Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-08-12
HARDING PEACE
PLAN INVOLVES
L0NGSESS|0N
Compromise . r e p | y
Likely to Be Made to
President Proposal.
Message From Financial
Interests Taken Before
Executive Meet.

New York, Aug. 11.-(By The Asso
ciated Press.)-Railway executive
were reported late Friday to be dead
locked Over President Harding's prop
%osltion to end the rail strike by takini
back strikers and letting the railroad
board settle the question of their SEM
ority.
Reports escaping from the confer
ence room. lacking official confirma
ton. were to the effect that it nigh
be necessary to continue the session
Wei into the evening before agreement
was reached as to what reply shoult
be sent to the White House. Their,
also were indications that this answer
instead of being an outright acceptanc,
or rejection, might take the form of /;
counter proposal.
The division. it was learned from I'm.
official sources, was drawn not strict.
iy on the line of east vs.. west. bu,
rather as between roads running
through many metropolitan districts
where labor was more plentiful anC
lines threading rural stretches. where
few shop workers could be found to
replace strikers.
Eastern roads, for the most part
with their shops in cities. were repre-
scented as taking the stand that they
did not need or care for their old en-
ployes. and so did not favor the first
point in President Harding's proposal.
that they take their old men back i'm
mediately.
Roads in the west and south. on the
other hand. were said to favor taking
hDnL 90 rnprr .&ta- a. L
places for. and then letting the railroad
labor board rule on the seniority aues-
ton.
After the committees message had
been received. many executives hasten
ed out of the board room of the New
Haven. where they had assembled. and
cancelled their reservations on trains
having New York Friday night. Some
of the number said there had been
no sharp developments during the af-
.ternoon, all killing time while the COM
mittee was celebrating.
Shortly before ) o'clock the com
mittee appointed Friday morning TO
draft a reply TO the White House for
ratification by the entire conference
out word that it would be half an
hour at least before the draft was
That means at least two hours
more for debate said one executive.
as he came out of the conference
chamber, for a smoke.
The seriousness with which execu-
tives were taking Fridays meeting was
evidenced by the remark of one presi-
dent as he entered the conferences:
This meeting marks another epoch
in railroad history. Its Importance is
second only to our meeting in 1916
with President Wilson. | trust our de-
cision will be beneficial TO the rail
TO our employes.and the nation.
have a vital basic labor problem
to solve and we must solve it with
to ALL"
The meeting with President VIII
son. to which the executive referred
called at the time the big four
1rotherhoods were threatening a ma
strike and preceded passage
IF the Adamson act.
Haley Fiske, president of the Met
-opolitan Life Insurance company.
which is a large investor in railroad
securities. went before the confer
nee of rail executives called to act
N President Harding's peace proposal
before Dor 1t was reported
ie carried al important message to
he executives from financial interests
1t was not Indicated by those leaving
conference chamber what would
'e the nature of the reply to the adj
Illustration suggestion that the mat
er of seniOrity-at which the execu.
ives had baked at their last meeting
be left TO the railroad
'Oard. |