The labor world. [volume], December 09, 1922, Image 1

About The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current

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.VOL. 30. NO. 15.
Cbngressional legislation contem­
plated ^the collection eventually of
hundreds of millions of dollars in
taxes upon the distribution to. stock­
holders of excessive profits accumu­
lated during and since the war pe­
riod.
Sought Evade Taxes.
Naturally the millionaires of the
United States sought to retain as
much of the excess profits as pos­
sible.
Millions of profits wei-e- written
off and hidden from tax examiners
.by clever accountants, and dividends
were delayed until some device could
be perfected for evading the taxes
payable in the natural course of
events.
•Vow that Secretary Mellon, ap­
parently backed by a decision of the
lT. S. Supreme Court, has pointed out
All
Standard Oil Companies.
IS MANKINDS Greatest
Benefactor False Teaching Is Civiliza­
tion's Greatest Handicap.
GOVERNMENT IS BILLION SHORT
HERE BIG BIZ ESCAPES TAXES
Stock Divided Deals Continue Standard Oil Leads in Melon
totting U. S. Revenues Fall Off One-Ttilrd This Year.
A decrease of $1,141,000,000 in income and profits taxes,
or 35 per cent, in 1922, is the staggering loss to the United States
government resulting largely from tax evasions, the latest trick be
ing*the distribution and redistribution of wealth through stock divi­
dend deals. Big biz is taking advantage of a ruling of the treasury
department, following a decision rendered by the supreme court
in the stock dividend case, by which dividends representing profits
are field exempt'from taxation. Secretary of the Treasury Mellon
himself set the pace for Melon cutting.
It Has Come to Pass.
It his come to pass as Justices
Brandeis and Clark in a dissenting
opinion in the stock dividend case
said it. would. This is their language:
"If stock dividends representing
profits are held' exempt from taxa­
tion under the, Sixteenth amend­
ment, the owiiep- of the most suc­
cessful, business in America will b?
able to escape taxation on a large
part of what is actually their in­
come. That g.uch a result was in­
tended. by the people of the United
States when adopting the Sixteenth
amendment is inconceivable."
.$45,000,000
800,000
.. 45,00*0,000
.. 2,000,000
.100,971,000
6,000,000
2,000,000
•393,333,200
.150,000,000
.. 7,000,000
45,000,000
50,000,000
Atlantic Refining
Borne-Scryms.er ..
..
Ohio Oil .........
Sloar Refining ...
S,- O. of California.
S. O.. of ansas
S. O. of Kentucky...
S. O. of New Jersey.
S. O. of New York.
43. O. -of Ohio.
Vacuum* Oil •........
"S. O. of Indiana^
•r
Here is a ^lst of stock dividend
declarations in -other corporations
during the. last week, representing
heavy losses in tax income to the
United States slipping away right
under the public's riose and with the
tacit' approval of the secretary of
the treasury, with other corporations
that have profits for distribution
working madly to get in under cover:
Stock Dividends In 19S2.
Am. Steel Foundry Co... $3,672,180
National Biscuit Co 22,500,000
Victor Talk. Machine Co.-.30,000,000
E. I. Du Pont de Nemours 40,000,000
American Radiator. Co... 6,903,000
American Shipbuilding Co. 2,461,000
Mays Department Stires-. 6,000,000
Nat. Sugar Refining Co.. 5,000,000
Pan Am. Pet. & T* Co. ^17,544,275
to a
Yale & Towne Mfg. Co.
Tngersoll-Rand'. Co. ....
National Liberty Ins. Co.
Globe & Rut. Fire Ins. Co. 2,800,000
Hamilton Bro^n Shoe Co. .1,000,000
U. S. GuaranWe Co 300,000
Lawyers' Mortgage Co.... 1,000,000
Maryland Casualty Co... .1,500,000
Fidelity Casualty
.15,000,000
5D0.000
'Cb.
