Perhaps those who object to conference do not say quite that. Perhaps
they say that the other side is too wicked; they cannot shake hands
with traitors. All that public opinion can do then is to organize a
hearing by public officials to hear the proof of wickedness. It cannot
take the partisans' word for it. But suppose a conference is agreed
to, and suppose there is a neutral chairman who has at his beck and
call the consulting experts of the corporation, the union, and, let us
say, the Department of Labor.
Judge Gary states with perfect sincerity that his men are well paid
and not overworked, and then proceeds to sketch the history of Russia
from the time of Peter the Great to the murder of the Czar. Mr. Foster
rises, states with equal sincerity that the men are exploited, and
then proceeds to outline the history of human emancipation from Jesus
of Nazareth to Abraham Lincoln. At this point the chairman calls upon
the intelligence men for wage tables in order to substitute for the
words "well paid" and "exploited" a table showing what the different
classes _are_ paid. Does Judge Gary think they are all well paid?
He does. Does Mr. Foster think they are all exploited? No, he thinks
that groups C, M, and X are exploited. What does he mean by exploited?
He means they are not paid a living wage. They are, says Judge Gary.
What can a man buy on that wage, asks the chairman.
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