The New York herald., 1921-05-03
Secretary Davis, Following
Owners Refusal, Calls for
Cancellation Conference
With Labor Men.
ENGINEERS TO ATTEND
Shipowners Say Submission
of Vital Issues to Others
Is Contrary to Sound
Business Judgment.
TUGBOATS MAY GIVE AID
First Test To-day When Two
Ships Are Scheduled to Sail
Foreign Vessels Likely
to Be Involved.

Americas private shipowners re-
jected yesterday suggestion from
Herbert Hoover, Secretary of Com
merce. that the merchant marine
strike be submitted to arbitration by
q commission of three men, not Gov
ernment officers. Following this re-
fusal, Secretary of Labor Davis called
for a conciliation conference with
labor men. to be held in Washington
to-day. Five spokesmen for the en-
eineers' union agreed to be there. al
though they professed to doubt If ar
bitration would be agreeable to them.
The invitation from Secretary Davis
was telephoned to several cities by
Dr. L. G. Davis, a conciliator of the
Department of Labor. Thomas r.
Healey. chairman of the Atlantic and
Gulf Council of the Marine Engineers
Beneficial Association, took a midnight
train to Washington. The others OF
the committee are George Willy Of
Boston, James p Dukes Of Philadel-
phia, c. T.. Thurston OF Norfolk and
William S. Brown, national president
Of the union.
After a meeting of the engineers at
26 Park place last night, Mr.. Healey,
said: I'VE are going to make the
strike effective even IL we have to pre-
vent foreign ships from docking at
American ports"
The answer TO Mr.. Hoover's proposal
OF the American Steamship Owners AS
ISOLATION, representing eighty lines and
meeting at IL Broadway. is that the
wage cut of Is per cent. must stand.
and
That to place in hands other than
their own the decision of vital issues in
volving the success or failure of their
business undertakings, particularly in
the present depressed condition of the
marine industry. would be contrary to
sound business judgment principle and
precedent"
In Washington Admiral Benson.
chairman OF the Shipping Board. said
the wage question could not be compro-
missed. called upon "all loyal citizens to
rally TO the support Of the fag," and
added:
Full protection. both now and after
the controversy is settled, Will be given
by the Shipping Board to all those who
come to It's assistance in keeping the
ships in operation"
Despite Admiral Bensons attitude,
Secretary of Labor Davis. trying for
conciliation, discussed wage scales and
working conditions in Washington with
w. s. Brown, president OF the Marine
Engineers Beneficial Association. and
will do so again to-day.
Union heads here said that washing
ton" had sounded them yesterday as to
their willingness TO compromise by ac-
cepting a wage reduction of ~ instead
OF Is per cent. The union men answered
that they would not. They said they
would not accept any cut at all. but on
the contrary. would present TO the own
ers the demand for higher wages adopted
by the engineers in referendum vote
since last November.
TuBbont Men May Help.
A threat to involve British shipping
IN the strike was reported last night by
Burt l.. Todd. secretary Of the Atlantic
and Gulf Coast Council of the Marine
Engineers Beneficial Association. He
asid the harbor tugpoat men might re-
fuse to dock British ships because they
believed that American owners were
diverting cargoes to British vessels In
order to lay up American vessels and so
smash the strike and the unions. Ac-
cording to Mr.. Todd. the tugboat men
are TO decide tonight what they'll do.
The unions TO strengthen their ship
strike or lockout said they viii prob
ably call out the men on the coastwise
End Long Island Sound towboats the
big tugs that haul loads of coal. oil and
grain. That strike was ordered a
month ago. but after a visit from Dr
II. G.. Davis. a Federal mediator. was
held dormant pending the outcome OF
the bigger trouble.
What the strike actually amounts to
il the port OF New York nobody knows
yet. No boats of consequence have been
scheduled to sail since r. NJ. on Sun
Cay. when the strike started. To-day
win sec the first test. Two big Shipping
Board vessels. first class passenger car
'rying, operated by the United states
Mall Steamship Company are due to
leave their pier at Thirty-fourth street
and the North River at +. NJ. Tyey
are the Potomac. formerly the Antigono.
bound for Danzig. and the Old North
state, bound for London. Officers OF the
company say these liners will sail OF
flcers of the unions say they will not.
The first craft to take to sea with
crew OF strlkcbreakers is the Standard
oil tanker Standard. Yesterday morn
ing nifty men TO replace strikers were
taken from New York to Bayonne on a
tug and In the afternoon the tanker
started for Mexico to get load of
crude OIL. II Is understood In Bayonnc
that II tho crews OF other taniters *
pecfed there ierye tholr shfug new men