•. .2,000,000
White Eagle Oil & Ref. Co 10,240,000
Kellogg Switchboard •.. 750,000
Republic Cotton Mills Co.. 1,750,000
Corn Exchange Bank. 1.000,000
Northwestern Yeast Co.. 3,000,000
All-American Cables Co. .15,000,000
The great national disgrace of tax
evasion was severely scored by no
lcaa a person tjian J.ples Bache, New
York backer and s^OQk broker, at
the National InruiBtrlaf Tax confer­
ence. "The taxpayer," he.- said,
"spends-eleven months-a year'devis­
ing schemes by which during the one
month that he tries to make up his
tax statement he cait avoid as many
of .the taxes gs isi^gajfty.passible and
(Continued* ibaf^ffre 2
MdiMl -Mb
DECLARES LABOR
WILL SUFFER IF
SUBSIDYPASSES
Bill Supported by Congressman
Larson Feared by Labor.
Labor is opposed to the pending
ship subsidy bill for the dual reason
that it will undermine the safe­
guards created by the La Fonette
seamen's law and because labor is
opposed to the subsidy principle,
said a statement issued by the A.
F. of L. executive council, at its
quarterly session in A. F: of L. head­
quarters.
"In addition to its proposed de­
struction of the standards of the
workers at sea, the bill proposes a
drain on the public treasury which
was amazingly understated by the
president and which would, beyond
question, lead in the near future to
the. creation qf great shipping coi*,.
the legal loophole and has himself J^!lles.would control the ship
started the ball rolling, there has re- business of. the country, driving
started the ball rolling, there has re
suited an orgy of stock dividend dis­
tributions that has never been paral­
leled in the history of the country,
'flush to Share Gifts.
the ,big corporatiins^ with ac-j
•'U&i or hidden at-e fl\sHTng
madly to join in the distribution be­
fore congress awakes to the need of
action on behalf of.the public treas­
ury. But even, no/fr it is almost too
late. The horse will be gone for­
ever when congress puts the lock on
the stable doori
Standard Oil, having the largest
profits of any industrial group in the
country, was set for a. killing as soon
as the tip went out that the cards
were stacked. A billion dollars of
stock dividends have so far been de­
clared by this, group. The Atlantic
Refining company has just topped
the list with a 900 per cent stock
dividend. It had. $90,000,000 of
profits to dispose oif on a capitaliza­
tion of. $5,000,00:0,!. Since stock divi­
dends. are not taxable, the following
Standard Oil stock dividend declara­
tions represent just so much that has
been slipped by the income tax col­
lector at a maximum rate of 60 per
esnt:
out all small.competition. The gov­
ernment would become a great part­
ner in the creation of a shipping
trust, guaranteeing, meanwhile, the
profits of those fortunate enough lo
become partners in the-trust.
t„
"Perhaps the most emphatic rea­
son for opposing the subsidy bill .as
such is the fact that once enacted
it can no be repealed for 20 years.
No succeeding congress can undo the
wrong. The reason for this is that
the bill provides for the making of
20-year contracts between the gov­
ernment and shipping interests.
Once made, these contracts could
not be voided.
"Labor looks upon the ship sub­
sidy bill as one of the most amazing
treasury grabs of the decade, and it
repeats with emphasis what the
president has referred to as insin­
uations of favoring special interests.
Labor is not insinuating that special
interests will be favored by the bill.
Labor is stating as a fact that spe­
cial interests will be favored and to
a most lavish degree.
"It is proposed that this outrage­
ous proposition shall be enacted in­
to law by a congress that has been
repudiated- by the people.
"The present lame duck congress,
most of the leaders of which will,
after March 4 go into retirement,
has no moral right to inflict upon
the country an outrage so preposter­
ous."
DILL IS OPPOSED
TO INJUNCTIONS
New Washington Senator Is
Progressive of First Order.
In a public banquet tendered Sen­
ator-elect Dill at Seattle, he scath­
ingly denounced the Daugherty in
junction and declared it one of his
purposes to work
for
iH?
6,9.-57,250
4,99«,774
the enactment
of national legislation that will pro­
hibit the irtjuhction in iabor disputes.
also: ari'nbunced opposition to the
CumminsTEsch law and the railroad
labor board. Opposition to govern­
ment boards attempting* to regulate
wages. and working conditions were
also condemned by the speaker, who
said that where labor boards are to
be established he will demand legis­
lation making it mandatory for such
labor boards to consider the living
wage as the lowest minimum that
can be paid, and that such wage be
regarded only as the minimum.
