Belington progressive. [volume] (Belington, W. Va.) 1912-1927, 1919-09-04
PLAN TO REPEAT
ATTACK OF 1916
Railway Employees Chiefs APP
pear at Washington With New
Threat to Congress.
ASK 81, 900, 600, 900 MORE PAY.
Also Demand Naturalization Of Other
industries, Following Example of
Russian Soviets.

washington.-It is just three years
since tile four leaders of the railway |
brotherhoods having refused arbitra-
tion of their demands. sat In the gal
lery of the United States Senate and /
held their watches on the Senator's
while the memorable vote was being |
taken on the Adamson Law that gave |
them $60000,000 additional wages a
year. When the vote was counted and !
announced the four labor chiefs rushed
out to the telegraph office and with
drew the order for a nationwide
strike.
That such a scene may be again en-
acted on a much greater scale Is indi-
Gated by the startling Developments
at the nations capital in the past few
days. Now the $4,000 men in the
brotherhoods have been joined by
more than a million other railroad
workers-shopmen, traekinen, tele-
graphers, clerks, station agents-and
the demands are many times what
they were three years ago.
Thousand Miiiion Doilars.
On top of a thousand million dollars
of added wages granted by the Gov
eminent in the past year and half.
the allied workers are asking for an
other increase of thousand million
dollars.
But more than this, this great body
of railroad employees has served an
ultimatum on the Government that all
the railroads of the country must he
taken away from their owners and
turned over to the employees to be OPP
Grated by them on a communistic
profit-sharing plan.
The plan is as daFillg as any con-
ceived by the Russian Bolshevists. and
behind it is the threat of a nationwide
strike, with the lenders Of the men sit
ting in tie Senate gallery. watches in
hand. counting the vote.
To Tie Up MI transportation.
1--WE will tie up the railroads so that
they will never run again If we do not
/ get what we want Announced one of
the labor spokesman. standing within
4 stones throw of the Capitol. and
1 this amazing announcement. like an
/ uItimatum from leader Of the Rus
I sian Soviet. was instantly flashed over
I the telegraph wires to every part of
I the country.
! Since the first Brotherhood bomb
! shell exploded in Washington at the
| end of July, the fact has leaked out
! chat the brotherhoods are gathering
J ~
an intensive drive on Congress. Three
! million dollars, ii Is announced has
| already been collected from the men,
4 bers of the unions This will be used in
! campaign work in the Congressional
districts. with the purpose of enlist
Ing the votes of the members OF
| Congress, or of defeating them for
reelection if they do not vote as the
brotherhoods dictate. Money will also
be laa-ishly spent, 1t is stated, in send
ing speakers throughout the country
to stir up the enthusiasm OF organized
labor far the brotherhood plan of
communistic railroad operation.
"NationaIizing" All Industry
I'll we don't get what we want out
Of this Congress we will put this
Congress out and put another one in
that will give us what we want" is
the matter-of-fact announcement Of
the central propaganda office Of the
brotherhoods in Washington
Back of the immediate purpose to
gain control Of the RAILROADS is an
even. deeper scheme to gain control of
] al fnd cfrin fai-
! their owners and putting them under
the direct management of the organic
ed workers, as has been done in Rus
STA, and as they are attempting to do
in Germany and Austria.
The reports of the United States
Railroad administration show that the
Government since it took over the
| roads In December, 1917, has Increased
railroad wages by considerably more
than thousand million dollars, and
about $5O0,OO0,000 year is being TAX
en- out of the National Treasury to
meet the deficit caused by the great
increase In labor cost
Big Wage Increases
The principal advances in wages
nave pccH 10 suopIuGI, $ooU.UUU,UUU,
to unskilled labor, S225, 100000: to the
train brotherhoods. $200,O0O.O00; to
clerks, $125,000000; 10 telegraph and
station agents, 100000, 600; to mis-
cellaneous classes, $110,O00,00O.
All of these groups are now demand
ing additional increases of from 80 to
90 per cent. When the Government
took control of the roads the average
earnings of all railroad workers. in
Guiding several hundred thousand I'M
skilled workers, was $1,000 a year. The
average is now more than 81 800 and
the new demands would raise it to
$4,000