The Daily Worker Newspaper, February 28, 1925, Page 8

ODAY, I was aboard the Russian steamer, Garibaldi, which is load- ing in Hamburg for London. From London she is going back, to Lenin- WHY NOT LIKE THIS? - eign ship’ raising the red flag of re- volt unchallenged and unhindered in the staid old port of Hamburg?” But it is a fact. There is the ship and that’s her flag. And in it there is that grad with a mixed cargo, containing | Which makes you like the unrelieved a lot of machinery, however. Aly |}2nd hopeless drudgery, the soulless Russian steamers have changed their |224 grim routine of this capitalistic names since the revolution. .They have all been. rechristened and re- named,after,men, whose. work for the revolution has gained them immortal- ity. I knew that the Garibaldi was lying in the Hansa harbor, but the Hansa harbor is big and has at least three landings. I asked the boy on the harbor ferry that was taking me across, but he couldn’t tell me either. So I had to depend on my own wits to locate the ship. Well, there I stood, well for’ard on the ferry boat as it was cleaving the wind-swept and tossing waters of the Elbe with eyes peeled for the black funnel and the red flag of the Garibaldi. You must know that the Garibaldi is an old friend of mine. I have been on her before the same as I have been on the Karl Marx and the Trotsky. And sure enough, just before we got to the last landing I spied her, a small black steamer, lost amongst the pretenti- ously looming hulks of her big Dutch, English and Norwegian neighbors. And only for her big red flag with the bright hammer and sickle in the up- per right hand corner she would have remained inconspicuous and hidden from my eager and searching gaze. BOLSHEVIK ship in a foreign and hostile port amongst thou- sands of ships all flying long estab- lished and respectable flags is a new and unexpected sight. As a revolu- tionist, it does you good to look at it. It gives you confidence. It conjures up before your mind glowing visions. It makes the blood run quicker thru your veins. She may be a rusty old tub but that only raises her more in your opinion. For raggeduess always marched side by side with the red flag: ‘The red om her stern, its en- tire length "to the harbor’s breeze, is a bold- and uncombattable challenge of capitalist commerce and civilization. Uncombattable I say, as the iron laws of trade are stronger than man’s petty prejudices and hat- reds. “Is this possible,” you say, “a for- world, of this vast Elbe harbor with its slave ships manned by slave crews. The rumble and thunder of the cranes and wenches, the hissing of the es- caping steam, the clanking of the chains, the tooting of whistles great and small, all this is like sweet music to the ears of the dreamer. Listen— that’s the International and Marseil- laise. Dead hopes are revived, new ambitions spring up and new’ resolu- tions shape hemselves. FTER I had picked my way across some slippery and partly sub- merged logs and across a number of scows and lighters I managed to get within hailing distance of the Gari- baldi. Yes, there was somebody in her stern. One of the crew, a Russian no doubt. I knew they were expect- ing me, So, “Hello there, Garibaldi,” I hollered at the top of my voice to make the sound carry across the tu- mult and uproar of the harbor. Yes, he has ieard me. He is looking my way. I point at myself and then at the ship to make him understand what I-want. “Yes, the ship, take me over to the ship.” Ah, he’s. got me. Yes, he’s making for the boat tossing down below, alongside of the ship. Five minutes later I’m aboard. HEY were glad to see me back, T'd been on her before. I was again struck by the fact that on this ship they have no watchman. When you board any other ship in this har- bor, a watchdog of the shipowners is always waiting for you at the top of the gangplank to inquire into your business, past history, family connec- tions, etc. I later asked the sailors of the Garibaldi why they have no watchman aboard and they replied that en Russian ships every member of the crew is a watchman because | Russian'ships are as much the prop- erty of the ten ’as of the State. ‘Well, they led the way aft and down into the firemen’s quarter. UCH has been written about working conditions in Soviet Russia, but to get a real idea of how workers are treated in and under the By Jack Gaveel (Hamburg ) Red Republic you must see for your- self. Never on any ship have I seen anything like this. Here everything possible has been done to make the seaman’s life bearable. The men sleep im new and clean bunks. The. whole place is kept scrupulously clean and is well ventilated. And there is no overcrowding. And just think aboard this ship they have showerbaths for the