The daily worker. [volume], April 24, 1926, New York Edition, Page Page Five, Image 5

About The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958

Image provided by: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library, Urbana, IL

                
MINERS PUT UP
HARD FIGHT IN
W. VA. DISPUTE
Strike Against Wage
Slash of 20 Pet.
By D. E. EARLEY.
(Worker Correspondent)
PURSGLOVE, W. Va., April 22
For more than two years the coal
operators in this seetlon have carried
on a determined fight against t)he
unions. In one mine after another
agreements have been broken and the
miners forced back to the 1917 scale,
which means to a non-union scab
basis.'
20 Per Cent Reduction.
In March the Paisley Interests, op
erating the Pursglove mines and the
Gonnellsville By-Products company,
served notice that with the conditions
of the industry as at present It was
Impossible for them to continue the
uuion agreement and posted notices of
a 20 per cent reduction.
Strike.
The miners’ union answered this
■with a strike which went into effect
on April 1, tieing up the works com
pletely. Thousands of miners are still
on the picket lines with no break In
their ranks. At Pursglove Mine No. 1
the operators are attempting to get
scabs to run the mine, but with no
success. At the end of a week’s ef
fort only seven or eight scabs had
been secured. Around April 15 the
operators of the ConneHsville By-
Products company posted notices that
all miners failing to report for work
on Monday, April 19, must vacate the
company houses.
Will Not Vacate.
The union officials and the strike
committees got together and took the
position that the union men will not
vacate until they are thrown out. As
long as the union men remain in the
houses the company cannot fill them
with scabs. On the 19th, instead of
returning to work, the miners went on
the picket lines.
GREEN ASSAILS
USE OF STRIKE
BY UNION LABOR
Urges Co-operation with
Master Class
By a Worker Correependent.
ITHAOA, N. Y„ April 22—At a ban
quet in honor of William Green, presi
dent of the American Federation of
Labor, given by the local Central
Labor Union in the basement of one
of the churches, Green assailed the
use of the strike by organized work
ers and urged closer co-operation with
their exploiters.
Assail Use of Strike Weapon.
In his speech he despaired the use
of the strike by the workers and
pointed out that tho “one charge
against labor was that they were grow
ing militant and this was against the
interests of industry,’’ that "we are
getting away from economic struggle.
"Before organized labor was in ex
istence, the workers considered their
bosses as their bitterest enemies.
They were full of the spirit of the
savage,’’ went on this tool of the
bosses who refuses to help the Pas
saic strikers organize and carries ad
vertisements of struck concerns in his
official organ. "We are getting away
from this situation.’’
Dodges Passaic Strike Issue.
He then went on to paint the glor
ies of bargaining and arbitration.
Several times while Green was speak
ing questions were thrown at him on
his attitudo on the Passaic strike.
Green refused to answer.
Bosses’ Tool Lauds Green.
Before Green had been introduced to
the gathering some sky-pilot, known
as a servile tool of the bosses, stated
there Was no difference between the
American Federation of Labor led by
Green- and the church. This preacher
alßo declared that Green was at one
time training for the clergy but that
the American Federation of Labor
"had got him.” fho the sky-pilot de
clared that by Green giving up his am
bitions to be an opium-peddler the
church had lost its greatest leader,
be was satisfied to see Green “run
ning the business" of the American
Federation of Labor.
SEND IN A SUB!
CUT OFF AND MAIL AT ONCE
To the American Worker Correspondent,
1113 W. Washington Blvd., Chicago, 111.
Dear Comrades: I will attend the First Worker Cbrrespondonts’
Conference of the Chicago district to be held Saturday, May 1, at
1 p. m., at the Workers' House, 1902 W. Division St., Chicago, 111.
