Norwich bulletin., 1922-08-18

New York. Aug. 1T CBy the A. P).-I Railway executives and brotherhood chiefs today wrestled with the problem of ssttEng the shopmens strike and then adjourned until tomorrow without scor- hE a fall.
 Tomorrow. while President Harding is expected to appear before congress with a message on the rail situation, the con- fsrses will ueasssmble in an effort to come to grips on the slippery question of seniority.
 Today was a day Of conferences-con- fsrerces this morning among brotherhood chiefs. this afternoon between brother hood chiefs and executives, this evening between brotherhood chiefs and officials of the striking shop crafts.
 The frst gathering, over which War rsn s. Stone. head of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, presided was sziied for the ostensible purpose of fram- Ing a concrete program to be submitted Co the executives at the main conference in the afternoon. The brotherhood men. who made it plain that their position in the drama which was absorbing the at tention of the nation was solely that of radiator went into the afternoon barley at the Headquarters of the Association of E4A word or the proposals for strike settle- rent which they were believed to have trsln up.
 But 1T the train service men were si- knt. representatives of the striking shop srafcs. massed in an uptown hotel to await the result of the conference, made h pan that they did not believe any proposal would be made by the running trades which would include a sacrifice of tielr seniority rights. While representa- lives of the strikers would not permit themselves to be quoted, they indicated ehat they would stand firm as ever on the proposition that they must be taken back Eith their ranking untmpaired.
 A committee representing the execu- tives headed by T. Dewitt Cuyler, chair man of their organization. lunched to- Tether and then went to the conference chamber. where they awaited the arrival bf the mediatorz. At 2 o'clock the doors tiossd and the conference was on.
 Two hints of what had transpired es- taped during the afternoon
 First. the executives gent for files con- tsining decisions of the railroad labor board in which the government body in rulings bearing on other strikes, had di- rectsd that strikers should forfeit their seniority rights. This was taken to indi-
 
 psriority. which had figured so promi- nenily in the two efforts by President Harding to end the strike. had bobbed UT lEain
 The second hint was obtained from fulius K. Kruttshnitt. chairman of the soard of the Southern Pacific who. leav nE the conference shortly before 1t ad burned. indicated that little progress had been made.
 
 executives. the brotherhood men hasteneC 70 their hotA uptown to discuss tn, days developments v5th the heads of tn, sixteen other unions
 As silent as when he had entered tn, conference chamber. Mir. Stone declineS 10 discuss what had transoired. Bert Nj Jewell head of the railway employees di vision of the American ederatSon of La bor. who arrived here this morning to b. on hand 1T he was wanted, was equall, reticent on the days barley. He al, state. however. that although he had no conferred with labor men who had at tended the downtown meeting. he be Heved the gathering had worked towart satisfactory solution. Meanwhile h. tsSed newspapermen not to speculate o' iseues under discussion but 10 awai bor1s concrete aeon.
 Prior Co adjournment of the meeting however, Mir. Jewell issued two state nerts
 The first made immediately upon hi Grrivai merely stated that "the officer N all the railway labor organizations ar here now, continuing as they hay throughout the strike 10 do everythin ncEsibie 10 bring about an honorable set tiement"
 The second. Of greater length. ad ranced the opinion that the settlement c The coal strike would to a. large degre determine the settlement of the rallroa .E-rike, because the roads in the next fe, weeks would be called upon to move th Ereatest amount Of coal in history and a present there was an unrrecederted pro portion Of bad order cars
 Ths point made by Mir Jeweli-that 'a is safe to say there will be places fo one and one-half times the normal nun he- of men in coal car repair shops"- was emphasized by other labor leader who pointed out that more bad order cay were constantly piling up.
 This. they contende'd, would make poeSible for executives to take back a strikers and still not be forced 10 di. charge new employees. This contentio vas made in connection with the asseI ton made by executives at their Ia, EesSion in th.s city that pledges made new workers would make it imptratiN that none Of the new recruits should [ dislodged.