The Daily Worker Newspaper, December 5, 1925, Page 6

i t eae Page Six , THE DAILY WORKER Sigman i Published by the DAILY WORKER PUBLISHING CO. 1118 W. Washington Blvd, Chicago, Il ‘SUBSCRIPTION RATES By mail (in Chicago only): | By mail (outside of Chicags): $8.00 per year $4.50 six months | $6.00 per vear $3.50 six months | Phone Monroe 4712 $2.50 three months $2.00 three mouths Address all mail and make out checks to THE DAILY WORKER, 1113 W. Washington Blivd., Chicago, Illinois J. LOUIS IL WILLIAM F, DUNNE { MORITZ J, LOEB. Entered as second-class mail September 21, 1923, at the post-office at Chi- ‘cago, Ill, under the act of March 3, 1879, ..Editors ... Business Manager ee 290 Advertising rates on application, The Agricultaral Crisis in lowa or months reports of acute distress in the agricultural states have been alternately affirmed and denied, in the capitalist press and by the government. As the corn crop is now being marketed for Iowa, one of the greatest of the corn states, the real situation comes to. light. The condition of the Iowa farmers is so alarming that it has reached Washington and forced Secretary of Agriculture Jar- dine to -hasten.to Chicago and try to obtain temporary relief for the farmers from the bankers. The price the farmers were obtaining for corn has dropped 100% in 18 months. Its price was $1.01 in October, 1924; 98 cents in August of this yea 70 cents in October, 1924; 98 cents in month of November it ranged from 60.cents down to 50 cents, A number _of small banks that adyanced short-term loans to farmers to enable them to hold their crop until the market price rose, have already gone out of business as the price steadily fell. In many places whole counties are now without banking facilities. Now comes Jardine with a conference to “aid the farmers.” Two corporations are to be organized with a combined lending power of $5,000,000 to assist the farmers in marketing their crop, The personnel of the magnates arranging the details of the organization is not calculated to arouse sentiments of elation in the breasts of the farmers of the corn belt. There is John C. Shedd, of Marshall- Field & Co., also F. Edson White, president of Armour & Co.; L. A. Carlton of Swift & Co.; B. A. Eckhart of the milling concern that bears his name; besides the packing house and harvester trust bank- ers of LaSalle street. ‘ The Jardine combine means that not only the corn, but other agricultural products, including live stock will be mortgaged to the big bankers. For the small independent bankers in Iowa it means extinction. If they are permitted a nominal existence it will only be as agents, clerks, for the big bankers. While the present acute crisis may be overcome-it means the heavier mortgaging of the farms as a prelude to an exodus of the small farm owners. The history of Minnesota in 1923 will be repeated in Iowa.as thousands of families will be driven from the soil and into industry to swell the ranks of the unskilled laborers. Its political reflex will mean a revival of the agitation for agrarian reform and eventually a swing toward independent political action. Were it not for the treachery of the scoundrels at the head of the labor movement of this country a labor party would now be in existence that could take advantage of the farm situation to mobilize the thousands of middle-west farmers as allies in the struggle against big capital. a i This situation is one more reason why every effort must be put forth by the class conscious elements of the working class to create a party that can lead these expropriated farmers. Standing alone they cannot maintain a political organization and will sink into the confusion of futile agrarianism, instead of realizing the fact that their interests are bound up with those of the industrial workers in the cities. German Anthracite Every struggle of the working class against the employers of this country reveals the devastating effects of the treachery of the reactionary officialdom of the American labor movement. The latest salutary lesson to this effect was the arrival of the German steamer Rotterdam at Boston with a shipment of 4,000 tons of Westphalian anthracite. It is the first shipment of such coal from Germany. It is here because the miners of anthracite coa) in Pennsylvania are on strike. Mr. John L. Lewis, the labor lieutenant, of the capitalist class, whose machine is in charge of the strike, is part of the same corrupt officialdom that at the Atlantic City convention of the American Fed- eration of Labor, assailed A. A. Purcell’s plea for world trade union unity. Z Unity of the labor movements of the world would prevent the miners of anthracite in Germany scabbing on the miners of anthra- cite in the United States. It would also prevent the transport. workers permitting a ‘ship- load of anthracite leaving port in Germany during the strike here. In fact unity of the world’s workers would bé a crushing blow to the capitalist class of the world. That is why fakers of the Lewis type ‘fight against it. Their job is to keep the workers helpless before the capitalist class, Black-Jacking Chile and Peru 1034 Under the guise of establishing peaceful relations between Chile and Peru “Black Jack” Pershing is valiantly striving to prevent a peaceful settlement of the Tacna-Arica boundary dispute in order to bring about disorders that will furnish an excuse for permanent occupation of that territory by the armed forces of this country. All the Coolidge clap-trap about peace and order emanating from Washington is calculated to befog the real issue. Every tyro in the realtn of politics knows that the United States government is not a peace-loving outfit. Pershing was sent into that territory to add lustre to his name; he is there to black jack the inhabitants into helplessness so they will be forced to submit to plundering by Amer- dean capitalism. His deliberate: procrastination in carrying out the promised plebiscite is for one purpose only—to make the territory safe for the imperialist brigands of the United States. Mr. Winston Churchill says the world will be ruined if the reds get control of it. His worldyunquestionably. But that sort of