I write for (name of paper) • •*•»•■••*•••»*• — ymtmisimmessey ssssgeei ueei I
My name is.. »e—ssa»sseea»a>aee*eeee««aese—aaeats‘4 »«*»«««•«»»»•— »**4*eeeedi^s*— ee9e» . •
3 h .V»v.« .» t r< *
Address MMMMMIHIIMMMMIIMMMMItINHIIIMMHM* City
1| \ ‘
(All who expect to attend the conference should mull thfcr coupon
as soon as possible.) •• -
RK.ER. '^OU^JrVO^V\
For the best story written by a Worker Correspondent this week
Abotiy wages, conditions, etc. (make It short!), the following prizes
will be awarded in the issue of Friday, April 30:
1 ST PRIZE—A new novel, "December The Fourteenth,” by Dimitri
Morezhkovsky; cloth bound, an absorbing story of the historic
Russian rebellion of December 1825.
OND PRlZE—Exposure of the capitalist press, “The Brass Check,”
by Upton Sinclair, the well-known book on the capitalist press In
America.
ORD PRIZE—B Booklets, all the splendid little books issued to date In
The Little Red Library.
THE WINNERS
■niIRST Prize this week, "Selected Essays,” by Karl Marx goes to a
(Window Cleaner in Pittsburgh, Pa., whose article exposes the un
bearable conditions the of the National Office and Window
Cleaning Company are forced to face dally.
Second Prize: “The Awakening of China,” by James H. Dolson,
goes to a mine worker in Primrose, Pa., whose story shows how the
yellow officials of the miners’ union brazenly enter into collaboration
with the bosses to use racial prejudices to keep the miners divided.
Third Prize: “A Moscow Dairy,” by Anne Porter, goes to another
mine worker, this one in Staples, 111., who describes this same deplor
able condition in the miners’ union. In this case the officials combine
with the bosses in framing up a militant miner.
All three articles appear on this page.
THE FIRST PRIZE WINNER.
LAST JOB A PITTSBURGH WORKER
TAKES IS WITH THE NATIONAL
OFFICE AND WINDOW CLEANING CO.
•-.lvs mo ■: *•
*'»■«
~ v , By LABORISTO, a Worker Correspondent.
.- ■ a . • “Steady Work! Good Wages! ✓
■oil ?i National Office and Window Cleaning Co.,
415 Fourth Ave., Pittsburgh. Pa.”
PITTSBURGH, Pa., April 22. —When you read the above quoted adver
tisement in Pittsburgh papers continuously, month after month, you know
it is some humbug. I decided to find out.
Wages, 35 Cents an Hour.
I learned:, that the “good wages" consist of 35 cents an hour for begin
ners, the maximum being 65 cents —it used to be 75 cents —and that Mr.
Heckman, the manager, is the most per
fect slave driver. He has a fine speed
up system.- Every morning at 6:30 he
gives each ? worker a certain number
of Jobs which must be completed!
Often it happens that a customer does
not want .his windows washed that
day; for instance, if it is snowing, he
may not want the cleaner to walk in
and out and drag dirt and snow into
the housq. The time that the worker
loses in that way Mr. Heckman docks
from his wages. So it often happens
that nine ..hours’ work in rain and
storm brings wages for six hours.
Wage Docking System.
If a worker should happen to lose
a rag or a sponge worth less than 5
cents Mr. Heckman deducts 25 to 30c
from his pay. If he should happen to
crack a window pane he is made to
pay twice the cost. One of the few
old, experienced workers told me that
one day last winter, when it was un
usually snowy and windy, he lost sev
eral jobs, because the customers ob
jected to having windows cleaned.
That same day his ladder slipped on
the icy sidewalk, with the result that
a small pane about nine inches square
was broken. He could have bought
such a pane for a few cents and put it
in himself ljut for this Mr. Heckman
subtracted $2.25 from his pay. He
was lqft tyJUI 60c for his day’s wages.
Window cleaning is one of the hard
est and most "dangerous johs. Espe
cially is this true in the winter time.
In rain, snqw and storm you must
walk around with a ladder on your
shoulder and a bucket in your hand.
You must always handle water, even
if it is so cold that it freezes on your
hands. Furthermore, consider the
danger of standing on top of a 30-foot
ladder on an icy sidewalk of a crowded
street. And all this for 35c an hour!
18 jobs in One Day.
