Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-10-26
CARRIERS SLANT
(continued from Page One)

the high rates we're caused by hlgh
| wages. Statements made before the
labor board at its hearings and be-
| tore the Senate committee on inter
state commerce at its hearings under
! Senate resolution % were deliber-
ate falsifcations of the facts and for
| the purpose of creating a public
opinion that the railroad employees
| had been given more than their gust
| dues.
1.-The opposition of railroad en-
ployees to the enactment of the
iCummins-Esch law was based upon
two principles:
| .1-One of the results of the trans
portation act OF 1920 was to increase
the supposed valuation of the rail-
roads from less than $4,000, 100000
to almost $10,0O0,000,0O and upon
this inflated value the interstate
commerce commission was required
to fix freight and passenger rate
that presumably would give to the
railroad owners return for their in
vestments of between ) IL and e per
cent. Any man connected with the
railroad business should know that
such an increase in capital charges
could not be incurred without disas-
ter either to the corporations or to
the employees. They knew that if
these ailroads upon this great infla-
ton of capital investment were to
earn IL or 6 per cent. railway en-
ployes must suffer in the end.
''2-Title III of the transporta-
ton act creates a railroad labor
board made up Of three factions; the
employees are represented, the. rail-
way corporations are represented,
and the public ae presented there
on. With this arrangement it re-
manned only for the railroad cor
porations to create a public opinion
that wages must be reduced and that
freight rates and passenger rates
must be maintained. I am going to
assume that more than million
dollars has been expended by the
railroad corporations since the en-
actment of the transportation act to
create this impression in the public
mind.
IF there are three representatives
of the railroad corporations and three
Representatives of the public then
all that would be necessary to destroy
the standard of living of railroad en-
}ployes would be to create a public
opinion, so that the Representatives
of the public would unite with the
representatives of the railroad cor
porations and thereby establish two
thirds majority against labor on the
United States railroad labor board.
That the men selected as representa-
tives of the public have been able
to be as judicial as they have proven
to be demonstrates that notvith-
standing the fact that they are sup
posed to represent the public they
have disregardcd the fact and the
principle of their creation as set forth
in Title III Of the transportation act.
"A vast number of railroads, not
content with the wage reduction
brought about by decision number 147
of the labor board have demanded
lrevisions of wage agreements that will
destroy rules in effect for many
Years. Nothing has alarmed the men
to greater extent than this seeming
determination to abrogate rules until
the announcement is now made that
another wage reduction will be in
sisted upon.
Zone OF the most unfortunate in
cidents connected with the activities
of the United States railroad labor
board occurred some six months ago
The press of the country was filled
with statements that in order to re-
duce freight rates wages must be i'm
mcdiately reduced. The newspapers
reported conferences held in Wash
ington and among these reports ap-
peared one that stated that judge
Barton Of the United States railroad
labor board had been called to the
White House in company with Chair
man Clark of the Interstate Com
merce commission.
almost Immediately upon the re-
turn of Judge Barton, chairman of
the labor board misc. case no. L
was issued by the board. A reading
of this shows that for some reason
probably resulting from the Wash
ington trip. the United States rail-
road labor board had abdicated its
judicial authority and thus served
notice that because it was believed
there was going to be a demand of
the railroad corporations for a re-
duction in wages a date was set and
eight hours were given to the repre-
sentatives of nearly two million rail-
road employees to make a defense.
1T is safe to say that when this
matter became known to railroad
employees nine out of ten of them
recognized that so far as the labor
board was concerned it would obey
Instructions and reduce wages re-
CARELESS of the justice of the cause.
I want to repeat that this incident
did more to destroy the confidence
of railroad employees in the labor
board than anything that could have
happened do not mean that they
thought that the labor board was any
the less fair than it had been, but
they felt that no longer could the
labor board exercise ITS judicial
functions prescribed in Title III of
the transportation act
; AT the meeting of all of the gen.
eral chairmen in Chicago early in
structions we're issued to the chief
executives of the organizations to
erdeavor to get some understanding
with the proper representa- ives of
the railroad corporations so that
peace could again be restored. Not
withstanding efforts extending over
a period of 60 days the only reply
ohtainable from the accredited rep