Evening star., 1921-10-19
Roads Preparing
to Fill Places
of Strikers.
RAIL BOARD MAY
URGE REDUCTION
Failure to Support
Body Before Brings
Stones Criticism.
By the Associated Press.

Stones Criticism.
By the Associated Press.
CHICAGO. October 19.-In the event
the threatened railroad strike is called
the roads are prepared to do our ut
most to move necessities, utilizing to
the fullest possible extent all the man
power available" Charles H. Markham,
president Of the Illinois Central rail-
road, declared today In an address be-
fore the American mining congress.
Mr.. Markham said the present trans
portation tangle was due to the fact
that ninety-nine public bodies have a
hand in fixing the rules, income and
expenses of the roads and that the
railroads have no voice in the cXpendi-
turc OF more than 81 per cent OF their
operating costs.
THE remedy" he said, sis to place
once moro in the hands of railway man.
agements-under competent and broad
supervision-rhe control of
operating costs, in such way that re-
sponsiDinty may properly be fixed
upon the arrangements for the opera
tion of their properties"
Have Taken Share OF Losses.
The railroads. he said, have taken
their share OF losses in the present
period of readjustment, despite the
fact that they were not permitted to
profit as otner industries had during
the period of high prices. because
their earnings were fixed by the gov
ernment.
with consciousness Of their OBJ
legation to the pubic service" he said.
tine managemcntS of the railroads OF
the country nave recently announced
tnat tney Will ASK tne r>aiiroad Labor
Board Tor further reduction IN
wages. the entire benefit of which
tney propose to pass along to the pup
lie In reduced freight rates. This puts
the situation up TO the public winch
EXERCISES the balance of control of
lne r.anroad A.aDor Do<.Iu. II 'lue pupuc
wants reduced rates it's representa-
lives on the labor board have the op-
portunIty TO obtain them by granting
such wage reductions as viii make
reduced rates possible"
Union Conference Opens.
The first Of Series ofNeonfsrencea
n Chicago, at wnicn representatives
u ali factions In the rauroAd sLS.ks
,itu&llon may decide the outcome Oh
Inc strike call ISSUED by the Big
Four DroInernoods Tor Ucuoper 50. ve-
gan here To-Day. 10 continue over the
week end.
Three group. meetings are sched-
uied:
l. Executives of the shopmen. main
lehaiiUe Vi Way workers, CLERKS, teIeg-
rapners and others meet today, TO-
morrow, FRIDAY ana SUNDAY AZ ueciue
Lnelr attitude tow ard the ANNOUNCED
strike OF the train service empIoyes,
VITA Indications OIL nnaI decision at
= JOINT conference sunday.
z. brotherhood LEADERS are on their
80
attitude through the Railroad LABOR
Board tomorrow.
Executives to Meet Friday.
3. Raliroaa executives OF the central
DIVISION meet trloay In Cnicaso to
discuss all phases OF Ine strike sItua-
tion. wnue executives OF the otner
llVISIonS meet simultaneously In their
own regions.
rre,snl rate reductions approxi-
mateIy equivalent to the II per cent
wage reuuctIon In wages ordered last
,uiy l by the railroad LABOR Boaru
W ere Indicated as the prooabie DaSlc
suggestion tie laUor boaro Will pro-
pose, with Inc packing of the au-
nInlStratIon, to avert the strike.
Il understand" SAID Commissioner
Ben w. hooper, u member OIL lne
public" group of the iaDor Doaru,
".hat the Interstate Commerce Com
mission has number OF important
rate reduction cases on hand, on
winch IL Will act Immediately. That
will give US something to work on
strike SuspensiOn Vital.
The boards poilcy, as outlined by
hooper, would propose
to the brotherhood chiefs immeolate
CT the strike oruer on
their parts, and their influence in
1th a ~ 20 he
executives would be asked to concede
the Withdrawal OF the proposed re-
quest for turtner wage cuts ana grant
an immediate reduction OF freight
rates.
President ]. r. Howard of the
Farm bureau Federation today had
On nIe belore the Interstate Commerce
here petition Tor 1U
10 70 per cent freight rate reduction
on necessities OF lie, and at the
same time ne telegraphed union Lead
ers and railroad executives urging
them to join MIN in u conference
mere.
Failure Of the brotherhood chiefs
to JON Il strike agreement with The
eIeten other railroad unions at d
mere last week has made
the outcome OF the strike
conferences here, beginning today.
Vote Authorizes strike.
Referendum votes have authorized
the leaders of the Maintenance of
Way men and shopmen, VINO meet here
at their discretion, but shopcratts
leaders have summoned their execu-
tive councils and executives OF the
of Way Union have call
ed general chairman OF their Twelve
divisions. Membership of these two
and others OF the eleven organizations
which have not issued strike notices
100000. as compared with
half a million in the train service
group now under instructions for Sec
tional walk-outs, beginning Octo-
Der 80.
ofhcials of the telegraphers have
a meeting here Friday and
the clerks Sunday. No definite de-
cision, leaders of these eleven unions
indicated, will be made before the
end of the week.
While prospects for settlement of
the strike were growing brighter,
Army officials. II is understood, were
making preparations for operating
trains by federal troops.
Army Being Polled.
Dispatches from San Antonio said
officers Of the Sth Corps area, in the
southwest. had been instructed to
lists Of all officers and enlisted men
with experience In twenty-six lines
of railroad work.
Southwestern roads largely COM
prise the group under instructions to
walk out the flrst day of the strike.
and it is understood that the
Of votes favoring a
strike by the brotherhoods. came
from thafsection.
N