The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-08-26

The president in his statement to
the representatives of the shopmen
Monday in his reply to their wage de-
mands said:
Gentlemen: l request that you lay
this critical matter before the men in
new light. The vote they have TAX
en- was upon the question whether
they should insist upon the wage in
crease they were asking or consent to
the submission of their claims to a
new tribunal, to be constituted by new
legislation. That question no longer
has any life in it. Such legislation is
not now In contemplation. request
that you ask the men to reconsider
the whole matter in view of the fol-
lowing considerations, to which I ask
their thoughtful attention as Ameri-
cans, and which I hope that you will
lay before them as here state them.
I'VE are face to face with q situa-
ton which is more likely to AFFECT the
happiness and prosperity, and even
the life, Of our people than the war
itself. We have now got to do moth
Ing less than bring our industries and
our labor OF every kind back to a nor
NAL base after the greatest uphesval
known IN history, and the winter just
ahead OF US may bring suffering in
nn1tely greater than the war brought
upon us If we blunder or fail in the
process. An admirable spirit of self
sacrifice, OF patriotic devotion, and Of
| community action guided and inspired
us while the fighting was on. We shall
need all these now, and need them in
a heightened degree, If we are to &C
complish the first tasks of peace. They
are more difficult than the tasks Of
war-more complex, less easily under
stood-and require more intelligence,
patience and sobriety. We modified
our man power for the fighting; let us
now mobilize our brain power and our
consciences for the reconstruction. If
we fail, it will mean national disaster.
The primary step is to increase pro-
duction and facilitate transportation,
so as to make up for the destruction
wrought by the war, the terrible scare
tiles 1t created, and so as soon as pos.
s1ble relieve our people of the cruel
burden of high prices. The railways
are at the center Of this whole process
War on the Profiteer.
| The government has taken up with
all its energy the task of bringing the
pr1fteer to book, making the stocks OF
necessaries in the country available at
lowered prices, stimulating production
and facilitating distribution and very
favorable results are already beginning
to appear. There is reason to enter
tain the confident hope that substantial
relief will result and result in increas
ing measure. A general increase In
the levels of wages would check and
might defeat all this it's very begin.
ming. Such increases would inevitably
raise, not lower, the cost Of living
Manufacturers and producers of every
sort would have innumerable addition
al pretexts for increasing profits and
all efforts to discover and defeat prof.
teering would be hopelessly confused
l believe that the present efforts to
reduce the costs Of living will be sue
cessful, If no new elements of diff
Guilty are thrown in the way and
confidently count upon the men en-
Gagged in the service of the railways
to assist, not obstruct. 1t is much
more in their interest to do this thar
to insist upon wage increases which
will undo everything the government
attempts. They are good Americans
along with the rest Of us, and may,
am sure, be counted on to see the
point.
ut goes without saying that If oul
efforts to bring the cost of living dowI
should fail, after we have had time
enough to establish either success Of
failure, It will Of course be necessar!
to accept the higher costs Of living a!
a permanent basis of adjustment, ant
along with the rest All that am nov
| 10 hot oh he ,
Of the inexcusable, inconsistency o
making general increases in wages OF
the assumption that the present cos
of living will be permanent at the yer.
time that we are trying with grea
, confidence to reduce the cost Of livinl
} and are able to say that it is actuall
, beginning to fall.
Should Not Be Uneasy.
II am aware that railway employe
have a sense Of insecurity as to tn
future of the railroads and have man
misgivings as to whether their inter
: ests will be properly safeguarded whe,
, the present form of Federal control ha
/ come to an end. No doubt 1t Is Il
: part this sense of uncertainty tina
l prompts them to insist that their wag
) interests be adjusted now rather tina
/ under conditions which they can no
certainly fOreSee. But l do not thin
/ that their uneasiness is we'll grounded
r anticipate that legislation dealin
with the future of the railroads wi
in explicit terms afford adequate pro
lection for the interests Of the en-
ployes Of the roads: but, quite apar
from that, it is clear that no legisls
( ton can make the railroad other tina
: what they are, a great public inters
: and it Is not likely that he Presiden
2 Of the United States, whether in Pc:
: session and control of the railroads Q
: rot, will lack opportunity or persuasiv
2 force to influence the decision Of que!
= tons arising between the managers c
2 the railroads and the railway employe!
The employees may rest assured tina
during my term of office, whether I az
in actual possession Of the railroad
or not, l shall not fail to exert tn
full influence Of executive to see tina
l. justice Is done them.
J. Il believe, therefore, that they ma
p be justified in the confidence tina
g hearty cooperation with the govern
f ment now in its efforts to reduce tn
cost of living will by no means b
l. prejudicial to their own interests, BIT
!. will, on the contrary, prepare the wa
l. for more favorable and satisfactor