The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-08-04
Frederick Haskin's Letter
Tolsrancs Nssdsd IN Labor Disputes

right WY h. = right and vhat !.
thinks Of the other side. He n :
free thinker and he believes ana ia
dulges In free speech. He d ao
certain OF his own convictions ana
opinions that he has little respert
end LEES tolerance Tor those Of
Others.
Exanples Of Prejudica
4 man Of great responsibilities
h the Industrial world oncs in
dulged h . TRADE against lshor
unions In general and labor leaders
in particular. He was 90 vitriolic
and 20 sweeping in his denuncia-
ton that one OF his hearers finally
asked him il it were possible that
there were NO good men among Ia
hor leaders. Profoundly serious
and with measured words the can
tain OF industry replied: ''The only
good Indian 10 . dead Indian!"
On the other hand. q man Who
has been at the head Of one Of the
largest Of the labor unions declared
within the last few days that the
newspapers and press association
Of the oountry were In . virtual
conspiracy to misrepresent labor's
cause to the public and were con-
stantly distorting the news In. or.
der to create . popular sentiment
adverse to labor and to the unions.
IF anything happens that is ia
vorable to Us you never see . word
about 1t in the papers," he said.
The press associations won't
carry the story and the papers
won't print it,"
All employers and all leaders Of
labor are not 30 blindly prejudiced
as these two men. otherwise the
only way capital and labor would
ever be brought together would be
in a head-on collision. Unfoftu-
nately, however, these two men are
multiplied many times in the in
dustrial world. thereby adding i'm.
measurahly to the difficulties Of
those who seek to preserve peace
or to reconcile differences once
open conflict has been precipitated.
Everyone who has undertaken
the role Of mediator or arbitrator
in q labor dispute knows only too
we'll that there are two sides to
every case, and that neither side
has q monopoly of right Of virtue.
In the present railroad controversy.
for instance, emphasis Is frequently
laid ON the fact that the shopmen
refused to abide by a decision Of
the railroad labor board and went
on strike In violation of that deci-
sion. Those who make = point Of
that should be informed that the
first refusal to abide by decision
or order of the board came from
the managerial side when certain
railroads undertook arbitrarily to
put wage decreases into effect
while the board had ruled that such
action should not be taken pending
its hearing and determination Of
the question. Later other roads
ignored or violated other rulings
or decisions of the board.
All who discuss this rupture in
the relations Of railroad manage
ment and workers should alp
know that there is nothing in thu
law that requires either side to ac-
cept or to abide by decisions Of the
labor board.
Again. in the case Of tho coal
strike, those who criticize the min
ers for not accepting President
Harding's peace proposal should
understand that as matters stood
the miners had practically won
their strike and had good reasons
for not wanting to take the chance
,of having the fruits of victory TAX
en- away from them by an arbitra-
ton commission. They had fought
q long and trying fight and surely
were entitled to all of whatever
success it had brought to them.
At the same time, the friends OF
the miners should understand that
il the workers had been conceded
everything they were striking for
"a national agreement, the old
wage scale, and the old working
rules-they would be no better Oh
than they were prior to April l, for
nothing would have been done to
cure the uneconomic conditions in
the coal industry. Without sta
bilixation of the industry and with
out some solution of the problem
of the non-union districts, the lot
of the union miner will never be q
satisfactory one.
Thus the case IL made for toler-
ance of the rights and opinions OF
others In times of open conflict be-
tween workers and their employers
and for the development Of an in
telligent public opinion that can be
brought to bear when needed