crew. Quite a contrast, as you see, to the filthy and beastly conditions that generally prevail on the ships of the capitalist nations. The chuck is plain, but wholesome and plentiful, as I can testify because this was my second dinner aboard the Garibaldi. As for the pay, here’s an example: A. B.’s get about six pounds and fire- men seven pounds a month. But what I wanted to get at is the share that the crew have in the management of. the ship. For after all, this is the most important part. So I interviewed some of the members on this point. They want to great pains to explain to me. To give you everything they said would take too long so here is the gist of it: On board Russian ships the captain’s. sole function is that of getting the vessel to its destination and in the exercise of it he can of course take such measures as he shall deem fit to further the desired end. RE’S none of that needless “pull-dosing” of the crew which is customary aboard capitalistic steamers, Each man has his work cut out for him and as the welfare of the ship is identical with that of the seamen, all do their duty faithfully and to the best of their ability. Any time the men have a grievance a meeting is called te trash the thing out. If it’s anything serious a committee is sent to lay the result be- fore the captain. And the skipper is compelled to listen to the men, con- sider the question and do everything in his power to bring the matter to a satisfactory solution. In fact meet ings are called regularly both for edu- cational and other purposes. A radi. cal and extensive library is carried on board. As you can see a spirit alto- gether different from that which rules on the ships owned by capital. istic nations. This new and demo. cratic spirit permeates every inch of ficers down to the humbiest members of its crew. Take this captain of the Garibaldi. You think you are looking at an American stiff. No uniform with brass buttons for this seaman, He’s a sailor as truly as any stoker or coal passer, And he wants the world’ to know it. A plain black hat, a. ditto coat, a big muffler and there you have the uniform of the captain of the Garibaldi. Nothing to distinguish him. ashore he does not keep. aloof proudly and disdainfully from his crew. No, he goes ashore and uptown together with his men. He talks to ,them, laughs with them and they all have a good time together. LEAKY old tub, with her rudder IT had seen there reminded me of what an official of the Schiffahrts- bund had told me about a rotten old trawler in Hamburg harbor. He had been aboard this steamer a weck or so ago to try and prevent her cap- tain from taking her out in the con- dition in which she then was. leaky old tub, with her rudder as good as disabled, because the rud- der chain had been tied together in several places with hay wire, with her plates coming loose and her boil- er on the verge of exploding, she was a sight to see and entirely unfit to go out, Her crew was fed on potatoes, bread and rotten meat. Sleeping quarters were in the most impossible places, little lousy boxes crammed and knocked into any old nook and corner without the least regard for the comfort of the men. And in these so called sleeping quarters the foor consisted of a number of planks laid across a big hole full of water. Fresh water there was none except some twenty gallons. ‘ ‘HERE is no reason why all ships cannot be made just as good as those of Red Russia. But for that, one thing is pre-essential. That is the international industrial roganization other workers then shall the Red Flag fiy from ALL ships and seamen be treated like human beings instead the Garibaldi from its captain and of- {of dogs. Florida As Seen By A Worker - Much of Florida is flat, uninterest- ing country, with great tracts of gray sand covered with pine trees. The relatively high lands are all sand, the lower lands black soil shading into pure muck as in the everglades. The big planters (there are 6,000 acres of erange trees in one block owned by one company near Lake Wales) are full of hope for the future. The small growers and back woods planter is not so optimistic and complains bitter- ly about the state of the market, the eupidity of the buyers, and particular- ly of the railroads who, he says, charge as much for moving the crop 200 or 300 miles to Jacksonville as do from Jax to New York. Lake Wales lies in the Ridge Dis- trict. That is a where the monotonous level of the wooded plains of Florida is broken by a succession of relatively high ridges and valleys be- tween, many of which contain lakes. The “realtors” are impressing their optimistic psychology on all the cock- roach business men of the hundreds of little towns that are springing up, fed by northern money. Some of the