The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-07-18

by DAVID LAW RENEE.
Especial Despatch to The Reformer.
Copyright 1922.
WASHINGTON, July 1S-Sparring
for position and trying to get the best
bargain they can, the various parties to
the railroad and coal strike are con-
WINGED they must make peace soon or
run counter to drastic action by the fed
eral government.
The general opinion here is that the
coal strike viii be settled along with the
railroad strike before many days have
elapsed. No such impression of hopeless
deadlock as usually forecasts a long
strike can be obtained by talking with
any of the principals or their spokes-
men. The nearness of an agreement in
the rail strike is such that the resident
has hesitated to use federal troops lest
the situation may be aggravated and
peace prevented. The coal miners are
aching to modify their refusal of arbi-
tTation and the government has been
trying ever since Saturday to prevail
upon the coal operators to take the
necessary action which will make arbi-
tration possible.
The Coal Obstacle.
The single obstacle in the coal con-
trOYcrsy has been the division among
the operators. The miners before ac-
cepting arbitration want to be convinced
that the decision viii apply to all coal
operators or at least a substantial ma
jority such as will fix a scale for the IN
dustfy. Because assurances to this eff
feet have been lacking the coal miners
hesitate. They are eager to have The
arbitration cover non-uniOn as well as
union mines 50 that when The award is
made the nOm-uniOn miners Will see the
benefits of the union and join it, thus
making a material increase in the mem
bership strength of the miners union
for future bargaining. Many of the
coal operators who run nOn-unlOn mines
refuse to come into the field and accept
the jurisdiction of the arbitration tri-
bunai. Efforts to get as many as pos
Sible are proceeding, however. and when
90 or go per cent of the total tonnage
of coal is represented by the operators
who do accept the arbitration the strike
will come to an immediate end.
As for the rail strike. confidence that
it will be settled rests largely upon the
fact that peace negotiations on Friday
last came within an inch of success. At
that time only a dispute as to whether
the men who went out would forfeit
their rights of seniority of service was
holding back a settlement. The western
railroads are ready to grant this point
but eastern executives are refusing. 1t
is difficult to imagine, however, that the
eastern roads will insist on course
which will prolong the present strike
and add to its proportions.
President Must Act.
Presidential action in the rail strike
is bound TO be corrollary of any settle
ment reached The President has not
heretofore been as fully appreciative of
the dangers of permitting certain rail-
road executives to ignore the decisions
Of the United States railway labor board.
He is being urged to take some step
which will assure the railway employees
that the government does not have one
standard for employers and quite an
other for employees. The railroads have
reSorted to court action and other dila
tory moves which have had the effect of
preventing the labor board from exerciS-
ing jurisdiction over certain phases of
working rules and labor standards. This
process has caused many of the railway
employees leaders to lose confidence IN
the labor board Mr.. Harding is aware
that irrespective of the details of the set
tlement something must be done by the
chief executive to restore the confidence
of the workmcn i'm the power and au-
thority of the labor board as it applies to
railroad managers. 1t Is n question of
mutual confidence again with mlStrust
over abstract questions rather than con-
crete grievances which is tying up trans
portation and threatening empty coal
bins.