Senator-elect Dillf declared that
the labor forces ^f the state united
in support of his candidacy in a
larger degree than ever before
The speaker closed by declaring
that he received a mandate from the
people of this state to carry out cer­
tain pledges and should the inter­
ests of «his- party interfere at any
time with his obligations to the peo­
ple he will ignore the party.'
DEATH BATE IS £DW.
A decrease in the United States
death rate from 13.1 per 100,000 of
population in 1920 to 11.6 in 1921
is announced by the census bureau.
This is the lowest: deatJi rate ever
•recorded for- a year in* this coflttfry.
Vy
MAYOR OF SIOUX
CITY TAKES RAP
AT TRADE CLUBS
Declares Business Mens' Or­
ganization Public Enemies.
"Every chamber of commerce,
every Rotary club,' every "liiwanis
club, and some other so-called
luncheon clubs, is an organized
agency of propaganda and the stif­
ling of the free play of public opin­
ion."
That charge was maHe by Wal­
lace M. Short, of Sioux City, Iowa,
in an address before the convention
of the Iowa League of Municipalities,
at Clinton, in a discussion of the
"Human Element in City Govern­
ment." His contention was that the
first and most important need of to?
day is the re-establishment of a ra­
tional, healthy public opinion, which
he claimed had been poi|Uned .. by.
business organizations and the press.
Mayor Short qualified his charge
with the statement that all members
of these commercial organizations
are not consciously tending them­
selves to unpatriotic ends. The open
minded members, however, he add­
ed, are not the organized control of
chambers, of commerce and kindred
bodies.
Their utterances,?' he said, "do not
at present receive any general and
serious consideration. The organ­
ized control is^wholly in the hands
of that group of business men who
have definitely set their., hand to de­
stroy root and branch the organiza­
tions which the people have built up
for their own protection against un­
bridled rapacity.
"The last five years have wit­
nessed perhaps the most highly or­
ganized, best financed, most deter­
mined effort ever made by organ
property interests to control
teed
government *-nd industry for. their
own ends and to desreoy whatever
stands in their way."
Mine Management Held Re­
sponsible for Death of Miners.
Barnesboro, Pa., Tcp. 9.—The
mine management is responsible for
the death of 77 men November 6
last at the Spangler mine, is the
coroner's verdict.
The jury held that the explosion
was caused by open lights after the
mine management had knowledge of
the accumulation of explosive gas
in the mine, and by not employing
a sufficient number of fire bosses to
make the proper .inspections. The
management was also blamed for
failing to. provide Ventilation to the
working forces in the mine.
Paul Vallalla,. who was rescued
from the gas-filled workings, told
the coroner's jury that he notified
mine officials three weeks before the
explosion that the mine was gaseous
and would "go up." His father and
another relative were killed in the
explosion.
M. M. Sarnosky, former fire boss
at the mine, told the jury that he
reported gas "many times," and that
he considered the mine dangerous.
Asked why he left the company's
Employ, he said: "I guess I said too
much on the report book."
O. J. Flanagan, foreman of the
mine, admitted that Sarnosky re­
ported gas. He said he found gas
also but believed it was not danger­
ous. The foreman stated that the
mine complied with' the law for
openings, but he admitted that an­
other opening "would probably1 re­
duce the death roll."
By LEVI STEVENS LEWIS
Benjamin F. Bush of St. JLouis
was appointed receiver of the Mis­
souri Pacific system Aug. 19, 1915.
£"his "system" is, or was, composed
of about 7,485 miles of line all told,
including both the Missouri Pacific
Railway company and the St .Louis,
Iron Mountain and Southern Rail­
way Co., together with ten minor
corporations. These minor oy, sub­
sidiary corporations are quite, insig^
nificant so far as mileage is con­
cerned being from 350 yards to only
50 miles in length all of them to­
gether aggregating less than 150
miles.
