The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1938-11-10
TRANSFORMATION


In the opinion of three experts,
American railroads have no right to
cut Is per cent from pay checks OF
$4,000 employees because: I'D it
would be a stop-gap measure at
best, only reducing the standard of
living at time when business In
general is coming back; (2) the rail-
roads financial problem is still of
short term aspect, having been crit
ical less than year; 90 although
railway wages have not f1uctuated
so badly as wages in other indus
tries, they have not been advancing
proportionately so fast as in other
industries; (4) a fiat is per cent
wage cut would not be equitable,
since smaller roads-which are in
worse shape-would derive less ben
eft than the larger, more prosperous
lines.
This was the gist of 40,000-word
opinion handed down by President
Roosevelt's emergency fact-fnding
commission after three weeks of de-
liberation. Board members: Chief
Justice Walter P. Stacy of the North
Carolina Supreme court; Dean
James M. Lands of Harvard law
school, once chairman of the Sc
curities and exchange commission;
Professor Harry A. Mills, Univer-
sity of Chicago economist and for
mer member of the national labor
relations board.
Though offering a well-considered
opinion, the commission gave no
help to sorely pressed railroads.
Only tangible result is that some
solution of Americas entire rail
problem will probably be speeded.
Possibilities: ~ Wholesale reorgan-
izations, combines and abandonment
Of lines to avoid duplicated service,
a program which the interstate COM
merce commission must approve,
and which would probably decrease
railroad labor employment; (2)
agreement with labor for a tempo
rary, smaller pay cut; (3) federal
financial assistance, which would
only pile higher the already high in
temporary relief.
Reorganization is the most likely
solution. Already pending before the
I. c. c. when the fact-fnding COM
mission reported were proposals for
such plans. In the Northwest, stock
holders of Chicago & North Western
railroad wanted merger with the
Chicago, Milwaukee, st. Paul & Pa
cific line. In the Southwest, an I. c.
G. examiner recommended reorgan-
ization of the Missouri Pacific and
consolidation of all properties now
operated as the Missouri Pacific sys-
tenn. In the deep South, the Gulf,
Mobile & Northern line wanted mer-
ger with the Mobile & Ohio road.
Domestic
Opponents of the administration
foreign policy have long criticized
Secretary of State Corden Hull for
censuring japanese encroachment
on U. S. affairs in the Orient, mean
while allowing Mexico to expropri-
ate U. S.-owned oil lands. Secre-
tary Hull's answer has been that
Mexico's problem may best be set
tied by arbitration, not through a
hostile attitude that may destroy
Western hemisphere peace. The lat
est Mexican step has been seizure
of headquarters building occupied
by Standard Oil subsidiaries, an act
which brought only feeble protest
from u. S. Ambassador Josephus
Daniels ("I made representations
~. But if the U. S. hopes to
stalemate Fascism in the Western
hemisphere by its kid-glove policy
toward Mexico, it may be doomed
to disappointment. Although Presi-
dent Lazaro Cardenas once said his
country would sell oil only to demo
cratic nations, he has just an
nounced consummation of con-
tract to sell several million dollars
worth in Rome. This, marking the
birth of friendly trade relations be-
tween Italy and Mexico, gives Fas-
cism another wedge into the New
world.
Foreign
After the peace of Munich,
Frances Premier Edouard Dala-
der went to great lengths justifying
his position before the senate and
chamber of deputies. He won conf.
dence by assuring Frenchmen that
if Munich's treaty was a capitula.