The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1922-09-14
BROTHERHOOD HAD
A LIVELY MEETING

The opening meeting for the fall
of the Brotherhood, held at Hotel
Patrick dining room on Monday eve
ming, was decided success. The at
tendance was good, the program
bright and entertaining. Miss Ber-
nice Woodson, pianist, and Miss Ad-
die Quesinberry each responded to
hearty encores, and the subject for
discussion called forth lively respon-
ses by many who were present. The
luncheon, too, was well prepared and
nicely served at the hands of Man
ager Fisher and his good wife, and
everything seemed to add to the plea
sura of the evening.
]. A. Waters, the new president,
presided and announced the principal
speakers of the evening. Much inter-
est had been awakened in the subject
for discussion, as it had to do with
strikes and the impression had been
spread that there was to be a debate
on the subject, in which W. 0. Liy-
ingstone was to represent the en-
ployers and present their side, and
it had been rumored that the railroad
boys were going to have union man
from Portland to represent them. The
Portland man did not show up, how
ever, but there was goodly repre-
sentation of the trainmen and other
employees Of the railroad present,
and they learned as the speakrs pro-
ceeded that their side of the strike
issue was receiving the best of the
argument and the sympathy Of Liv
ingstone and each of the other par
ticipants. was largely with the labor
ers and their unions, so long as they
pressed demands in an orderly and
lawful way. The settlement of strikes
so far have not been very satisfactory
to either employer or employee, and
it was developed by Mr.. Livingstone
in the course of his address that the
general public, constituting about 80
per cent of our people, were the chief
sufferers on account of these trou-
bles between capital and labor, and
he could figure no other solution than
government ownership of public util-
titles and the natural resources of the
nation upon which the comfort and
welfare of the citizenship so largely
depends.
Following Mr.. Livingstone, Rev.
Gillanders, pastor Of the Congrega-
tional church of Lexington, was call
ed on. He laid out troubles in the
industrial world largely to the lack of
proper family training; showed what
great disrespect for law and those in
authority had grown out of the lax
ness in home training and gave his
sympathy to the side Of labor unions
in their struggle for better living
conditions, and also, in a measure ad
ded his endorsement to the public
ownership idea. Thought too many
of our laws were framed by lawyers
elected to the legislative bodies and
felt that better laws might be enacted
in behalf of the laboring classes, and
condemned party bosses and partisan
politics for lot of our troubles and
urged that these things be lost sight
of and men placed in public places
who might be depended on to do JUS
tice to all parties concerned,
H. F. Launtz, who is engineer Of
the branch, and man quite well read
on the subject of strikes and unions,
spoke briefly his purpose being to set
the people right as to what the shop
men are asking in the present contro-
versy. They are not demanding an in
crease in wages but only that the
scale in effect prior to July /, 1929,
be maintained. They are only ask
ing for living wage, that they and
their families might live under bet
ter conditions, and called attention
to the fact that the men working on
the section at Heppner received but
$3.50 per day, and the most of them
were compelled to keep their famil-
les on this small sum. Mr., Launtz
submitted the proposition that not
many of the gentlemen present could
support their families on this pit
tance, A number of other speakers
followed Mr., Launtz, among them S,
f, Notson, j. P. Conder, c, G. Calkins
and G. Franzen, all of whom added
their encouragement to the laborine
men, and as stated above, the SYM
pathy of the speakers all seemed to
be largely on this side of the question
and there was none to take up the
cudgel for the bloated capitalist and
money magnate, All expressions
were in happy vein, however, nc
rancor being displayed on the part
of any and the unanimous opinion
expressed was that the subject Of