The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1929-10-17
t0fficial. City. state and County Newspaper
Mitten Management a Labor Remedy

VvlIICu VxdIldkCIIlCI q AQUOl 1eClIlCuy
Something amazing blazed across the armament Of la
Dor and capital in Philadelphia the other day that at
tracted national attention. Thomas E. Mittcn, the Chi
cagoan who came to the Quaker city to take over the
management Of the Rapid Transit company some time
before the war, after the line has gone through several
periods Of violent labor troubles, died suddenly and when
his will was opened and read 1t was found that the author
Of "Mitten management" had left the bulk of his slo,-
100000 estate to set up an endowment Tor imprcvins. the
relations between capital and labor.
IN his life MI. Mittcn had tried various ways to achieve
the same result. He had interested the employees of the
company in investing in its stock and thus becoming
sharing owners in the col poration for which they la
bored, and he hac established saving systems whereby
they could place their spare earnings at interest OF a
better rate than is usual. The bequest was made but a
few days before his death and this invalidated it, but his
son and heir decided that the bequest would be carried
out.
Which is to say that times are changing. Among all
the phenomena Of prcsent-day life. there probably isn't
one that will seem more strange and .,nselcss to our
descendants than the thing that we describe with the
two words. labor trouble"
Capital and labor arc two peculiar words, the way We
use them. We are just beginning to surmisc that these
words do not rcpresc.. Numerically opposite forces, fatcd
to strive for Numerically opposite goals; indeed, these
unborn great grandchildren of ours may eventually de-
eide that our greatest contribution to civilization was
cur IhltlHS, iUHg-utidyCO, OIHCWidI oIlAoVu
that the aims OF capital and labor arc. basically. identical.
Years ago. when the factory system was giving the
world something new In the way of stupidity. greed and
oppression. 1t was generally agreed that the workingman
and the employer were bound to be enemies. Some men,
like Marx, urged the worker to recognize this and declare
war to the death: others held that the worker could not
conceiyably better himself. and that he might as we'll
make the best of it by accepting such thin trickles OF
prosperity as might seep down. from time to time, from
the upper strata Of society.
Remnants Of that notion arc still with us. Indeed,
many people do not seem to realize that that theory has
been exploded, once and for all. So it Is that an intelli-
gent. s~ocial-mlnded man like Mi. Mittcn felt the need of
devoting his fortune to the task OF reconciling these two
opposing forces.
Meanwhile. what has been happening? Simply this:
the progress Of industrialism has been slowly making It
apparent that the workingman and the employer are
seeking the same goal. There is not, fundamentally. any
conflict between them. What helps one, helps both;
what is bad for one is bad for both.
Thus far Ne have barely got more than a %glimmering
Of this. But the next hundred years will see the idea
carried forward amazingly. It is quite absurd to suppose
that strikes. lockouts. furious challenges and ultinatums.
wasteful and Gripping to all concerned, will be tolerated
BY IN indus.rialism that once understands its true func-
tions.
There will be , 6ay-not so far distant, ether-when
no one will dream Of leaving money to improve relations
between capital and labor. It simply won't be necessary.