The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-08-06

Itd11EOdu idDOT 1ldS l1lIoWI us Hdl into the transportation ring. It wants government ownership of all rail roads, with the profits above certain fixed charges to be equally divided between the government and the workers themselves.
 There are 2,2OO,0OO railway em- ployes in the country who are report ed to be so1idly behind this plan.
 All the other millions of workers in the ranks of the American Federation of Labor approve it. They went on record to that effect at their conven- ton at Atlantic City.
 Seven hundred and fifty thousand farmers, through their representatives have endorsed it. So has the Non Partisan League, tEe farmers organ ization which dominates North Dako- ta and is strong and getting stronger in seven other states.
 All told, the railroad men estimate they have 10,0o0,0O0 people behind their plan. They propose to bring tremendous pressure to bear on Con- gross to get iS through
 And just by way of showing that they are serious, they demand a. bil- lion dollar increase in wages at once, in case their plan is not adopted And they are prepared to use on behalf of either of their demands the weapon of the strike, though t%ey say they would do so on behalf Of government owenshtp only as "a, last resort A tie-up of all rail transportation in the United States is simply unthinkaole- AS a disaster it would be second only to Invasion by the army of an enemy. Yet the country has been faced by 1t once before, and the railroad men say they are equally serious in threaten ing it this time.
 Tn such an emergency, 1t behooves us to give very serious consideration to the ideas these men are putting forward. Just what do they want, and whvr What are the objections to their proposal and what are it's ad- vantages?
 Though the announcement of the progranl came like a, thunderclap to most people on Sunday, it need not have done so. It has been discussed by the railroad men for many months,- but for some reason, though details of every other plan for solving the railroad problem have been explained in the press and commented on, the brotherhoods scheme has received Ht- tie attention. It was thoroughly threshed out at Atlantic City at the A. F, of L. convention in a speech by Glenn F. Plumb, general counsel for the Organized Railway Workers of America Mir Plumb also presented the plan before the Interstate Com merce Committee of the United States Senate Because he is the author or it's general outline, it is usually re- ferred to as the Plumb plan
 In its essentials, this plan provides for the purchase of the railroads from their present owners by the United States government uncle Sam would not pay cash for them; he would issue per cent bonds to the holders of railroad securities Mr Plumb would not have the stocks and bonds paid for at face value. He would have critical exam1natlon
 made of the financial history of each railroad, and would declare the value" of that road to be the in vestment actually, honestly and pru- dently made.' This he thinks measures the full extent of the property interests which railway cor porations may possess" Presumably, each security holder would be reirn- bursed with government bonds in the ratio existing between this real cap- italization' and the actual ouAstand- ing securities of the road. Valua- tions would De determined ultimately by the courts, though MT. Plumb is bitterly opposed to the replacement value" theory. He holds it is un- fair to give railroad owners the amount of money it would cost to build the road over again today since land values have greatly increased because of the very fact that the railroad is where 1t is.
 The plan advanced by railroad labor does not provide for government op- eratfon of the lines after they have been pooled into one big federally- owned system. The government would lease the railroads to a corporation, with a board Of directors of IS per sons. Five of these, appointed by the l President, would represent the pub | lie; five would represent railway la bor c'cla.ssified labor Mir. Plumb I calls iD. The third group of five would represent the operating or the managerial superintendents. traffic managers. etc.
 The stockholders, you will notice, | have no voice in management at all; | and this is a very deliberately con- | ceived part of the Plumb plan. The stockholders get their per cent | from the government bonds they | hold; they can get neither more nor 1 less, the security of their investment l is guaranteed; what further interest have .iley in the affairs of the cor l poration? None. says Plumb, who | argues that politics played by secur- l ity holders and other financial inter | ests has been one of the devastating influences of the past. and that elim-