Government
mediation, the threatened strike Of
soc, 900 miners. In addition, 500, 900
members of the four big \ railroad
brotherhoods and 100000 railway
shopmen are planning to resume press
| ing their demands for wage adjust
ments, beginning November 1.