On an ugly, rainy day a fefllow
worker and thyself were sent out to do
18 jobs, Which is considered practi
cally impossible. As a result the
workers must try to gain some time
by skipping a pane or washing some
pane on one side only. A nice old
lady, whose windows we had just
cleaned, began to criticize our work.
We had to explain to her that it was
the best we had time to do. We
BOSTON WORKERS START
GORRESPONDENGE GLASS;
BEGINS MONDAY, APRIL 26
By a Worker Correspondent
BOSTON, April 22.—The workers’
correspondence class in Boston will
begin on Monday, April 26, at 8 p. m.
In the Frelheit office. The class, un
der the leadership of Comrade B. B.
Rubensteln, will provide the DAILY
WORKER with shop and union news
from the Boston district. News vital
to the workers’ interests is of ut
most importance, and this is the
type of work which we hope to do:
to attract workers into their union,
into the left-wing fraction, Into the
Trades Union Educational League,
and into the party.
The comrades attending this class
will be expected to attend union
meetings and demonstrations, and
then write them up; there may be a
certain type of research work in
volved. They will also learn how to
write for their nucleus wall paper
or bulletin.
Comrade*, we must produce prole
tarian journalists! We must have
approach to the masses thru the
press, which Is the most efficient in
strument Join the class. Attend
the first meeting. The fee is only sl.
showed her the 18 jobs we had to
finish and told her something about
Mr. Heckman and his system. The
nice old lady, who evidently labored
under the impression that an em
ployer treats £is slaves as nicely as a
rich lady does'her dog, clapped her
hands together and exclaimed in sur
prise; “But why do you work for a
beast like that?” We explained that
a worker has little chance to choose
his boss.
Rainy Day, Less Wages.
It started to rain heavily. We had
no coats, since such things only hin
der our work, and we were both
soaked. We tried to work as long as
possible, but three hours before quit
ting time my fellow-worker an
nounced: “This is all we’ll do today
for Heckman or any other son-of-a-
Kun on this side of hell!” So we had
to go back and lose at least three
hours that day.
I stayed there a week and learned
the reason why the National Office &
Window Cleaning Co. always has to
advertise for help, bluffing with their
"steady work” and "good pay.”
WORKER CORRESPONDENTS,
ATTENTION I
All worker correspondents of our
foreign language press are urged to
•end In their names and addressee eta
tlng for whleh paper they write. It le
very Important.
The American Worker Correepondent
1113 W. Washington Blvd.
Chisago, ML
THE DAILY WORKER
THE THIRD PRIZE WINNER.
MILITANT MINER
FRAMED BY BOSS
AND UNION HEADS
Arley Staples Fired for
Activity
By JOHN SMITH.
Worker Correspondent.
VALIBR, 111.,'April 22—The latest
outrage committed against the- mili
tant miners in Illinois shows to what
extent the coal operators are lined up
with the Farrffigton machine of the
Miners’ Union to weed out all opposi
tion to the officials of the union.
Arley Staples, k militant coal miner
of Christopher, til., was framed up
and discharged by the coal company,
and his discharge sustained by the
officials of the union, notwithstanding
the fact that the tools of the coal
company, who aided in the frame-up,
were tried by a' Jury of the Valier Lo
cal Union, found guilty of violating
their obligation dnd fined sls each.
The; Frame-Up.
Staples was charged with threaten
ing to hit his working buddy with a
chunk of coal and discharged
on February 13, this year. Paul
Cotton, Staples* buddy, after the trial,
stated that the coal company threat
ened him with discharge if he did not
testify against Staples. One witness
at the trial stated that Nick Boracek
said to him that he would be dis
charged if he did not give evidence
against Staples. Nick Boracek is a
well-known tool of the Coal company.
Company Stenographer.
The coal company clerk took the
evidence dowii, in shorthand, and
when the evidence was read it was
found to be doctored to read as the
coal company it. The evi
dence was conflated but nevertheless
it was accepted as read by the miners’
official. This is the father-in
law of the piysjdent of sub-district
nine, the notortojjs Lon Fox.
