Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1921-10-27
By EDWARD w. PIcKARD.

If the railway brotherhOods carry
out their threat to go OH strike on
October 80, the walk-out will not he
general. Most, If not all, Of the eleven
unions affiliated with the big five"
brotherhoOds will refuse 10 go out
with the latter. The railway mana
gers, with the aid of loyal employees,
pensioners and volunteers, will be
able to give the country at'least q lin
tied service. The sympathy of the
American public will not be with the
strikers. For all these reasons, the
strike will be virtually failure.
Such was the prediction of compe-
tent and unbiased Observers of the
critical situation of last week.
Spurred by the administration TO
quick and decisive action, the railway
labor board went 10 Chicago and
called the heads of the br0therhOods
into conference with 1t there. The
proceedings were secret. and the
union chiefs were given the oppor-
tunity to- talk frankly and freely. Be
fore leaving Washington the public
group" of the board consulted at
length with President Harding and
with the members of the Interstate
a commerce commission, and il was Civ
lnen out that the policy sanctioned by
The administration included these main
points:
l. Immediate suspension Of the
strike order pending further negotia-
tiOnS looking to "a settlement.
y. Use Of the hroiherho"dS' inilu-
ence to foreStall strike orders by any
of the other labor organizations now
considering n wajkout.
3. Proposal Of platform on which
final settlement might he reached, to
include these points, with the proviSo
that there will he no strike:
Ca) Withdrawal for definite peri
od Of the proposed request by the
roads for the further ~ per cent wage
decreases.
(b) Immediate reduction of freight
rates by the rraiS.
A program based on these was
placed before the union chiefs, hut it
was noted that it left ont of c"n>id-
GRAFTON The two points which are actu-
ally at the h"ttom Of the strike threat.
These ure the question Of time, and
the cancellation of the existing rules
and working conditions. OStenSihly
the strike. if it comes, will be on the
matter of wage reductions, but the
two points mentioned are the real bone
Of contention. ON this fact is based
the prediction that the allied unions
will not support the brotherhOodS in
q walk-out, for the "big five" leaders
have refused TO give the other unions
any pledge that they would not call
off the strike Of the brotherhood men
If they obtained working concessions.
The other unions realize that they
might very likely be left to hold the
bag.
The final attitude Of these so-called
STANDARD unions" was 10 be deter
mined at q series of conferences which
began in Chicago Wednesday and con-
tinued during the rest Of the week.
Railway executives were not talking
much beyond saying that they would
do their utmost to move necessities. u
But, of course, they have been prepar-
ing for some time 10 combat the strike,
and, 1t is said, have. agreed upon
the general policy Of operating mail
passenger and milk trains first, and
Increasing the freight traffic as rap
idly as men can be obtained. They
count on getting thousands of train
service men who have been laid of
and are still out OF work, and already