The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1919-09-06
LAeoa's SECOND THOUGHT

Lee president of the Railroad Train
men said: We are going the wrong
way. 1t is time to cali halt but as
long as present methods contihue |
believe in everybody getting his share
as nearly as he can until the final up
heaval comes" Other spokesman Tor
the militant railway workers said sub
stantially the same thing and more
than one adding threats of vengeance
and destruction for conditions which
they above others had brought about.
1t is to the credit of these railway rep
resentatives that having arrived at
the end of the road on which they
startled the country they recognize
the end when they see it and con
fess that their foresight did not ex
tend even to the months end.
There are others who remember
that they told the railway men shat
they were ON the wrong road three
years ago. That was when they de
manded ten hours pay for eight hour
work under the plea that a longer
workday was inhuman. The roads
We're then under private operation
and the managers asked for arbiira
ton When the managers refused the
presidents proposal that they should
waive their demand for arbitration the
president sent for the railway presl
dents and they, too refused. The
brotherhoods ordered. a strike and
congress passed the e;;Snt hour law
under false pretenses and dure9s.
The purpose in recalling these Incl
dents already forgo[ten IN three = ef
years is to contrast them with simf
lar incidents only weeks old. The rali
roads are now under government op
Grafton and now the railway workers
are as obdurate to the presidents
suggestion as the T. ilway managers
were. Last March the director gener
al officially declared that the cycle
of wage increases had been complet
ed and that he was opposed to open
ing another cycle without express
warrant on higher authority. In thae
he only expressed the findings of a
board of inquiry on which labor had
full representation. Nevertheless new
demands were made opening the pros
pect of another billion or wage pa~
ments and shorter hours,
The railway men are still refusing
arbitration made now by the presi
dent instead of by the exploited rail
ways. Tire threats of railway strike
are more violent now when the presi
dent is on the defensive against the
Hallway men, than when the presfden;
was the champion of their mistaken
course The president proposed to
congress the establishment OF a gov
.1iment wage body whose decision
should be mandatory upon the rate
making body and provide, when nee
essary increased rates 90 cover any
recommended increases in wages'
The head of the shopmen's committee
aid: "if congress adopts the plan
proposed by Director General Hines
and the president We will tie the rail-
ways up SO tight that they never will
run again" The reason was that the
plan would deprive labor of the ri~ht
of collective bargaining as labor IN
derstands it and as railway men are
observed practicing it. Shopmen to
the number of 0,o00 struck in the
few days between the making of the
presidents proposal and its abandon
ment when he himself substituted yne
stoppage of increases of both wages
and rates. They took Up their tasks
again only on his undertaking to
make the new proposal. While this
is pending there are railway strike
in several states on many hundreds
OF miles of railways for no railway
grievance but in sympathy with strik
ers on a Local railway not under gov
eminent control.
THE SWORD OF ISLAM