About 80 days after Mr. Bush had
been appointed receiver, namely, on'
Oct. 27, 1915,-he addressed the Com­
mercial club #f St. Louis, to
"Why several large railway systems
are in receivers' hands." A printed
copy of this address lies oh my tabic
while I am writing the^e lines. ,It'«
the old ,old story, that should bief(^|
it fan'?) familikr to all'well-infor^%
ar
'AMERICA Jfy/iBOR WILL HOT BE OUTLAWED OR ENSLAV&D
JLUTH, MINNESOTA, DEC. 9, 1922.
Announces He Will Attempt to Have Case Re-opened Evidence
Accumulating to Charges Against Secretary Fall.
-————..
Senator La Follette, author of the. original resolution calling
for an inquiry into the Teapot Dome oil scandal,'announced this
week that he would, leave no stone unturned to force Congressional
action. Senator ICendrick of Wyoming will back him up. Evi­
dence is accumulating to support the principal charges against Sec­
retaries Fall and Denby, thaCthey conducted secret negotiations
that the government will lose millions of dollars as the result of the
lease that they gave a monopoly to Standard Oil and they re­
versed the national conservation policy.
The stock dividend scramble of
Wall street started by Secretary
Mellon it now appears is not only a
tax dodging device but part of the
program to increase Standard's con­
trol over oil production and the
maintenance of prices which wouhl
have dropped with a crash under
normal conditions of supply and de­
mand. The enormous cash surplus
in the hands of the Standard Oil
gasoline, prices high in the face of
enormous overproduction. Teapot
Dome in the hands* of either govern­
mentor independent operation would
have meant lower prices for oil and
oil products.
This week Robert C. Bell, former­
ly special assistant to the united
States attorney general in charge of
Wyoming withdrawn oil «Iand cases,
tells of the Standard Oil monopoly
and how "apparently every effort
was made in the lease to provide a
way for the lessee to'get all the gov­
ernment's royalty oil without paying
for it."
"Another provision of thA' lease
which is "exceptionally favorable"
to the government is the one auth­
orizing Sinclair to furnish the mate­
rials and build immense storage at
27 costal points," says Mr. Bell. "411
the materials are to' be bought at
private arrangements, and the cost
of construction fixed in the same
manner. Sinclair becomes a pur­
chasing agent for the United States
navy his purchases and contracts
will not be accepted from, the low­
est responsible bidders, as is usual
in purchasing supplies or letting
contracts for the government.
"Furthermore, it will not be ne­
cessary tp~ ask congress f«i^4k$«»fo'
priatfons.
"Congress has been eliminated
from any jurisdiction over millions
of dollars, of the governmint*s prop­
erty. The lease also provides that
the lessee shall furnish the navy its
gasoline, kerosene, lubricants, etc.,
(at the reasonable market price, we
assume), which gives the Standard
a monopoly on furnishing these ar­
ticles to the navy. Independents will
not have .a chance even to submit
a bid. These provisions are almost
as •'favorable" to the government as
the one which enables the lessee to
trade 63c worth of fuel oil for-a bar-*
rel of crude oil worth $2.50. Ap­
HYLAND COMMITTEE URGES
AID FOR BERWIND MINERS
The committee appointed? ifcy
Mayor Hylan of New York to inves­
tigate conditions of striking coal
miners in Somerset county, Pa., has
opened an office in ther municipal
building, where it will receive do­
nations of food, clothing, and money
for the miners. Mrs. Louis Reed
Welzmiller, deputy commissioner of
markets, is in charge.
The miners are striking against
the Berwind-White coal company,
which supplies coal for this city's
subway system. In this field the
Consolidated coal company operates.
The publicity of the miners resulted
in a statement by John D. Rocke­
feller, Jr., that he tffeplored condi­
tions, but could do nothing, as he is
a "minority stockholder."
The investigation showed that
miners have been evicted from com­
pany houses and are living in sta­
bles, barns and chicken coops.
TRADE UNIONS TO MEET.
The annual convention-of the Del
Itaeare state federation of labor will
be held ii^ Dover beginning Jan. 8
next.
citizens. It's the same old story of
"poverty and etarvation," camou­
flage and misinformation. It should
be reprinted with notations, para­
graph by paragraph (and it may be
later on) but space to make proper
comments is not at m^ command at
this writing.
