Evening star., 1922-08-18
No Agreement
Is Reached by
MediatOrs.
HOPE PREVAILS
OVER OUTCOME
Conference at N. Y.
To Be Continued
Over Tomorrow.
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
NEW YORK, August 1S-Belief
that no definite agreement for settle
ment of the shop crafts strike would
be reached today was expressed by
Warren S. Stone, head of the Broth
erhood of Locomotive Engineers,
! shortly before l o'clock on leaving
! the conference between brotherhood
men and executives.
After having attended thet session
for two hours, Mr.. Stone left for tho
uptown hotel where shop crafts lead
ers are quartered for a conference.
He said he did not expect to return
| before o'clock.
Mr.. Stone said no definite agree
! ment had been reached so far and
| that he believed the conference would
have to extend beyond today.
The labor leader. who earlier in the
day asserted a settlement must be
reached at these conferences. professed
himslf still optimistic about the out
| come.
I'm still smiling" he said 10 news
paper men. Il suppose you boys Will
write a column about that smile 1t
TOOK me thirty years to learn how to
| do it,"
Mr.. Stone explained he did not be-
iieve there could be a settlement to-
| day. because whatever plan they had
would have to be referred by both
| sides to their constituents
Others Hurry Away.
The other four railroad leaders
serving on the mediation committee
| Of the brotherhoods. followed Mr..
Stone out of the meeting and hur-
rted to the hotel. 1t was not an
nounced at that time when the COM
A1t~
The general impression prevailing
around the conference, chamber at
the noon recess was that the con-
ferees had come down to cases and
that some definite program was un-
were recalled dispatches from wash
1ngton. quoting Senator Watson of
Indiana as outlining a proposal for
settlement Of the seniority question,
which he said he had cleaned over the
long-distance telephone.
Proposal Unconnrmed.
This proposal. which could not be
confirmed here. was that loyal employees
| should head the seniority list, with
| strikers second and new employees
third-as many of the recruits to be
| retained as possible.
Mr. Stone, before leaving for the
conference with labor leaders up
osition to put before them.
Neither Howard Elliott nor Julius
X. kruttachnitt, members of the ex-
ecutives committee. would comment
on this when they left the chamber,
asserting that anything Mr.. Stone
selves. they declined to say whether
| any definite program was under dis
cussion or whether agreement had
been reached on any part of it.
W. L. Mapother of the Louisville
and Nashville. a member Of the exec
utives' committee. left the chamber,
refusing point blank to discuss any
Information concerning the conference
which Senator Watson. adviser to
President Harding in the rail con-
ference, said he had obtained by tele-
phone.
Four Hours Debate Yesterday.
For more than four hours yesterday
the labor men and railroad presidents
debated the ground upon which the
walkout must end, without success
Labor men. after the conference, ex-
pressed belief that progress had been
made toward a favorable settlement,
but one executive ventured the
opinion that at the hour of adjourn
ment agreement was still far distant.
The official communique officially stated
that no decision had been reached.
While official information as to what
developed at the conference was lack
ing. the understanding was that de-
bate had centered on the question Of
seniority. This apparently was borne
out by the action of executives in
sending for decisions Of the Railroad
Labor Board on the question of
,seniority in other railroad strikes,
| Representatives Of stationary work.
ers, assembled in an uptown hotel
watching the progress of the parleys
going on at the headquarters of the
Association Of Railway Executives, made
1t plain in informal comment that they
regarded 1t essential that the roads take
the strikers back with seniority unim-
paired.
They contended that SO many bad
order cars now were piling up that the
roads. called upon to transport vast
quantities Of coal before the winter
months would need great numbers of
extra shopmen to speed up repairs.
This, they asserted. would make dis
! charge of new employe unnecessary
, and Offset the contention of executives
that to restore strikers would mean dis
charge Of new employees, and that this
would be unfair to the new recruits.