Board lumbers Active.
After the board member
handled the case with the operators’
representative, lie did not arrive at a
decision that day, but took the evi
dence under advisement. The district
board member_jiandled the case on
March 22, and. a week later he noti
fied the local 4scretary that the dis
charge was sustained, and Staples was
kicked out. it
This is onlju *ne example of the
treachery oft Sufi Farrington machine
which is determined to rule or ruin
the U. M. W. qf A. in Illinois. In all
the mines aroqpd this district the
militant miners are being expelled be
cause they are ’sticking up for their
rights.
Class Collaboration.
The class collaboration of the min-
officials and the coal companies
is seen in all the expulsions, and many
miners, who did not understand what
Farrington meant at the last district
convention when he advised the min
ers to co-operate with the mine own
ers to load clean coal, to refrain from
antagonism and to lessen the cost
of production, now see, and have good
personal reason to know what he
meant.
Our organization has been weak
ened by these tactics to such an ex
tent that it is a union in name only.
It will take many years to rebuild
the U. M. W. of A. to the point it
was before Lewis and Farrington took
hold of the union. The progressive
miners are practically all expelled, but
that will not settle anything in the
union, the fight will be kept np in spite
of all the fakers and eventually we
will win, and the progressive miners
program will be' put into effect.
We need more news from the shops
and factories. Send it ini
Detroit Likes It! What Do You Say?
A Worker correspondent from Detroit, Mich., who has subscribed to the
American Worker Correepondent for himself and for another worker, write*
us at follows: “VJo like the American Worker Correspondent very much and
are pleased with the contents of the April issue. The greatest success to the
American Works* Correspondent.”
We urge every worker correepondent who harbore the same sentiment*
toward the A. W. C. will express himself thru immediate action and shoot
in that belated sub of hi*. The time it getting short, the May issue must be
gotten out and your subscription le eorely needed. Send it in AT ONCEI
MAY DAY ISSUE OUT NEXT WEEK! ‘
§
STfrr/fe
MICANTOEE.^
, CORRESPONDENT Jffl!
•A Magazine By and for Workers in the Euiones, the. times, The Mills and on the Und
V Price Jj cents
Subscribe! Only 50 Cents Per Year!
Become a Workef Correspondent! Write for Your Paper!
AMERICAN WORKER .CORRESPONDENT,
JIIS W. WASHINGTON BLVD, CHICAGO, ILL.
THE PARTY IS WITH US!
By J. LOUIS ENCDAHL.
fTIHE Poloom (political committee) of the Central Executive Committee of
the Workers (Communist) Party has given its enthusiastic approval of
the ambitious program for the development of the Worker Correspondents’
movement In this country. At its last meeting it took the following action:
1. Approved the Issuing of the American Worker Correspondent, the
central organ of the movement in the United States.
2. Approved the holding of Conferences of Worker Correspondents
wherever they can be organized over the country. The party officials are
urged to give every support to these conferences.
3. Approved the issuing of the American Worker Correspondent in print
ed form. The first issue was mimeographed.
This Is an indication of the great Interest that the party’s ruling com
mittee takes In the development of the worker correspondents’ movement
in this country. This is the basis for the achieving of growing results In
the Immediate future.
THE SECOND PRIZE WINNER
MINE OWNERS USE
RACE HATRED TO
DIVIDE WORKERS
Workers Must Unite to
Enforce Union Terms
By a Worker Correspondent
PRIMROSE, Pa., April 22.—Tho the
coal miners of western Pennsylvania
work every day, when pay day rolls
around they find that they have but a
few dollars coming to them. Many of
them are from S3OO to S4OO in debt.
Foster Race Hatred.
The bosses in this mining district
are fostering race hatred between the
white and Negro workers in an at
tempt to keep the two divided and
split the miners’ union so that these
bosses will be able to maintain non
union conditions.
The operators, thru cunning devices,
are more and more strangling the min
ers in this section. The district of
ficials of the miners’ union, instead of
helping the coal diggers against the
attacks of the bosses, are aiding the
bosses.
