New-York tribune., 1919-09-24
A. F. of l.. President Attacks
Provisions of Cummins
Bill Making WaIAOuts
and Lock.Outs Illegal
Stone Against Measure
Would Bring About Revolt,
Glenn E. Plumb Tells
Upper House Committee
Nets York Tribune
Wdshtn0tOr Eurenu

Washington Bareau
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23.-Laws will
not prevent organized labor from strlk-
ing, President Samuel Gompcrs of the
American Federation of Labor told the
Senate Interstate Commerce Commit
tee at hearing to-day on the Cum
minis bill providing for the return of
the railroads to private ownership and
operation under Federal supervision.
Mr.. Gompcrs attacked at length the
provision of the bill making strikes
and lockouts unlawful.
~ say with all candor and with
1uil knowiedge of my responsibility
that the American workmen will not
surrender their right to quit work
when conditions become intolerable,"
Mr.. Gompers told the committee.
The effect of this bill would not
prevent strikes. 1t would simply create
lawbreakers. / feel free to saw that
II bill Of this character is enacted
into law l would have no more hest
fancy in participating in a just strike
than | would have now"
The head of organized labor char
acterized the Cummins bill as "a bill
to dlsband unions of labor" He said
to compulsory arbitration as provided
for in the bill.
Unconstitutional and Repugnant
"The compulsory arbitration section
of this bill" Mr.. Gompers told the
tlona, but it is repugnant to the spirit
OF the constitution and antagonistic to
the spirit of the Republic
:For three hundred years slavery
existed in this country. 1t led to the
CIVIL War and the adoption of an
amendment to the Constitution pro-
hibiting involuntary servtude. To
deny American workers their right to
dispose Of themselves and their ability
to work, their disposition to work for
their own advantage or at their own
peril and disadvantage to refuse to
work, is to violate that amendment.
The cnly difference between slave
and free man is the. right of the
free man to dispose of his own work
or not to work as he Wills it.
There can be no doubt that people
are inconvenienced by cessation Of
work nor Of the desire for some power
to make it impossible for workers to
quit their employment. Show me
country where the right of workers to
strike is denied and l will show you
is less and where freedom cannot OBJ
tain"
Compulsory Arbitration Fails
Mr.. Gompers declared that compul-
sorry arbitration proved a failure in
New Zealand, where it was first re
qured by law thirty years ago, and
that it has proved failure in Canada
and in Colorado, where they have
state law prohibiting strikes.
care the provisions of this bill fair
and just reward to the working people
Of American" Mr.. Gompers continued.
THE railroad employees were free men
when the government with full author
ity took over the railroads. This bill
proposes to turn the roads back, but
the men will be handcuffcd in the
meantime"
The bill, he said, proposes to make
the Clayton law conspiracy punish
able by fine or Imprisonment"
II have done my share to prevent un-
necessary Strikes" Mr.. Gompers de-
clared. "The bona fde American labor
movement stands against unnecessary
strikes and has tried with every means
in its power to avoid them and to ad-
just them if they have to be called"
Stone Attacks Measure
Warren S. Stone, chief of the
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers,
declared that the Cummins bill was
1.-The most reactonary railroad bill that
has ever been proposed in Congress-
Glenn Z. Plumb. author of the
Plumb plan for the naturalization of
the railroads and their control and
operation by the employees on q profit
sharing basis, told the committee that
prohibiting strikes would lead to in
dustrial revolutions
"The cause of strikes should be re-
moved" said Mr.. Plumb "This bill
goes at the problem wrong end to. 1t