In this alleged explanation—page
14 appears a decidedly interesting
deClaratlon which reads thus:. "One
of the systems with which I arti con­
nected, operating 7,285 miles of line,
is in sound physical condition' at the
present time, but I'm sorry I cannot
say as much for its financial condi­
tion. Through stress of circum­
stances, wliich I have already men­
tioned, it has been obliged to de­
fault in its interest paymentar and
as a consequence, its control- has
been taken from its owners and put
under a receiver by the .Federal'
cotirt.
For the past eight years-
tho owners have operated the propr
erty to- the- convenience and
befiefit^of JUi^pJrople. It has traijs
Dnrt^ •»J
parently every effort was made in
the lease to provide a way for the,
lessee to- get all the government's
royalty oil without paying for it.
"Something has been said about
the price provisions of the lease.
The Secretary announces that the
government oil experts "figured what
they thought the leasing company
could pay" and that he "jumped
/.heir estimates from 95c per barrel
to $1.0J, at the risk of wrecking ne­
gotiations." We cannot account for
this absurd statement. Five cents a
barrel on crude oil never wrecked
the negotiations of any operator of
Sinclair's caliber for a bonanza like
Naval Reserve No. 3. Moreover, oil
at that time was selling in the Salt
Creek field at $1.40 per barrel, and
in the Mid-Continent fields at $2.00
per b%rrel, plus a premium.
"We understand there is some
provision in this lease for the pay­
ment of cash for the royalty oil.
Thiat the price, if payment is in
cash, is to be determined by the
highest posted market price* offered
or paid in the Salt Cxeek field by
the Midwest Refining company, or
in the ^id-Continent fields by the
Sinclair Crude Oil Purchasing com­
pany, or the Prairie Oil & Gas com­
pany.
"NotQ. that this does not mean
that the highest. posted open field
price to the Mid-Continent fields
shall be paid, but instead the price
offered or paid by the three com­
panies above mentioned—all Stand­
ard Oil companies. These companies
may discontinue business, or have
all the production themselves that
they may need, and may not in the
firtttwr offe# or 'pay anything Tor
crude oil, or they may post and of­
fer a price far b£low the market
value of oil, and in addition to their
posted price agree, in order to en­
able them to secure ^il, to pay a
large premium per barrel.
".Why were these thfee Standard
Oil companies designated to fix the
price of the government oil? The
Midwest Refining company has a
complete monopoly in the Salt' Creek
field and pays exactly what it
pleases for the oil. It has never paid
more than about half the reason­
able market value of .the. product.
The lease might as well specify that
the price be fixed by the lessee."
SATURDAY EVENING POST
WOULD MONOPOLIZE BOYS
Solicitor General Beck has asked
the United States supreme court to
sustain the federal trade commis­
sion's ruling that the Curtis-publish­
ing company, of Philadelphia can
not deny its agents the right "to
handle other publications.
•The solicitor insisted that ,the
company "has no monopoly upon
the youth of America."
Dangefs of monopoly in news
and magazine circulation were illus­
trated by the solicitor, who stated
that the Journal of Commerce, Chi­
cago, asserted ift litigation its ina­
bility to reach the public due to the
power of a distributing agency in
that city and an understanding the
agency had with the publishers of
certain other Chicago newspapers.
The Curtis company publishes the
Xadies' Home Journal, Country Gen­
tleman, and Saturday Evening Post.
SELECT CINCINNATI.
The executive council of the In­
ternational Union of Journeymen
Horseshoers have selected Cincinnati,
Ohio, for the next convention.
SOME THINGS RAILROAD RECEIVER SHOULD ROT FORfiET WHEN TALKING TO PUBLIC
with advantage and profit to them.
