The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-10-22
WASHINGTON is
CALM; DOES NOT
EXPECT STRIKE
Officials Feel Sure So
luton VIII Come
Without Tieup.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Copyright, 1929
Especial to The Argus. }

washington, OCl- ZZ.-NOtWlth-
standing the apparent inability of
I the United States railroad board and
/ the Brotherhood chiefs to reach an
agreement in Chicago, few, if any,
! persons in the Harding administra-
tion expect a strike.
: Perhaps it is the fact that more
than a week mutt elapse before the
strike order goes into effect which
keeps official Washington from
growing excited over the railroad
situation. But the outward calm
which has from the start character
lied the attitude of the administra-
tion remains the samoan indes-
cribable confidence in the ultimate
solution of the problem without a
strike.
Broadly speaking, there are some
moves in process which affect the
contentious of both sides in the
controversy. The government is
waiting, too, to see the effect of
those developments. The program,
for the moment. appears to be this:
Apparent Program.
First. reduction of freight rates
more drastic than any made thus
far.
Second, further conferences i'm
mediately afterwards with the union
chiefs with a request that they
withdraw their strike order.
Third, q request that the railway
executives sim with
draw their petition for a second
wage cut.
/ Fourth, an order from the rail-
road labor board that the railway
employees accept the first wage cut
of July l and resume work.
Such a program would maintain
the status quo, at least, but with the
additional benefits to the pubic of
a reduction in freight rates. Then
the United States railroad board,
which is by no means a rapid NOV
ing body, would take it's time in in
vestigating the effect of the lower
freight rates on railway incomes
and would ultimately be prepared
to say whether a second wage cut
would be desirable.
! No Second Wage Cut.
One thing seems assured-there
/ will be no grant of a second wage
cut by the United States railroad
! board at this time. AS soon as
! leaders of the railway employees be-
come convinced of this, they prob
ably will suspend their strike order
: The return of the chiefs to Cleve
/ land is not looked upon here as
| necessarily meaning an end of the
negotiations. 1t was hardly expect
! ed that the first conference would
lead to a settlement. There is the
possibility, too, that the railway
| chiefs will wait until the last min
| ute before announcing their atti-
| tude. They have everything to gain
and very little to lose by holding
! their cards in hand until the gov
ernment and the railway executives
have played theirs. The government
plays its first card by declaring a
reduction in freight rates within a
| few days. There is a report cur
| rent that the date Cf the announce
ment is next Tuesday, Oct. 25.
Up to |. C. c.
When once the rates have been
/ reduced, the government will be in
a position to approach the railway
! union chiefs with a definite PROPOSE
/ tion. Heretofore, the union leaders
have always said they would not
/ take mere promises of a reduction
in freight rates into account but
would believe it when the interstate
commerce commission really acted.
The belief here is that the psyche
| logical effect of the lower freight
rates will be widespread and that il
will have the result al. least of per-
suading the railway Unions to ac-
cept the first wage cut of July l,
which, the brotherhood chiefs say,
was made upon the assumption that
freight rates would come down. The
situation. therefore, really waits
upon the announcement by the in
terstate commerce commission os
its revision of freight rates.