on composed of men
whose distinction commanded national attention. P.H. Morrissey, a
former chief of the Conductors' and Trainmen's Union, was named by the
engineers. President Daniel Willard of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad,
known for his fair treatment of his employees, was chosen by the roads.
The Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, the Commissioner
of Labor, and the presiding judge of the United States Commerce Court
designated the following members of the tribunal: Oscar S. Straus,
former Secretary of Commerce and Labor, chairman; Albert Shaw, editor of
the Review of Reviews; Otto M. Eidlitz, former president of the Building
Trades Association; Charles R. Van Hise, president of the University of
Wisconsin; and Frederick N. Judson, of the St. Louis bar.

After five months of hearing testimony and deliberation, this
distinguished board brought in a report that marked, it was hoped, a
new epoch in railway labor disputes, for it recognized the rights of the
public, the great third party to such disputes.

It granted the principle of standardization and minimum wage asked for
by the engineers, but it allowed an increase in pay which was less by
one-half than that demanded. In order to prevent similar discord in the
future, the board recommended the establishment of Federal and state
wage commissions with functions pertaining to wage disputes analogous
to those of the public service commissions in regard to rates and
capitalization. The report stated that, "while the railway employees
feel that they cannot surrender their right to strike, if there were a
wage commission which would secure them just wages the necessity would
no longer exist for the exercise of their power. It is believed that, in
the last analysis, the only solution--unless we are to rely solely upon
the restraining power of public opinion--is to qualify the principle of
free contract in the railroad service." *

* The board recognized the great obstacles in the way of
such a solution but went on to say: "The suggestion,
however, grows out of a profound conviction that the food
and clothing of our people, the industries and the general
welfare of our nation, cannot be permitted to depend upon
the policies and dictates of any particular group of men,
whether employers or employees." And this conviction has
grown apace with the years until it stands today as the most
potent check to aggressio