town laborers are also infected and are trying to buy town lots and shares im orange groves out of their puny wages. In few other places in Am- erica perhaps does this custom more certainly necessitate theh laborer’s family doing without proper food, be- cause rents are high (exceptionally so in the winter, due to the tourist in- flux) and so ia food, and wages are low; not far from the absolute min- imum required. This is not mere lit- erary license; not Marxian phraseol- | find. They hauled them up on top of SA ogy, but fact gained from observing how the laborers live; moreover, liv- ing it out with them. To those who prate so knowingly about the American standard of Liv- ing I would suggest they try “mak- ing both ends meet” on a wage of from 15c to 30c an hour, while paying $20 a month for a shack to live in and with milk ranging from 17c to 25c a quart. Other food prices being higher than in Chicago except for meat, which is a trifle cheaper. Even without investing anything the white laborers’ children, and himself as well, show a poor physique. The blacks show up better due to living in poorer dwellings, a lesser desire to keep up appearances, and a better knowledge of real food values. Just a few miles from the little town of Lake Wales lies the home of the Mountain Lake Club, where a pack of wealthy northerners make their winter home. They have lots of room among the wild pine ridges and lakes, and have built a fine golf course, a great clubhouse and each one has his separate bungalow. There we find Edward Bok, the karo syrup king, President Suspender King and scores of others with prominent money bags and abdomens. Last win- ter they gave work to many laborers and what do you suppose they are do- ing? Oh, you would never guess. Bok and some others were building a BIRD SANTUARY, that is, they put a big crew of men and trucks on and ranged the country for miles round about and dug up all the huckleberry and other kinds of bushes they could a ridge and by using lots of manure and water, right here in the woods, where presumably the birds have al- ways lived quite happily, they started a@ fine, exciusive plantation .of their own for the birdS. No doubt they figure that all the nicest birds in the neighborhood will come inside and the fences and guards will keep unde- sirable persons out and the sweet singing of the birds will help soothe the tired nerves of the poor, weary millionaires. Both white and black labor is em- ployed apparently impartially all over the place. The southern white laborer who has not been used to working close to Negroes doesn’t know what to make of this. They say, “The nigger is the cause of the low wages, he ought to be segregated somewhere, perhaps in Africa,” and I would come back with inward malice, “Why I think the blacks do very well, indeed. They seem to do as much work as we and do it just as well. I rather like to work and talk with them.” © One hangover from the old is evi- denced in two water buckets, one for the whites, another for the blacks. Over I go for a drink and when cau- tioned against the blacks’ bucket say: “These blacks look good and healthy co me. I was: brought up on a farm and we never watered white and black cows separately.” A truck driven by a black passes and the old line whites tell you of ‘ow only few years before such a con- ‘ition would not have been allowed. You restrain your anger and say: ‘Why he seems to me to drive that cruck just as well as anyone, and does By H. C. Fillmore his best to get as much money as he ean for it, just like a white man.” Summing up one may say that blacks and whites are coming togeth- er down here, are growing slowly to understand one another, You might think that an organiza- tion like this Mountain Lake. Club, composed of men who, haye., more money than they know what todo with would pay the laborers pretty. well. The truth is they pay just what they have to and no more. 25 cents and 30 cents an hour and this maximum only because living in Lakes Wales ts very high. At Plant City where our (7) winter strawberries mostly come from, a farmer offered me $1.50 a day, from sunrise to sunset. Listen to the karo syrup king when the park super- intendent told him that to keep his grounds in order during the summer be would have to pay a man $3.00 a day. “Damn it, man, there is not work enough here to keep him busy. A man ought to care for two or three Places. These caretakers are half asleep anyway. They don’t know what work is.” And you ought to have seen his indignant red mush, and pot belly shaking as he said it, POPPI Telephone Monroe 2284 «> ~ Genova Restaurant P ITALIAN-AMERICAN 1238 Madison Street N. E. Cor, Elizabeth St Spaghetti_and Ravioli Our Special Arrangements for Parties on Short Notice