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Show PROTEST FUTILE , LEADERSDECLARE MEN BOLT SESSION OF FEDERAL BOARD HEARING WHEN OFFICIAL OF-FICIAL 8PEAK8 Make Dramatic Exit, Hoaded By Jewell; Burchmoro Presents a Statement; Outsiders Attend At-tend Meeting Ohlcogo. Although executlvo heads of tho railroad employees boltod from the wnge hearing Friday nf which outside organizations, wore allowed to present evidence on behnlf of tho public, pub-lic, it failed to stop the presentation of tho industrial sldo of tho dispute, in which tho National Industrial Traffic Traf-fic league asked tho United Statos railroad labor board to throw out all controversy nnd revert tho mntter back to the employees and tho corporations. corpor-ations. Tho railroad men refusod to sit in the hoaring when J. H. Libby attempted attempt-ed to Introduce) tho shippers' vlowu. Frank P. Wnlsh, attorney for the cm-ployees, cm-ployees, presontod n protest to tho labor boord, in which bo said tho employees em-ployees uro not going to be placed In the position of bolng drawn Into another an-other hearing. The omployeeo also presented n brio' to thu board, In which thoy protested the bringing In of outsldo pnrtlos not interested In tho dispute. Tho whole controversy nt tho mooting hlngod around whether tho board liail tho right to bring In outsldo wltnossos. In ruling that tho outsiders bad n right to Inerveno, not as n party to tho dlsputo, but as nu outsldor, ' Don 0. Hooper, chalrmnn of tho board, said: "Tho board holds that these parties cannot intorvono here as par. ties to the dispute, bocaAiso the statute sta-tute does not authorize It, but the board has tho power to hear such evidence, evi-dence, If It so desires, without obligating obli-gating Itself to do so at othor hour-ings. hour-ings. ' The board has in this lnstnnco not gone out of its way and naked these mon to uppoar hero. I.t M. Jewoll, head of tho railroad shop crafts' unions K, F. Manias, head of tho tolcgrnphers; D. w! Holt of the slgnulmen j Timothy Hoaly of the firemen and oilers: T. C. Cashi In of thu switchmen; J, C. Smook of the muintenonco of way, and .1, G. Luhraen of tho train dispatchers, formed u procession that got up and wulk'd out, with tho board still In session. After tho oxodus Mr. Ilurchmoro prcsentod his statement. Mr. Uurchmore said that railroad labor has been n preferred class, receiving re-ceiving wages "out of harmony to thoso paid to comparative omploy-mont omploy-mont in comcrclal Industries." Mr. liurchmore'ulso said tho labor board should set nsldo all wnge orders und duclslons now In force nnd discontinue "tho present so-called honrlngs." if dlsputos lmvo ur'acn, he said, "Institute "Insti-tute hearings proporly conductod." The enso now before tho board grow from tho request of cnrrlers for authority auth-ority to reduce wngos of railroad in-, bur approximately 10 per cent nnd to Include mnintenunco of wuy men, shop crafts, dlnlng-car omployoos, signalmen, signal-men, dispatchers nnd tologrnphors In tho cut. "It Is common knowledge," Mr. ISurchmoru said, "that railroad labor In many Instances has boon n preferred pre-ferred clues, receiving wages out of harmony to thoso paid to comparative employment In commercial Induatr'es, and it Is neither right nor to tho pul-llc pul-llc Interest." |