Evening star., 1922-08-22
Want Railway Passengers Pro-
tected at All Times.

A concerted demand is made that.
road strike. some action be taken by
the government to make certain that
in the future it is made impossible for
passengers to have the experience which
| marred the trip Of those recently ma
rooned in the California desert. Even
the newspapers which have a feeling Of
sympathy for the labor movement use
plain language in denouncing this act
and insist that il has done immeasurable
harm to the entire cause Of the Or
ganiZed workingman.
Charactertzing the act as a plain
cause Of desertion,' and asserting that
the public never has and never will
love a deserter,' the Cincinnati Times
Star SCOTS at explanations made. in
sisting that ''the affair at Needles and
the similar Incidents indicate con-
certed plan. They were crimes and the
men who engaged in them are crimi-
/ nails. They should be brought TO justice.
and no mild justice at that
The New York Herald and the Boston
Transcript agree that no new law is
needed to put behind the bars the COW
ardly scoundrels'' responsible and the
the crime on the desert without its
counterparts in other sections Of the
country 1t would be nevertheless inde-
fensible. The striking shopmen and
their sympathizers appear to be taking
to the torch and the bomb, the ak and
the purpose Of terrorizing their fellow
. citizens. 1t took a great war to con-
vince the Germans of their folly. 1t
may take civil war to convince the
, labor unions OF their folly. If the right
to work within the law is to be limited
n
then the sooner the issue Is Joined the
sooner will tho right to work again be-
come universal. The crime on the desert
brings home to every citizen the real
meaning Of the challenge to America
that went forth from Herrin;"
The action Of the Santa Fe men was
Sabotage" the Springfield Repub-
lican argues, and without any sort
Of Justification. 1t will remain a blot
on the records of the organizations
which. by lack Of system Of proper
discipline, have left the way open
for such fragrant disregard Of the
right Of innocent people. Short of a
dangerous breakdown. of which ap-
parently no evidence has been pro-
duced, the crews were obviously un-
der the moral obligation. If not un-
der the obligation of tradition and
contract. to take the trains to a
proper stopping place"
1t also partook of making war
upon the nation - the Brooklyn Eagle
insists, while it points out that it
is only one incident Of what may be
expected as the consequences of a
sympathetic strike. Compromise is
unthinkable while murder. arson
and train wrecking are practiced as
campaign tactics" Even though the
unions are not officially responsible,
the Philadelphia Bulletin is con-
vinced that such tactics will provoke
heavy retribution upon the union
cause 1t has been said that the rail-
road executives are seeking to crush
the unions. These acts are bringing
down upon the unions the crushing
weight of an indignant public opin-
ion
The brotherhoods all have an un-
derstanding. the ithaca Journal
News is convinced. pointing out that
the action of some Of their mem-
hers in refusing to operate defect
i've equipment or refusing to work
as long as the railroads maintained
armed guards in the Yards. and the
outrageous and shameful proceeding
whereby Santa Fe passenger trains
were abandoned by their crews in
the Arizona desert. show where MEM
bers OF the brotherhoods stand" And
as there was warning neither to
passengers nor officials, the Spring.
field Union holds that no one can
sympathize with the Santa Fe desert.
ers and it points out that "once more
members Of the unorganised public,
innocent bystanders in the war be-
tween employer and striker. were
made to suffer. The old doctrine that
il people do not want to be hurt
they must keep out Of the way was
resurrected. This episode Is bound
to provoke public resentment against
the strikers. There is no strike prob
lem affected. 1t Is a plain question
OF humanity, and even those who are
most inclined to side with labor In
its controversies with capital will
find 1t Impossible to condone the ac-
ton taken by the Santa Fe trainmen."
While this may be a legitimate act
Of Industrial warfare" the Cincin-
natl Commercial Tribune bitterly de-
clares that ait is execrable manifes-
tation Of manhood and the very an
tithesis of Americanism. II labor is
going to advertise it's cause as in need
OF methods that are quite as inhu-
man and shameful as some of the
worst phases Of junker-initiated
methods of black outrage, that di-
vision of it, responsible or approving,
viii quickly find pronouncement of
the most scathing anathemas by an
outraged Ame9icanism. Riot and an
archy will be. ever have been. taboo.