Officials Protect Bosses.
In this section, which is a part of
District 5 of the United Mine Work
ers of America, the bosses refuse to
pay the miners when they are forced
to clear away slate. There is no pay
for yardage.
When violations of the union con
tract are reported to the miners’ union
heads these heads go to the operators
first to hear their side of the story.
Then they come to the miner and be
fore the miner can tell his side of the
story they tell him: "You are wrong.
You can’t do anything about that!”
and when the worker persists in press
ing his grievances they tell him there
is "nothing doing.”
Discriminate Against Progressives.
Many of the progressives in the
miners’ union are discriminated
against when it comes to work. The
militants are only able to get the
hardest and lowest paid work. This is
done in an attempt to force them to
leave the district.
In spite of this persecution of the
militants, they are determined to stay
in the union and fight for union condi
tions in the mines. They are also bat
tling against the spread of race ha
tred that is being used by the bosses
to keep the Negro and the white
worker fighting each other. The for
eign-born worker is also being played
off against the native born. In this
way the company hopes to break the
miners’ union.
Unite for Better Conditions.
The duty of all the Negro, foreign
born and native-born workers is to
recognize this cunning device to di
vide the workers and to unite their
forces by Insisting that the union con
tract be lived up to.
CARRANETTE CO.
FAILS TO CARRY
OUT AGREEMENTS
Sheet Metal Workers’
Agent Absent
By a Workir Correapondsnt.
The strike situation at the Cabra
nette Corporation took a new turn
yesterday after the strikers held a
meeting w.ith Ryan, a business agent
of the sheet metal workers’ union.
Ryan told the men that an agree
ment had bean negotiated with the
company, and that the men had "bet
ter go back to work.’’ He showed
the men the agreement which stipu
lated that the five men who had been
dismissed for agitating tor unioniza
tion, and over whom the strike had
been called, would be reinstated. The
agreement further stated that all of
the men—about 35—who had gone out
on strike would be taken back and
placed at their old jobs. A final pro
vision was that the Cabranette Cor-,
poratlon was to become a closed shop
on Sept. 1.
After a consultation the men decid
ed to rejeetthe agreement, and to stay
out until their full demands for an
8-hour day, time and a half for over
time, immediate unionization, etc.,
weTe won. The strikers pointed out
that if the union plumbers who are
installing the scab work being turned
out at Cabranette's, could be enlisted
to help them, then they could force
the boss to give in to their demands
completely. Ryan, however, warned
the men that “we can’t back you up,”
and that they had oetter accept the
agreement. Thereupon the men elect
ed a committee o< three, and arranged
with Ryan to have a conference with
Frankß, the boss of Cabranette’s Wed
nesday morning to arrange for the
return of the men.
Blacklist Union Agitators.
However, when Wednesday morn
ing came Ryan did not show up, nor
could he be located. After waiting for
him for more than an hour, the boss
and the foreman preceded to take ac
tion. They picked out twelve of the
men and put them to work. The oth
er twenty-five men they told to go
outside and wait until they were call
ed in. Among these twenty-five were
included Paul Gump, C. J. Ulrich, Lee
Whalen and Gus Schaefer, the men
who were originally fired for agitat
ing for the union. Those men also
who had shown the most determina
tion and militancy in conducting the
strike were not re-hired. As one of
the strikers pointed out, the bosß only
wanted those men whom he could kick
around like dogs.
At a meeting held yesterday morn
ing the men decided to »*'d a com
mittee to see Ryan and fIL out why
he had not shown up for the confer
ence, why the agreement had been
broken by the boss and what he, Rygn,
planned to do towards getting all the
men back to work as arranged.
Cleveland Carpenters
Aid the Passaic Strike
By a Worker Correapondsnt
Cli VELAND, April 22 A group
of Cl '.‘land carpenters held a meet
ing hy f night and made a collection of
$U6|F v for the textile strikers. These
earptlcers are out to collect more
money and undoubtedly in a week or
so will have another sum to send to
Passaic.