It has kept employed during that
time more than 44,000 persons and
paid them $226,000,000 in wages. In
addition, it has paid $96,000,000 for
fuel and materials, $75,000,000 of
which represented labor in other in­
dustries. It has paid over $17,000,000
in taxes for the upkeep of the states'
institutions. In four years it has ex­
pended $21,000,000 of new money
in road and equipment, and with all
this—a public benefactor as it has
proven itself to be—the owners have
not received one dollar in return for
their labprs and their investment
for eight years»"
"Zvr
SENATE
4
In the light of that which we
gather from other sources of infor­
mation, namely, from the "statistics
of the railroads in the United
States" published annually~by the
Interstate'Commerce commission, thf
ab^ve declaration becomes very Re­
markable and veijy significant.-
It appears from these official, re­
ports, that mora than five million
dollars were 'paifl-r to -"the owneris"
SAYS N. C. COURT
Progressive Court Hold In Fa-
The North Carolina state supreme
court has ruled that a bonus should
be considered as wages, and not as'
a gift.
The decision was written by Chief
Justice Clark, one of the forward
looking members of the judiciary of
this country.
The decision was made in the catse
of Seth, Roberts, mill worker, who
was not given the promised bonus
when he was discharged. The mill
management said he was -discharged
"because he was critical of an offi­
cer of the law employed there to
keep the place clean." There was no
claim that Roberts was inefficient
or failed to properly
(perform
his
duties.- It was shown'that he re­
mained in the employ of the com­
pany because of the bonus wHich
was to-l?e paid at Christmas. He was
discharged before that 'time.
Chief Justice Clark said the post­
ing of the bonus notice and the set­
ting ih. to work of Roberts until the
end of :the year constituted a con­
tract, provided he did his work sat­
isfactorily. The discharge of Rob­
erts, unless for sufficient cause,
would "amount to a breach of con­
tract and was a wrongful discharge,
said the court.
"This bonus," continued Justice
Clark, "is not gratuity or a gift, but
is an offer on the part of the em­
ployer with whom the offer orig­
inates, in order to procure efficient
and faithful employes, and .when the
employe, enters upon the service up­
on that inducement it becomes a
Supplementary contract of which he
can not ,be deprived without suffi­
cient cause."
The lower court refused to permit
the jury to pass "upon the question
of whether the discharge was justi­
fied. Justice Clark remanded the
case back for retrial with ^orders that
the jury consider this question.
Illinois Labor Sees Menace in
Illinois trade unionists are waging
a vigorous campaign against adop­
tion ojf ihe new. state constitution.
The increased power of the judiciary
is the ..target for bombardment by
the workers who denounce efforts
to place the state under the control
of an oligarchy'of nine individuals
serving as |.he state supreme court.
"Th$r|a was no public demand
made .Jt^pn.^the.,constitutional con
v^Ation to grant unlimited powers to
the courts," declares Victor A. Olan
der, secretary-1
treasurer of the Illi­
nois state federation of^labor.
"Neither the newspapers of the
state, the farmers, manufacturers,
nor 'workers offered any suggestion
that thei discretionary powers of
judges lie increased.
"Who inspired this action? The
trail leads straight into the lair of
the Morgan interests in Wall street.
The scheme was first proposed by
a spokesman of those interests ir.
the person of Elbeyt H. Gary of the
steel rtuat
"In a-statement he presented be­
fore the American bar association
at its meeting in Boston, Sept. 5.
Ml9, four months before the con­
stitutional convention of Illinois be­
gan its sessions, Judge Gary said
"A court of equity should have, if
necessary, enlarged powers of pre­
ventive remedy, unlimited by stat­
utory provisions.
"The Gary scheme has been work­
ed out in detail by the constitutional
convention and is now being offered
to the citizens, of Illinois as a part
of the new proposed basic law."
(profit) on the stock owned by "the
owners iri three years."
We get the information from page
249 of the 1912-report page 243 of
the 1913 report, and page 241 of
the 1914 reports From these reports
it appears that the stockholder* of
the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and
Southern -Railway company (the
owners) received dividends amount­
ing to $1,775,649 in 1912, and exact­
ly the same amount in 1913 and 1914
also, making $5,326,947 in tfcese
three years.
