The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1944-04-28
Concluded from last week.

To repeat, the 1913 strike figures
are bad, though not unreasonably bad
The Smith Connally bill did not hell
to keep them down There is not 81
much danger in those particular fig
ures, as there is in any agitated actor
which might occur if the figures gel
worse.
The divisions of our country, which
began as geographical divisions, have
not become functional divisions, divi
sions of pressure groups, but that
doesn't alter the situation that we all
have to live together. Surely the phi
losophy should be much the same as
Lincoln expressed in the inaugural to
which l referred. physically speak
ing" Lincoln said, 1--WE cannot separ-
ate. We cannot remove our respec-
tive sections from each other, nor
build an impossible wall between
them. A husband and wife may be
divorced, and go out of the presence
and beyond the reach of each other;
but the different parts of our country
cannot do this. They cannot but re-
main face to face, and intercourse,
either amicable or hostile, must con-
tinue between them Suppose you
go to war, you cannot fight always;
and when, after much loss on both
sides, and no gain on either, you cease
fighting, the identical old questions as
to terms of intercourse are again upon
you"
Lincoln was accused of being timid
and vacillating; on the other hand, of
being a dictator. He thought of him
self as muddling through. "My pol
icy" he said sis to have no policy"
How can you have a narrow policy
when you are trying to detect the
will of free people? A free people
must assert its own self-control
Long, too long America,
Travelling roads all even and peace
full you learn'd from joys and pros
perity only,
But now, ah now, to learn from
crises of anguish, advancing,
graphing with direct fate and
recoiling not,
And now to conceive and show to
the world what your children en-
masse really are :.
I mustn't leave my comment on
hose strikes figures for 1943 without
Indicating that they do show, if not Z,
at least very large measure
# self-controL What you don't see in
he statistics is the number of strikes I,
verified. That brings me back to my
eginning, that in the whole field of
abor relations the public can only q
ear about the failures. l might how :,
yer give you one example, keeping {.
le names confidential. Early in 1913 )
company which, with its subsidiary,
as engaged in absolutely essential
ork, was also having such bad re- :,
tions with the union that it was i'm :,
ossible for the parties to negotiate !,
new contract. Regardless of the
ghts or wrongs, the fact was they -
err at complete loggerheads. There :,
as perpetual strife, and production :,
as way down. The dispute was
rtified to the national board, the a.
ard set up panel to hear the par 60
IS, and the panel found itself con- 70
onted with the task of preparing -
concentrations on a large number -,
issues. This virtually amounted to
elilng out a whole proposed new
ntract; in fact the panel spelled out 20
recommendations in that form. Ac- 3
riding to regular procedure the pan 3
s recommendations were sent to the q
rites, for their comments, before 3
g board took final action. All this q
ok time, and in that time the heat 8
both contestants lessened towards 9
ch other, and was fused into a COM q
IN dislike for the interfering, dila- 8
y board. Thus while the board was 3
II considering the complicated con- y
ct, the company, with the union 8
ree1ng, printed it as recommended q
the panel, with a notice to say that q
did so under protest against the 8
ird, and with asterisks to show 3
It this protest applied particularly 3
certain clauses. Only when the 8
lrd had completed it's own study Q
we find out that the parties had 8
ten the gun, and accepted, with 8
5 little outburst, contract under 8
ich they were now getting along y
oh better than before Many a Do