1,000 COAL MINERS
STRIKE TO RETAIN
OWN CHECKWEIGHMAN
By a Worker Correspondent
SUGAR NOTCH, Pa., April 22
A thousand anthraelte miners are
striking at Sugar Notoh colliery
No. 9 of the Lehigh & Wilkes-Barre
Coal Co. because the company pott
ed a notice that tha mine would
close If a checkweighman suitable
to the employers were not elected
by the miner*. Tha workers refuted
to change their elected man and
added the charge that the company
le running condemned coal thru the
breaker during regular working
how**
BARBERS’ UNION
OPENS DRIVE TO
ORGANIZE TRADE
Workers Plan Walkout
on May 1
By a Worker Correspondent
NEW YORK, April 22 —Journeymen
Barbers’ Union Local No. 913 of Brook
lyn baß started a campaign to organ
ize the barber workmen of Long
Island City, Astoria and vicinity.
The opening gun of the organization
drive was fired at Glaser Nall, Long
Island, at a mass meeting of journey- „
men working in these sections.
The meeting was addressed by J.
Loffini and John Tartamella, officials
of Local No. 913, and Joseph Giganti,
the Chicago progressive leader ex
pelled by international officials. The
speakers all stressed the necessity for
organization and solidarity among
journeymen barbers in order that bet
ter conditions of living may be ob
tained.
Join Barbers’ Union.
Giganti in reviewing the history of
the barbers’ organized movement said:
“There existed a time in this country
when a barber was not considered a "
man, but a slave; he had nothing to
look forward to in leading him to ”
emancipation: today we have the
great International Journeymen Bar
bers' Union of America, which with
the aid of every workman in our craft
will lead us to ever greater achieve
ments.” He urged them all to join the
union and agitate among their fellow
workers to do likewise.
■
Long Hours, Low Wages.
The barbers here are working from
12 to 14 hours a day and 6 hours on
Sundays and holidays. Their wages
average S3O a week. They must de
pend on the generosity of the public
from which they receive tips. The tip
ping system is the most vicious and
demoralizing means of earning a liv- r
ing. Yet the barber must accept them
and expect them.
May Strike May 1.
The Master Barbers of Long Island
have already organized and raised the
prices of haircuts and shaves, thus
forestalling the impending organiza- r
i tjon of the journeymen. The senti-
I ment for organization is very strong
among the workers and plans are un
der way, it is said, to declare a strike
of all men working in this area on
May 1 if the list of demands formu
lated are not accepted bjl the boss
barbers.
Chamber of Commerce
Gives Ride to Labor
Convention Delegates
By a Worker Correepondent
HOUSTON Tex., April 22—The
State Federation of Labor convention
delegates will be carried to the San
Jacinto battleground, 28 miles from
Houston, in boats furnished by the
Houston chamber of commerce as part
of the program for entertaining the
delegates to the annual meet to be
held here.
When attempts were made to levy
an extra assessment of $1 a member
from all the Houston locals it was
declared that the reason for the large
assessment was to avoid asking out
side aid to entertain the delegates and
that union funds were the only funds
with which to entertain union labor.
A statement appeared in the "Labor
Journal” recently that more than
enough had been raised to carry out
the program as planned.
When the action of the entertain
ment committee accepting the offer of
1 the chamber of commerce was pointed
out to a number of the union officials
they tried to excuse the action of the
committee by stating that the offer
was accepted because it was made in
"friendliness” and that the motion
was not to “ask for aid.” but that if
aid was offered “it could be accepted,”
1886 —May Day—l 926. Forty year*
in the wilderness. Time for the work
ing class to move ahead.
iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimmiimiiiiii!
»liEi
CORRESPONDENCE
What? Where? When?
Why? How?
BY WM. F. DUNNE.
A handbook for the worker who
wishes to learn HOW to write
for the workers’ press. A new
publication that should be read
by every worker.
10 Cents
12 copies for one dollar,
THE DAILY WORKER PUB. CO.
1113 W. Washington Bird.
Chicago. lit.
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Page Five