The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1921-01-21
AMERICAN LABOR LOYAL
DECLARATION OF JUDGE OF
KANSAS COURT
Worknen Soon To Be Called On
To Decide important
Questions
ASSOCIATED Press Dispatch.l

Minneapolis, January 19.-Workmen
Of the United States may in the not
distant future be called upon To
choose whether they will obey the
law of organized labor" or the law
of the state and government" in the
opinion OF w. L. higgins of Topeka,
presiding judge of the Kansas court
Of industrial relations.
Talking to the annual convention
Of the Northwestern Lumbermen's as
ISOLATION here today, the jurist added
that when that test comes, l believe
the vast majority of the workmen will
be on the side of law and order"
Judge Higgins said he was of the be-
lief that the vast majority of organic
ed workers in America are loyal pat
There D. more bolsheyism IN this
NIT" he asserted, but I believe thai
the great majority of American work
men are loyal and patriotic, and as
told them from the bench down in
the mining districts, the time may
come, and it may not be far of, when
you will be called upon to choose
whether you will obey the law of or
ganized labor or whether you will
ments under which you live"
Have Equity Courts.
Nevertheless, with no law upon
of a condition, what can you expect?
You do not have it in Minnesota, you
do not have it in Iowa, you do not
e it In North Dakota or South Da-
kota. You have, of course, your
equity courts and all that, but you
don't have anything that reached the
point. That is the reason l am in
Minnesota today, and the only rea-
SON. to tell you about this Kansas
law.
The court Is not a model. he added,
although there are many imper-
fections in it, it is founded on good
legal principles. II have confidence
in 1t because it is builded upon the
first foundation of the common law.
Judge Higgins advised his auditors
to keep the heart warm and the
head cool" when going about the soiu-
ton Of great industrial problems.
"These great problems" he said,
must be solved by lawful formulas
because in civilized countries. the
law must be supreme. With such laws
as this administered in an altruistlc
spirit, the time will come. as l verify
-,ieve. when labor will be the
strongest friend of the law. That is
evidenced by the fact that twelve
Kansas court in six months by or
ganized labor.
Law Makes No Distinction.
This law makes no distinction
unorganized labor has the same right
fore the court that organized lrbor
has. Twelve cases have been brought
by organized labor. ten of them have
decided. and only one has been
appealed, and that by the employer
and not the employee,
"By and by, when the intelligence
as to what this law provides gets
broadcast among working people. /
have confidence they will be the
friends and not the enemies of the
law. At any rate, conditions have be-
come SO intolerable in the industrial
world that somebody had to make the
start. Kansas did that, and Kansas
going to try to bring about this ad-
Indication of industrial disputes by
the oral processes Of law.
1--WE would like to have some COM
pany; you know how lonely 1t is to
be yourself, so we would like to have
Minnesota, Iowa, North and South
Dakota and some of the other good
states do something of this kind. 1t
would be easier for us if you would.
But If you don't you can bet your
last dollar on one thing. and that
Kansas is going to continue to try 1t
until we either succeed Of fail"