And it. appears further from the
same reports, that'the Missouri Pa­
cific and the St. Louis, Iron Moun­
tain ai}d .Southern Railway compa­
nies together tiaid, on hand June $0,
J1910,*&Dfiu^thijig
moto/than $18,000,t
000 of ^-HuVplus" which is undivided
profit, in four years (July lv 1910,
to July l,"l914).moi« $han $14,00V
0.00 of this fund—$14,262,285 to be
exaA-^|^K8 \to- have disappeared,
iftese'^i&phs ^ett^tnly belonged to
"the owners", and .it is morally cer-r
ain thai igly "the'owners" received
tbrfm. Iff'
OLD 6UARDSMEN
Rear Guard of Standpatters
Washington, Dec. 9.—The' fear
guard of the old guard senators
have read the returns from the re­
cent election. They have hopped on
the. progressive band' wagon, 'or are
attempting, to,-and declare they are
"friends of tlie farmer" and. are
deadly enemies, of old man 'H.' C.
of
Henceforth no one will shout loud­
er thanxthe old guard for the horny
handed sOn of toil and other com­
mon people.
The. group of popular defenders in
the senate, however, refuse to be
come enthusiastic over the old
guard's sudden /conversion^ ^It, is
ahown that this conversion andlthe
election returns are too closely re*
lated to indicate aincere r^iehtehce.
The* progressive members of (the
senate suggest that the eleventh
hour converts-sit on the motunersf
bench for. a spell.
ncn lor a open*
So again is Verified th£" £?&iftr'{nat
privilege always attempt^ to .cjjip^ure
and. compromise movement|MvtlMtt
cannot corrupt or crush.
SLIGHT. PRICE, DROP,
An imperceptible- ctaoi* life iarr
sale prices--^-bf
,1*1^
UghtinDutuihand Elmehere to
B«a?#wJfTheLabor World.
Bishops Take For-
Baltimore, Dec. 9.—In t'hei£»social
and economic program the ^t^rd of
bishops of the Methodist Mpisicopal
church, in conference here, declared
for "the substitution/ of7 service for,
reward and the discovery ^fof the
spiritual value of labor."
'•We look' with profound Concern
upon the hawc. wrought by 'dur^ re­
cent. war," said the bishops.
-^Four
years after the armistice we live in
a world. of bewildering chaos. Mill­
ions of European/ Asiatic, and
American-youths gave their .lives at
the calf of idealism. -T:
"Certainly those' of us who live
should have the courage to practice
the, ideals for which we. enlisted
them in battle.
"It is said to contemplate the pos­
sibility of our dead having died* in
yMp. .but K^ddey stUl t^t
now live in vain. V"
depl^itlfejinjtist accumula­
tion* and inequilable distribution of
huge Surplus profits by some finan­
cial corporations. We insist that the
Christian principles of liberty shall
be applied alike.
"We deplore the distribution of
rewards of. conquest in the fp«*m of
governmental monopolies and terri­
torial control for personal and self­
ish advantage.
"We deplore the investment of
taxes in armaments and pompous
display, and "urge the nations .of the
world not only to limit but to de­
stroy this bulwark of hatred.
"We pledge ourselves to co-operate
with all governmental, social, and re­
ligious bodies that seek a practical
program to heal the suspicions and
hates which wound mankind -today.
Various suggestions, are- being made.
Ours is not an exclusive voice.
".America unhesitatingly should
accept her full responsibility for
leadership in the restoration of a
broken world.
•"She .should not acquiesce in. im­
perialistic policies and tempers that
make, war inevitable.
"She should not refuse to sanction
any war except fro strictest self-de­
fense or the defense of humanity.
"She should continue to advocate
universal disarmament and should
not hesitate in asking that an inter­
national conference be called for
this great purpose."
jpet fedhtf
Aujrust to Severn tor. ^«rB$lr£
the tfltferal bureau of labor
wiiSipr'
FI VE CENTO.
With Old Guard as Usui tc
.. Congressman Oscar J. Larson of Duluth was the only mem*
ber of. the Minnesota delegation in Congress to vote for jhe
subsidy bi. Mr. Larson vote was in keeping with his genera}
record as a reactionary. Other members of /the Minnesota dele1'0
gation have voted against special privilege legislation occasionally,
but/-Mr. Latson has voted nevery instance on the side of the old
guard and against the progressives in Congress. Tihe Labor World
made that charge against, him in the recent campaign, and his
apologists insisted that ve were unfair and were animated by
partisanship.
For Special Interests.
