Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1923-04-13

(k, ". L. Alfl
Action of the Board of
Censors of the Twin City
Review endorsing the pres
ent four commissioners and
recommending their re-elee-
ton should not be under
stood as an attack upon the
merits of other candidates,
but as an unqualified en-
dorsement Of a program of
progress in Champaign that
is necessary, both for the
civic welfare, and for the
proper entrenchment of the
policies of the Twin City
Federation of Labor.
Progress moves best by oe.erdina.
ton Of forces. In this particular
instance IL seems apparent 10 The
censors that both labor and the pres.
ent city officials are possessed Of the
same ideal, that Is to improve Cham.
palgn without unnecessarily oyss-
6ufdening It's people. and at the same
time TO contribute thai measure OF
employment To- It's working men which
is essential to the we'll being Of the
whole people.
Without rejecting upon the WORTH.
ness Of any candidate in the field the
Board of Censors may consistently
take such action. Il is just pre-.
negative Of labor TO exercise Its in.
iluenee upon an election by united
ballot, and where the evidence war.
rants assuming that quartet Of
commissioners will carry out the poll
cies of labor. 1t Is just and fair that
the entire Federation bc called upon
to support them at the ballot box.
That the present commissioner
have been friendly 20 labor Is evil
denced by four years OF progress
during which time none of the com
missioners have advocated the en-
ployment OF other than union Labor
In all civic enterprises furthered b,
them. Plans drawn by the pfesen
city engineer have In every instance
been devised ard costa figured ON III,
basis Of the union wage scale. II u
we'll known In labor circles that Their
Is much opposition 10 the high cos
OF civic Improvement; but 10 lowe
that cost means that the plans mus
be devised and executed on the baai
of lowered wage scale.
What has been done by the present
city engineer has been done with ful
knowledge of the present four com.
missioners and with their endorse
ment, which implies the endorsement
Of the union wage scale.
Any economy program which pnr'
ports TO decrease building costs
must. to carry out Its plan, advocate
IA decrease In wages, for that u
where reductions are more easily
figured and obtained. II union work.
men will not serve the city at de.
creased scale armies OF non-union
workmen can be found who are will.
ing TO respond To a contractors call.
In an economy program efficiency,
skill, thoroughness and permanency
cannot always enter, except where
there is higher conception OF what
constitutes economy. Union labor
claims TO be both efficient and thor
ough and believes that extra money
spent now In securing permaneney
In construction Is money saved IN the
long run. Obviously the present COM
missioners have acted upon the same
premise.
Labor must figure what IL may cost
TO change horses in the middle Of the
stream, particularly when they al
ready have good horses, who are a
parently not wearv Of pulling the
load. Labor knows what II will mean
TO retain the present commissioners.
II does not know what IL may mean
to order a change just when the load
becomes heavy.
A board Of commissioners who have
made their campaign upon an econ.
omy platform will have 10 make good
to secure reelection, or even TO
vacate their Offices at the end Of their
administration with hOnors. They
will strive TO carry out their economy
program. They may be expected to
strike a blow at labor, perhaps un-
willingly and unwittingly, but never.
theless blow. Labor should avoid
the necessity Of resisting that blow.
There Is another angle 10 this po-
litieal situation that should impress
labor. What does the average labor
ing man think Of the workman Who