Evening star., 1921-04-07
PRESIDENT TAKING
: Up RAIL RATE CUTS
Believes Reduction of Freight
Tariffs Necessary, But Is
| Not Forcing Advice.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

fateS at the same time dS wages ''ie
hut on the railroad systems of the coun-
Try Mr.. Harding is not officially IN
terfering or forcing his advice. influence
br suggestions on either the railroads
tr their employees. but nevertheless he IS
hrediAting in dispute on whose settle
A1ent perhaps depends more the revival
kf business in America than any other
Jingle factor.
l MIR. Harding refers to his efforts mod
kstiy as merely seeking information
He is comforting daily with the labor
leaders. Next week he talks with the
railroad executives The viewpoint OF
fhe shippers of agricultural products
has been ably presented in cabinet meet
h,c bv Secretary of Agriculture Wal
lace.
Believes Drop Essential.
As A consequence Mr. Harding be
Iieves a reduction of freight rates Is
absolutely essential But the Inter
STATE Commerce Commission, whose
expert Judgment in railroad matters
fs~not questioned, insists that-lt would
he DANGEROUS to reduce freight rates
unless the railroads can cut their op-
Grating expenses, which means, OF
course. wages, because labor IS tne
largest item in railroad operation To-
day
TO reduce wages would be a rela-
tiyely simple task if there were not
interviewer in the question something
else much more vital to both the rail-
road executives and their men tnan
the revision of the wage scale of tins
month or this year. 1t is the ticklish
problem of railroad standards ana
methods of adjusting future wage
scales.
DeIicacy Is Recognized.
President Harding has himself rec
ognized the deIicacy of the problem
hy his method of handling the labor
leaders The railroads. for instance.
insist that now that the war is over
each railroad system should deal with
its own men. while the railroad broth-
erhoods wish to have all matters OF
wages adjusted by a national board
representing the workers on all sys-
TENS of the country. The so-cailed
national agreement. which covered
this method of negotiating on dis
puted questions. was put into effect
by Walker Hines in his last days as
director general of railroads. at
time indeed, when it was simpler for
the federal government to handle all
wage questions uniformly with the
heads of the brotherhoods. Naturally
labor is more powerful If il deals for
the men as a whole and with the rail-
road systems as a unit. Conversely.
the brotherhoodS cannot exert such
powerful influence over their men
if the same classes of labor are diff
ferently paid in various regions of
the country. Their solidarity is af-
fected.
There Is division in the ranks of
labor as we'll as in the ranks of the
railroad executives. Some labor lead
erS, notably those who are eager to
have the American Federation of
Labor play its part in handling
III -. lot
having the national agreement which
was made by Mr.. Hines maintained SO
that everything can be dealt with on
a national basis. Other labor lead
ers are adopting what seems to the
railroad executives much more
reasonable attitude. namely. the di-
vision of the country into regions 50
that regional boards may be- appoint
ed as between railroads and workers
in every section. Inside the railroad
executives groups are those who
think that is fair compromise
Axxreasives Insist ON Issue.
Other executives of a more ag-
gressive type. such as Gen. Alter
bury of the Pennsylvania railroad.
insist that the issue is clean cut
either the Pennsylvania railroad deals
with it's own employees through their
spokesrn or it is being deprived
Of inaIienable rights.
1t bears some relationship indeed to
the open and closed shop controversy.
which has been troubling employers
other than railroad executives.
Whether to deal with walking dele
gate of union or a spokesman of a
shop committee of ones own employees
is moot question which the indus
trial world has not yet succeeded in
solving to the universal satisfaction
of either employers or employees.
That's why Mr.. Harding's efforts as
a mediator on this very phase of the
railroad controversy a are being
watched with tense anxiety, Should
the executive bend one way or the
other the significance of his attitude
would not be lost on either side.
The President studious,r avoided
recognizing the brotherhoods as
whole by calling the various labor
leaders into conference singiy.
Not Forcing Decision.
Had he called for the group who
have represented railroad labor he
night have been suspected erroneous
4~of recognizing the same arrange
!; Hent as was provided in the famous
national agreement. From the fact
that Mr.. Harding has not asked amy
organizations as such to confer with
him but has adopted the idea of sum-
moning individuals for advice" he
believes nobody can s,f7c,is-- hiui- a.
group. The President. moreover, is
anxious that the disputantS settle the
issTe themselves He does not want
the Harding administration to be put
in the position of cutting wages.
That isn't good politics or good
econsmtes, especially in d period in
which the governments real policy is
to eXtgjcate itself from, acts of pater
naliSm or benevolent partnership.
either with business OR labor. as was
necessary during wartime. Mr.. Hard
ing is end-avoring TO use his execu-
tive influence 70 bring the parties in
dispute 20 settle their questions on
an equitable basis. and h. believes
that this can be done by personal
talks with the principals and by pres
sure upon both sides to heed the de-
nand of public opinion for a fair set
- tjemenL Wage cuts would be accept
ed by the representatives OF the work
ers Il the whole power Of the brother
hoods were not threatened
Reluctant to Promise Cuts.
The railroads are reluctant to prom
fse freight rat. reductions until they
have pared expenses. and some of the
railroad executives think this is the
moment TO deal a sma ashng blow to
the railroad unions as a whole II
LIS a safe prediction that IL the plan
for regional adjustment of labor dis
putes were accepted :he whole prob
lem would be solved overnight. for it
is doubtful IL the railroad workers
will accept wage reductions and a
blow at union solidarity al the game
time. Nobody can speak for Mr.
Harding as yet. but the attitude of
the Harding administration in the
first Industrial dispute thus far set
tled-the packers strike-is being