The Tomahawk. [volume] (White Earth, Becker County, Minn.) 1903-192?, 1920-09-09

:ging About Dismissing "unnec'
on Freight.
Washington, D. C.-President Com
pers of the American Federation of
Labor warns the country that the
shutdown in large industries all over
the country are part of the polit-
icaI plot. 1.-THE purpose" says Mr..
Gompers, "is obviously to brighten the
Iaboring men and women You will
continue to see evidence of it from
now until election"
Perhaps it would be nearer correct
to say that it happens that two big
business motives are served by these
shutdowns in iron and steel manufac-
ture. automobile manufacture. wooden
manufacture, etc. While they may
be of considerable value as club
over labor, which suddenly finds it.
self without bread ticket for the
family, they also enable the trusts
to maintain their outrageous price,
by shutting off normal supply. This
suspension of work, which if prac-
ticed by labor would be called sabo-
tage, enables large business to beat
down the lprices of raw materials,
which it should now be buying from
the farmers, such as cotton and wool,
while it keeps up its own profits
through scarcity prices to the con-
Stunning public.
EXCHANGE DROPS
"A period of financial depression"
says Julius Barnes, formerly govern
ment grain corporation head, "is be-
coming felt throughout the United
States. Business is generally due to
receive a sharp set back. 1t is al
ready seriously apparent in some of
our large industries"
Barnes sees the failure to pick up
foreign trade as a principal factor,
and this undoubtedly has much to do
with adverse farm prices. London
exchange has dropped to 1884, the
lowest in many months. But it is
impossible to tell how much of this
is due to natural causes and how
much to artificial depreciation to ene
able foreign buyers to get our farm
products at low prices.
WHY ROADS FAILED
"Separate operation of the railroads
in private hands," says William B.
Colver of the federal trade commits
sion, utterly broke down when the
strain of war was thrown upon them.
Five or six boards of railroad execu.
tives attempted one after another, un-
successfully, to meet the war load and
one by one each board failed dismally-
At the end of government operation
the roads went back into private
hands, and separate operation being
resumed, broke down again in less
than 80 days.
1T is easy to interpose as an ex-
PLANTATION that on March 1 the rail-
road administration turned back the
roads as mere piles of junk, but the
figures do not bear out this state
ment.
"The percentage of locomotives fit
for service at the end Of government
operation was greater than it was at
the same time in 1916 and the per-
centage of cars in repair and fit for
service was likewise in favor of the
railroad administration.
Under unified operation in 1913,
and with substantially the same
equipment, the railroad administra-
ton freight tonnage was 403 billion
as against PIT billion tons in 1915 un-
der separate, private operations
'I hope that when the United
States buys $200,0o0,000 of new
equipment for the railroads that
equipment will not be used that way.
I hope cars will be charged to the
road on whose tracks they 60 at a
fair but stiff rental for each day. I
hope that higher demurrage charge,
swiftly to severe penalties,
will compel the shipper to load and
unload with all speed. I hope recon-
signment will be limited strictly to its
use and that it's abuse will be made i'm
possible.
t'As single instance of such abuse
1 hear of 100 cars of coal held on sid
ings near coal-hungry city and
awaiting reconsignment of the highest
bidder. This coal was held so long
that on some cars 81 ton of >demur-
rage had accumulated. This demur-
rage. to be paid in the end by the con-
sumner, represents dead loss and a
holding out of use Of badly needed
coal cars.
ut is using coal cars as poker chips
instead of using them for transporta-
ton"
OUR COLONIAL POLICY
Franklin D. Roosevelt, now assist
ant secretary of the navy and candi.
date for the vice presidency, has been
Dragging about writing the constitu-
ton for Haiti in his campaign
speeches. A first class politician
would have known better than to
H.