The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-07-03

B. M. Jewell, head of the shop
 men, who ignored the orders of
 the labor board to appear before
 and explain his strike action.
 spent the dny at union hend-
 quarters receiving reports from
 all sections of the country. He
 refused to give any figures hut
 asserted that snlkout was sprae-
 ticaIiy 100 per cent"
 Railway executives, however. claimed that probably less than sU per cent of the z01,Oo0 repair men had joined the wallsout which began yesterday. Because of the Sunday holiday, they said that they had been unable to make q complete check of theIr shopmen. but that train service would continue regardless of how many laid down their tools. In raii- way circles tonight interest was ce.- tered on Detroit where the executiva council of the United Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employss will meet tomorrow to canvass the strike ballot of the track mon. Hope was expressed by the rail executives that the maintenance of way men would not join the walltout.
 Bonds Violated Dccfsions
 Mir. Jewell today explained his iE- noring of the labor board was due to the failure of the board to ex- clude from wage reduction hearings almost 50 roads that had in part e- wholly violated ruling of the govern ment tribunal which, he said. has caused railroad employees to regard tho board with no slight misgivings.
 Practically all of these 80 roads violated decisions of the labor board,s Mir. Jewell said, yet they were in- , cluded in the wage reduction hear ings. If the board had ruled that these roads were not entitled to par ticipate In these hearings, the respect of railroad labor for the tribunal would have been increased materially. Railroad labor would then have looked on the board as . tribunal willing and ready to deal out jus tiee. If this had been done. the of- ficials of the shop crafts could have gone to the men with this as an ar gument and ayerted the strike. But i this was not done and postponAm ent of the striko was Aunafiy impossible.
 Would Forfeit Office -
 Tn the first place. my appearances before the board would not have TO- suited in arbitration. The board should have subpoenaed officials who signed the telegram authorizing the strike. only those men could recall the order. If l had done any such thing would havo forfeited my of flee Immediately.
 classification of my refusal to obey the summons is seen in the fact that the men are now on strike, without bloodshed or loss of life and are up- holding law and order. If had gone before the board there would have resulted misunderstanding which would have ended in chaos among the shop crafts organization"
 MT. Jewell said that announcement of the results of the shopmen strike vote would be made tomorrow. One of the telegrams, he declared, con firming reports that the strike was almost 100 DOT cent effective was from the national headquarters. of the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen of America. and said that this or ganization was 100 per cont resonsive to the strike order.
 Show Understanding
 The strike ballots show a most intelligent understanding of the is- sues" MT. Jewell continued. When the results of their votas are an- nounced, the main question at issus in this strike will be apparent
 Strike instructions have been mailed to all shop crafts locals, Mr. Jewell said. The strikers have been requested to arrange the necessary plcketing.
 'sThere is a growing realization among the American public" he said. that 1t is wrong to 'scab,' to take positions vacated by union men be- cause of disagreements with their employers"
 The reference to "scabs" was seen as an ansMer to a statement made by Ben Hooper, chairman of the la bor board, yesterday, In which as- serted that the strike was directed against the decisions of a properly constituted government tribunal and that, therefore. men who assume the work abandoned by the striking rail- way employees, cannot justly be re- pr oached with the epithets of "scab or strike breaker" terms to which