world can easily be sacrificed in order that the workers may create One of their own. xa Secretiry of Agriculture Jardine came to Chicago to learn from bankers the “true condition” of the Iowa farmer. He never though of going to Iowa and consulting the farmers. the Workers Party aud ad © Get a member subscription THE DAILY WORKER HILE his henchmen were using every low device known to or- ganizational tricksters to obtain a fake majority at the convention of the International Ladies’ Garment Workers Union, now being held in the city of Philadelphia, Morris Sig- man, president of that organization, and S. Yanofsky, editor of the official organ, published editorials on demo- cracy, orderliness and loyalty in the organization, So unspeakable has been the per- formance of Sigman since he suc- ceded to the office of the discredited Schlesinger that he has incurred ‘the hatred of the overwhelming majority of the membership. When the rank and file perceived the manner in which they were heing betrayed in- to the hands of the bosses in the ladies garment industry they started a movement to save the union from becoming the open adjunct of their ¢lass enemies. When the spokesmen for the rank and file, the leaders of the left wing, demanded a. policy. that would benefit the workers, ‘Sigman fought against them, first by threats, hen with open terror, A wholesale policy of expulsions ‘was initiated. When whole locals went over to the left wing gangsters fairly swarmed around the headquarters trying to atter their way in and forcibly expel the duly elected officials of these locals. So much for ‘the democracy | of Sigman! Fear the Left’ Wing. EALIZING that ‘the feft wing could not be crushed and that the membership of the other locals were swinging to the left, Sigman agreed to a peace pact with the three ex- pelled locals. But it was only an ar- mistice; not the end of the war. What he could not achieve last ‘winter by force he now tries to achieve by a combination of force and _ puerile lies. In a series of articles in “Justice,” the official magazine of the Interna- tional Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Un- ion, the Sigman machine discloses it- LABOR IN THI (The fourth instalment of “Labor in the Far East” deals with the two currents in the lass = Shanghai strike the national’ anti-imperialist current and the labor current, The Preceding instaiments were as fol- lows: 1. The wofKers’ strike be- comes the backbone of the entire nationalist emancipation movement. 2. The revival of the Chinese labor movement in 1924.'$." The textile uggle against workers and their the capi Mt ARTICLE IV. By L. HELLER. HE distinctive fedtire of the mass mass Shanghai ‘strike that has ‘been carried on (fully three months, a fact unparalelled ‘not only in the history of the young labor movement of the East, but in the entire world trade union movement, is that in it two currents, a nai list and a la- bor, merged into on@ poweriul stream. It will be recalled@jthat in the early days of the strike both the workers and the business men joined in it. Not only were the big Chinese shops and banks, employing wage workers closéd, but the small shops that have no hired employees were shut as well. This general strike lasted upwards of three weeks. On June 25, the business strike, by agreement with the Trades Council, was discontinued. Only the workers of the British and Japanese estab- lishments continued to strike, This is in itself a sufficient indication of the national , anti-imperialist char- acter of the strike. Even more striking was the na- tional character in the 17 demands that were put forward at the begin- ning of the strike. Among these de- mands we find: The: restoration of the concessions, abolition of extra- territoriality, and of the consular courts, and a number of other less important demands, “having as their object, the abolition of the privileges enjoyed by aliens in China and the restoration of the independence and sovereingty of the country, OWEVER, the same list includes purely labor deniands, such as, re- cognition of trade unions, higher wages, better conditions’ labor, etc, In this combination’ of far-reaching nationalist and moderate labor de- mands, both aspects of the strike, the nationalist and labor, found expres- sion. And it is clear that at first the main current was the nationalist, anti-imperialist current, the striking workers were an army fighting for the interests of the nation as a whole, No wonder the entire nation supported it. The entire nation, yet with some reservations. One section of the big business men, organized in the Shang: haj chamber of commerce, very soon manifested an inclination to make peaee with the imperialists and liquid- ate the strike. This section had too many interests in common with the foreign capitalists, as well as a com- mon fear of the success of the labor movement. But with the’ exception ‘of this influential but small group the masses of the petty and even iddle city bourgeoisie stood up as 1 around the class, ating an atmosphere’ nly of pathy, but of active material as- | program by the most amazing mis-| |expression of the murderers of the in the Role of F self in a new role, Instead Of assail- ng openly the left wing; and the Com- nunists as it did during the open fight it now tries to present “serious” argu- ments against them, If now fears and respects the power of the left wing. Freedom and Light. O longer able to advocate brute force it now resorts to the typical yellow socialist palaver about free- dom and light and truth. It dare not advocate extermination of the left wing as it once did, so it now tries to defeat the left wing| representation, | It opposes a labor party, one of the basic demands of the left wing, on the grounds that such a party would violate the freedom of the member- ship of the union to choose for them- selves the party they, affiliate with. The editor of “Justice,” says that a labor party embracing. i the workers would be a distinct violation of thetr Political beliefs. In the enext para- graph he lets the gat. out of the bag by declaring that among the mem- bership are “avowed sdcialists who might consider