The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-12-22
SUnderwood Talks On The
 Railroad Anti Strike Clause
Senator Explains Why Railroad Labors Fight for Higher
 Wages Is No Longer Simple Contest With Capital
nY HuGH w. RoBERTs

other horn of the dilemma. He holds that labor has the right to quit work, but that labor has no right to. plot against the life of interstate commerce.
 The senator discriminates between railroad labor and all other varieties. 'As a matter of fact" he says, "as far as railroad labor is concerned, it has no issue with vested capital. Theo- retically, it may have; but as a prac- tical proposition. the wages of labor engaged in railroad transportation has long ceased to emanate from invested capital They come out of freight rates and passenger rates prescribed by the government either through a director general or through the super vision of an interstate commerce com mission. The amount of labor involved and the amount of labors wage are so great that if they rested for one year upon invested capital it would destroy invested capital.
 Therefore, is it fairly stating the proposition to say that labor must still carry it's weapon of offense against capital? That the value of it's wage must be determined on the battle-ground between labor and capital, and then after the fight is fought and won, the result of the victory must be assessed against the public. which has had no hand in the dispute?
 Senator Underwood briely touched upon the effect of a general strike against transportation, the effect of which, he contended, would be vastly more serious than the effect of strike against any other object He said in that particular:
 "Stop the railroads from operating into the great cities for 90 days and the population is starvi.g Ston the railroads from operating inio al in- dustrial center for 30 days, and com merce has ceased, and labor involved in commerce is out of employment. Stop the railroads from operating for 30 days, and the whole business life of the nation has ceased to function. That is the price that the people of the United States must pay for the privi- 1ege extended to organized labor to declare universal strike for any cause, and to make it effective. I think it safe to say that sometimes a strike is most just, for most just cause, and at other times 8 strike Is without reason or justice.''
 The senator then read from the testi- mony delivered before the interstate commerce committee by Samuel Com pers, president of the American Fedora tion of Labor, and especially that ex- pression of agreement by Gompers that only a law-and perhaps not even a law-would offer a guarantee against a general railroad strike.
 Senator Underwood, continuing said: Here is the issue-and it is not dis puted by the supreme head of organ ized labor-Does the Senate of the United States intend to surrender the iniative, to recognize that there is no way to avoid universal strike except by law, and then refuse to enact the law?
 About the terms of the law, I am not so much concerned. Write in this bill a provision that the mass of the American people shall no longer be in danger of a general, universal strike, and I am willing for you to write the terms under which labor shall surren- der that so-called right"
 Tn summarizing the Dill, and espe- cially the anti-strike sections, Senator Underwood concluded "There is noth- ing in this bill which prevents any man