The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-08-29

80 o o o o O o 90 o o o o o o
/ o TO THE PUBLIC o
10 O. @ o o o o O o o o o O o o o
Washington, Aug. 25.-The presi-
dents statement addressed to the
public follows:
ssMy fellow citizens:
"a situation has arisen in connec-
ton with the administration Of the
railways which is Of such general
significance that I think it my duty
to make public statement concern
ing it, in order that the whole coun-
try may know what is involved.
'The railroad shopmen have de-
manded large increase in wages.
They are now receiving fifty-eight,
sixty-three and sixty-eight cents per
hour. They demand eighty-fiye cents
per hour. This demand has been
given careful and serious considera-
ton by the board which was consti-
tuted by the railroad administration
to adjust question Of wages, board
consisting Of an equal number Of rep
|resentatives Of employees and of the
operating managers of the railroad
companies. This board has been un-
able to come to an agreement and it
has therefore devolved upon the di-
rector general of railroads and my
self to act upon the merits of the
case.
+ Case Not Parallel.
"The shopmen urge they are en-
titled to higher wages because Of the
higher wages for the present received
by men doing similar work in ship
yards, navy yards and arsenals, as
well as in q number Of private in
dustries, but concur with the direct
or general in thinking that there is
no real basis Of comparison between
the settled employment afforded me-
chanics by the railroads under living
conditions as various as the location
and surroundings Of the railway
shops themselves and the fluctuating
employment afforded in industries
exceptionally and temporarily stimu-
lated by the war and located almost
without exception in industrial GEN.
ters where the cost Of living is high
est.
1eThe substantial argument which
the shopmen urge is the very serious
increase in the cost Of living. This
is a very potent argument indeed.
But the fact is that the cost of living
has certainly reached it's peak and
will be probably lowered by the ef-
forts which are now everywhere be-
ing concerted and carried out. 1t will
certainly be lowered so soon as there
are settled conditions of production
and of commerce, that is so soon as
the treaty Of peace is ratified and in
operation and merchants, manfactur-
ers, farmers, miners all have a GER
tain basis of calculations as to what
their business will be and what the
conditions will be under which it
must be conducted. The demands
of the shopmen, therefore and all
similar demands are in effect this:
tsThat we make increase in wages,
which are likely to be permanent, in
order to meet a temporary situatio.,
which will last nobody can certainly
tell how long, but in all probabilities
only for limited time. Increase in
wages will, moreover, certainly re-
suit in still further increasing the
costs of production and, therefore,
the cost of living and we should only
have to go through the same process
again. Any substantial increase of
wages in leading lines of industry at
this time would utterly crush the gen.
eral campaign which the government
is waging, with energy, vigor and
substantial hope of success, to reduce
the high cost of living. And the IN
creases in the cost of transportation
which would necessarily result from