Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-12-16
Wisdom With Which Amer
lea Solves Question Of
Unions to Spell Survival
or Downfall of Republic.
UNIONS HAVE NO MORAL
RIGHT TO TIE UP LINES
SAYS Public Opinion Has
Decreed That Railroads
Should Be Closely Regu-
lated.

New York. Dec, 1J.-The Wis
dom with which the question OF
organized labor Is solved in Amer
lea will spell the survival or down.
fall of the republic, Ben w. Hooper.
vice chairman OF the railroad labor
board, declared in an address here
tonight. He added that organized
railroad labor-and railroad capt.
tal--has a ''public trust to per-
form in rendering efficient and un-
interrupted railway service TO tine
people.
Railroad labor, he said, has no
right, "morally at least, to tie UP
the railroads and destroy the
property, business, health, COM
fort and lives of innocent men,
women and children"
But this moral obligation does
not mean organized labor on the
railroads should be stamped out.
as had been advocated in last
falls crisis, he said. The problem,
he added, is "how to deal with just
demands fairly and humanely and
how to curb unjust demands and
control such activities as threaten
public welfare"
THE right of labor to organize
Is based on sound principles recog-
nized by congress and sanctioned
by the courts" he said. If organ
lied labor Is to be permitted 10
throttle individuality. destroy ini-
tiative, exalt inefficiency, dominate
management, limit production. ig-
more rights of the public and SCI
up a class government, then, inr
deed, is this country headed FOR
bolshevism and death.
"All of these things are the pos
sible, but not the inevitable results
of organized labor.
"On the other hand, IL organ
lied labor confines its efforts to
the legitimate advancement of the
cause of the workingman. by the
procurement of q just and reason
able wage, establishment of desir-
able lyorisiag sraless the NANTES
nance of an increasingly good
standard of living. and preserya-
tion of the political and civil rights
of labor, then will organized labor
not only serve It's own interests
but it will constitute one of the
bulwarks of the American repub-
lie.
I'm my Judgment, the survival
of this republic depends upon the
wisdom with which this question
is handled"
Mr.. Hooper asserted that II the
railroad brotherhoods had been
crushed in a strike other organic
cations would have sprung up.
"and probably could not have been
animated by motives half so con-
servative and patriotlc.'
Reviewing the railroad situation,
he said, it would be blind waste
of energy" to attempt return of
railroad conditions of generation
ago.
Public opinion, he said, had de-
creed that as matter of self
preservation. the railroads should
be closely regulated.
It is this regulative function, he
explained, that this new tangled
tribunal, the labor board" is try
ing to help fulfill. He told of the
difficulties met by the board in
starting its work and the momen-
tous problems it was called upon
to solve.
Mr.. Hooper in referring to the
lack of power to enforce the
boards orders, said this was evil
dent in the settlement of the
threatened railroad strike, when
the board was treated to shower
of verbal brickbats because it had
violated the quasi-proprieties of a
quasi judicial tribunal"
"a few sophisticated and hard
boiled individuals never could be-
lieve that / did not promise thu
brotherhoods' officers" he contin-
ued, "to take something away
from the carriers and give it to
them. and yet this was literally
true. The memorandum adopted
by the board. which averted the
strike, merely called attention To
the fact that 1t was premature to
start row about another reduction
In wages, because the board did
not propose to readjust wages OF
any class of labor until rules and
conditions of that class
had been passed on.
at was said that the boards
memorandum, in effect, closed the
door to carriers and employees who
might want to ask a reduction Of
wages. On this point the board
has been thoroughly vindicated,
because it has already disposed Of
most of the rules and It will be
weeks, and possibly months. before
any petition for a wage revision is