Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-08-02
STRIKERS CAN 7
RETURN To WORK
ROADS DECLARE
Railway Executives Of the
Nation Firmly But Cour-
teously Reject Program
Advanced BY Harding.

New York, Aug. / (by the Asso-
ciated Press .)-Railway executives
OF the nation today firmly but
courteously rejected the program
by the Harding adminis-
tration for settlement of the rail
strike.
Willing to accept conditlonally
two suggestions put forward by the
White House--tbst both sides
abide by wage decisions of the rail-
road labor board and that law
suits springing out of the strike be
withdrawn-the heads of 14S roads
declared emphatically that it was
to reinstate strikers
with unimpaired seniority rights,
the third provision in the presi-
dent's@plan.
After being told by Robert S.
Lovett, of the Union Pacific, thai
there was no moral or practical
reason for gbudging from their po-
sition, the executives disbanded,
caught the first trains for their re-
spective headquarters and indicated
that they were going ahead and
would operate their roads with the
forces they had assembled since
the shopmen walked out on July l.
Decision Not To Yield.
The decision not to yield on the
question of seniority was made
known to the White House by tele-
graph after the rail heads had list
ened to a twenty minute address by
Secretary Of Commerce Hoover,
who, as direct representative of the
president, told them, in effect, that
the administration held the SEMI
ority question of minor importance
in comparison with that of up
holding the railroad labor board.
This action was taken in thesface
of a letter from President Harding
addressed to r. De Witt Cuyler'
chairman of the American Asso-
citation of Railway Executives, en-
bodying "the terms of agreement.
as | understand them, upon which
the railway managers and united
shop craft workers, are to agree,
preliminary to calling off the eX-
listing strike.
President Harding had closed his
letter with these two sentences:
~ need hardly add that l have
reason to believe these terms will
be accepted by the workers. TX
there is good reason why the man
ayers cannot accept, they Will be
obliged to open direct negotiations
or assume full responsibility for
the situation"
Settlement Imperative.
In addition, Secretary Hoover
urged upon the executives at their
morning session, when the text OF
the Harding letter was read, that
settlement of the rail strike was
imperative in view of the compli-
eating condition introduced BY
the coal strike.
1t became apparent from the
very opening of todays conference
that the seniority question would
be the wedge which would divide
administration and railway ex-
ecutives. After setting forth the
reasons why they held this an in
surmountable obstacle, the rail-
road chiefs ended their reply to
President Harding as follows:
1T is submitted that the ,strik-
ing former employees cannot be
given preference to employees at
present in the service, without do
ing violence to every principle or
right and justice involved in THIS
matter and without the grossest
breach of faith on the part of the
railroads to the men at present in
their service. Under these cir
cumstances, 1t becomes apparen;
that the railroads cannot consider
any settlement OF the present strike
which does not provide protection
CONTINUED on Iags' Two.1 u.