The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-07-27
LAWRENCE SEES
STRIKE END IN
NEXT 48 HOURS
Says Harding's 5 Influ.
ence Will Bring
RoiI Peace.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

washington, u. u, July Z1-PreS-
idential influence will settle the
rail strike within the next 48 hours. |
Conferences between President
Harding and T. Dewitt Cuyler,
chairman of the Association of
Railway Executives, on the one
hand and with B. M. Jewell and
representatives of the shop crafts
unions on the other, have proceed
ed to the point where acceptance of
formulae for q settlement cannot
long be delayed.
Briefly the president wants the
men to go back to work and the
railroads to take them back with
the understanding that rehearings
will be. given on matters already in
dispute before the United States
railroad labor board and with the
further agreement that the senior
ity rights problem will be left for
future discussion.
Presidents Plan.
In other words the process would
be thus: The workmen would re-
turn to work and ask that their
seniority rights be restored. Nat
urally the railroads to be consist
ent would refuse to grant the re-
quest. This would Immediately be-
come dispute within the mean
ing Of the transportation act and
the labor board would get jurisdic-
tipn over the matter.
|If the labor board should subse-
qHently decide that the seniority
question had arisen after the pres
ent strike began and was not really
! an issue before that and if the
board should grant the restoration
OF seniority rights without making
the decision a precedent for future
! cases all of which would have to
stand on their own bottom, the
railroads would be bound to ACCEPT
the findings of the labor board.
Must Obey Labor Board. =
Unfortunately, some OF the de-
cisions Of the board have not been
respected in the past by the rail-
roads but there is every reason to
believe that President Harding will
make an effort to enhance the
prestige Of the board by securing
even at this late date obedience to
the boards decision on the part Of
the railroads.
Mr.. Harding has tried to maneu-
yer the situation without attempt
ing to influence the labor boards
actions but occasions for guidance
q -
bearing on the settlement OF the
rail strike and the president is u.s.
ing his powers Of persuasion to
bring about . compromise which
will ostensibly be the action of the
labor board but really the policy
Of the administration.
Mr.. Cuyler, who represents the
l148 rail executives who operate
Americas railroads. has job on
his hands trying to reconcile the
various viewpoints of eastern and
western roads but the impression
after he left the White house was
that the situation had reached a
point where Mr.. Cuyler's leadership
was essential to settlement.
Hope In Coal Strike.
As for the coal strike, the presi-
dent feels that he will have a bet-
ter chance to taOAln that, situation
again possibly with a new con-
ference between miners and oper-
ators II the rail strike is brought
! to peaceful end. John Lewis
published statement that he is
ready for a Joint conference" is
regarded as significant, for he did
not limit the conference to specific
sections Or require that all opera
tors be represented. He made no
limitations. The administration
finds itself more or less fatigued
from previous efforts to do some
thing through a conference with
miners and operators, but the sit
uation has grown acute since the
disputants were on the White house
carpet and the belief prevails that
a change Of attitude and a COM
promising disposition now may be
apparent where no symptoms OF
reconciliation were visible a weeh
ago. Altogether the strike situa-
tions look as il they might be set.
tied up by executive pressure very
aOOn.