ACCEPTANCE OF NEW THEORY 143 
desire of the Labor Board to do justice to the parties directly 
concerned, placing the human and social consideration above 
‘he purely economic, and, finally, to establish wages and 
conditions that will largely meet the hopes and aspirations 
of the employees, that will prove satisfactory to the carriers, 
and that will impose no unnecessary burdens on the public. 
This is not a Utopian conception in America. 
This declaration, if it meant anything, clearly showed 
that the majority of the Labor Board had determined to 
accept and attempt practically to work out the “living 
wage” principle, as soon as, in its opinion, two sets of 
adverse conditions had been overcome: (1) the then un- 
favorable financial status of the railroad companies, and 
(2) the consequent necessity for the employees to cooper- 
ate in the economic rehabilitation of the transportation 
industry. 
No action was taken by the Board, however, even with 
the renewal of prosperity in 1923. Its failure to give 
practical consideration to this and other fundamental prin- 
ciples in arriving at its decisions undoubtedly developed 
a serious lack of confidence in the Board by all classes of 
transportation employees, which finally culminated in open 
opposition and the repeal of the Labor Provisions of the 
Transportation Act. 
This seeming incapacity, on the part of the majority of 
the Board, and especially of some of the representatives 
of the public, was a disaster from every standpoint. The 
labor provisions of the law, of which the establishment 
of the Board was a part, were an unprecedented construc- 
tive achievement, and had the Board functioned on the 
vasis of the fundamental principles of the law, and not 
upon considerations of expediency, it would have com- 
manded the support of the public, railroad managements, 
and railroad employees. and would have afforded an effec-