When Mr. Larson voted for the
ship subsidy "bill he voted against
the interests and welfare of everjf
farmer and worker in his district.-*
His vote may have suited the big
business interests/ but it does-not
please the great mass of the peopl#
from whom he claimed and obtained
support in tj|e recent election.
A change of 13 votes would havd
defeated the bill in the house. Every
Republican progressive and
ereti
many of the old guardsmen voted
against the measure. The vote was
208 for ship, subsidy and 184
against.
The bill goes to the senate where
the Democrats and progressive Re­
publicans will, if necessary, struggle
with it for a filibustering period
while the old guard that was repu­
diated so decisively at 'the polls
makes a desperate effort to. put over
one more"deal" at -th^. expense of
the U. S. treasury.
Jobs for "Lame Ducks."
Outgoing congressmen, it is un
derstood, were offered comfortable
jobs if the subsidy went through.
Outgoing senators have a similar
choice of submission or oblivion. No
vote—no plums. A mess of pottage
and a' bartering of votes!
The facts and arguments on th€
measure will be- aired in gr^at de­
tail during the senate discussion. The
progressive senators who are not in
favor ^of such vicious legislation ka
the' Lasker bill, even though some
of them favor, constructive govern*
ment aid to the establishment of a
«H|e.rglWftt marine.- wlll^mt:»»
that will make hittory. Eveiy kiiSa
of political and social pressure will
be exertfed against them. The weak
will fall, the strong will stand.
"Nobody knows how much the
ship subsidy will cost the people,**
declared Congressman Frear of Wis­
consin.
Hits at Lasker.
"Lasker is only a publicity man
who buys newspaper space with gov­
ernment l-.oney and floods congress
with propaganda for his bill," &iJ
the lawmaker. 'He does not knov
how much this bill will cost tiM
government annually. Nobody know*
Nobody can know.
"Every newspaper this morning
comes out with editorial notices
ot
with news notices telling us we
ought to vote for this bill. I would
like to say what are behind these
interests. Most men kn jw. Why do
these newsp r-ers demand this? Whj
do these newspapgfcs demand the
passage of a sales tax upon the peo
pie? They do not represent the peo*
pie.
"The press has little influence
when it is not, fair, and.Lasker's pro­
paganda will not deceive manj
members. iz
"No legislative body should con­
tinue an appropriation for 10 yean.
That objection to the bill alone is
vital to any action now and dis­
credits a measure that was on!}
saved by a special rule against the
point of order. I leave that to anj
ordinary fair-minded man."
The pending subsidy bill will dc
none of the following things claimed
for it-as a basis of vote getting—im­
prove w^ges of American seamen,
provide an incentive to shipping, re­
duce government expenditure, aid
the farmer.
No Help tf Labor.
At the hearings on the bill, Presi­
dent Andrew Fursueth of the Sea*
men's union said in. reply to the ar*
giiment that a subsidy was needs!
to compensate shippers for highei
wages paid American seamen:
"As a result of these reductiOnl
ese
the wages of American seamen art
1 tJ
now. much lower than 'the wages oi
Canadian and Australian seamen^
are. practically on a level witft,
British wages and-are substantially
higher than the wages only of Jap'*
anese among the principal marf
time nations?'
Although President Harding use!
.the stock labor argument in his ad*
dress to congress to get labor sup*
port. Chairman Lasker, himself, sail
during the hearings:
"I want to take occasion to sfcS.
here that I thinlc the Seamen's A£
has been one of the most misregi
resented* acts of which I have eves
beard. I came down to Washing
(on believing, as most people
my part of the country do. If
repeal' the Seamen's Act you wouJjQ^g
have a merchant- marine. Thatv^ft^P
pure bunk." .• .»«
T!& subsidy provides a luiyment^ot^
'jfll.OOQ annually to cargo steanofeii.'-^
jot 8,D00 dead' weight tons that\caij J?s
Anywhere from '$250|.000 to
000.: Sych a subsidy constitutes
incenUve to shippers eng^eti
.ioommer$e.
eOn.-y(ne other hand, the su
e^- jafrge' pay ent
a o,
tPQntiiued on page 2)
V3