OCR Text |
Show SHOULD HAVE EXTRA PAY. United States troops are being used to unload vessels arriving at the port of New York, the longshoremen being on strike. The war department made extraordinary ex-traordinary efforts to induce the strikers strik-ers to listen to reason and return to work, but all appoals were in vain. Brigadier Bri-gadier General Frank T. Hines of this city is in charge of government transportation on this side of tho Atlantic At-lantic and under his direction the work is being performed by the enlisted men of the army. Under ordinary circumstances circum-stances there might be some objection to using soldiers for such purpose. Peace, however, has not yet been proclaimed pro-claimed and the . unloading of some of the vessels arriving in New York harbor har-bor may properly be considered war work. This being so, objections to the uso of soldiers as dock laborers vanishes van-ishes into thin air. The work has to bo performed and there is no other manner man-ner in which it can be dona unles3 it be by granting the demands of ths striking longshoremen. This appears to be out of the question. It seems to us that the soldiers who are working on the docks in place of the strikers should receive the same pay as the longshoremen would have received re-ceived had they remained at work. This would be a simple act of justico, for the government should not try to mako a saving under such conditions. Enlisted En-listed men aro expected to do a certain amount of labor in connection with their ordinary life in the army, but unloading un-loading vessels is not one of their duties du-ties and when such work is required they should be properly remunerated. Otherwise there is certain to be a considerable con-siderable amount of dissatisfaction not only among the soldiers theni.-elves but all over the country. "We hope tho war department will take this view of tho matter and provide the necessary funds. |