such a plan for ‘a labor party embracinga@ll the workers’ as a Communist rusezfS break up further the socialist political organiza- tion.” Out That is precisely therpoint! This lespicable machine, bound through ‘Hicit relationship to the odious Abe Jahan's Jewish Daily Forward, gets its inspiration from that polluted source. The Forward! in turn, is an working class of Europe, the social- democratic heroes and kings’ min- isters, the Vandervelties, Scheide- manns, Tchernoffs, Dans,’ Abramo- viches and Noskes. Just as these swindlers in Europe scorn the un- ited front of the workers of Europe but form the Closest alliances with the capitalist ravagers in all coun- tries, so the Cahans, Schlesingers and Sigmans who infest the needle trades of this country resist the united front demand for an all-embracing labor party, but support the socialist party fn its treachery to the working class, As they dare not permit their read- ers and members to; learn the real character of the labor party demand of the Communists,’ they distort the nature of such a party by declaring that “if all the workers are to belong to one political party, that whoever would venture to belong to another political group or school would. by the natufe of this resolution be ipso facto discriminated.” Everyone familiar with the struc- turé of an “all-embracing labor party” knows full well that it does not mean torcing all the workers to follow one school of political thought in the abor movement. Such a party would be based upon he trade unions and working class political parties. One Of the funda- mental demands of the Communists*is thaft such @ party must permit varied expression of political opinions. With- in such a\ party the ‘Communists would be free to carry out their pro- paganda and endeavor to convince the other groups that’ our. program is correct; the socialists’ would have the same privilege, likewise the S. L. P., the proletarian ‘party, and such other minor politfeal: groups as may now exist or come into being. Opposing a labor party} on the basis of the objections of the Sigman. mia- chine is nothing more nér less than plain trickery and diglonesty. World Trade Union Unity. N much the same sort of argument the Sigman publication denounces the demand for world trade union unity. First starting out to whitewash their own unspeakable record of thuggery by accusing the Communists of having, in the recent left wing warfare in New York, tried “to root out every shred of unity in our midst and to break down feelings of unity in though ahd action,” the objections to trade union unity conclude with an apology for fascist unions. In plain words, printed in the English language on page 4 of “Justice,” for Friday, Nov. 27, 1925, appears the following sentence: ‘ascist a Rg ywekis | A Hew, . for, instance, would such {America when they discuss the a. scheme, for .the ‘unity of. the /question of recgonition of Soviet workers all over the world’ be.ac- | Russia. Here, in the same column, cepted, by the fascist workers of present-day Italy, or similar large groups in almost every country of Europe and America?” Just -because the fascist brigands and assassins of the working class in Italy object to world trade union unity .that. is an excuse for Sigman to resent its advocacy. Thus is re- vealed the -real character of the gangsters who make up the bulwark of the Sigman machine. By their ac- tions in the New York. affair they were proved to be fascists in practice. We now have the theoretical justifi- cation of fascism in the official or- gan, under the guise of an “impartial, theoretical” discussion “of, convention problems. ‘ World trade unjon unity. is, essential because there“ are fascist. groups in every country, on earth ‘trying .. to crush’ the workers so. they. will. be, helpless before the’ capitalist. .ex-, ploiters., We do not want, unity with such organizations, but, against them. Against, the... methodicat, ,, organized murder of the, working class we raise the slogan of solidarity of all eonscious elements that.are willing to fight for the,,elementary. demands of labor against the capitalist class. The official organ of the I..L. G. W. U. entirely, ignores the necessity of world trade .ynion unity, in order dffectively..to, mobilize the colonial slaves whose industrial products flood the world market, enablnig the cap, italists of the home countries to beat down the, wages of their workers. It ignores. the. necessity for unity of action to prevent coal miners of Ger- many, Wales and other ‘parts of the world producing coal to break strikes of p abetcragy miners, and vice-versa. Its sole objection is that the fascist workers (?) might object. Such loathsome scoundrels; such vile renegades! ~ Recognition of Russia. sS and his ‘machine sink far below most of the labor fakirs in union on the same page, where the wishes of the fascisti are considered a bar to world trade union unity we see the following regarding recognition of Russia: “it is our belief that no person who regards human freedom as the greatest conquest of our civilize tion, can recognize the Russian government, which is #e embodé ment of the greatest tyranny of our day and the most outspoken violator of the idea of human free dom.” Nothing in all the volumes of filth spewed forth from the lie factories of Riga, Berlin and Paris, has sur- passed this vile statement. In this one screed is revealed in all its hideousness the real attitude of the Sigman machine. It, denounces the only workers government on the face of the earth, a government a thousand times more democratic than the’ most democratic bourgeois goy- ernment, as a monumental ‘tyranhy? while expressing grave concern over the opinion of the black-shirt hordes of Mussolini who crush with the‘greatest excesses of frightfulness every vestige of effective labor organization. For two years this has been. the practice of the Sigman machine. The theory has now ‘been worked out as an argu- ment against the left wing demands. Every left-winger “in the organiza: tion should carefully preserve the issue of November 27, and explain its implications to the membership. Against the proletarian revolution’ it espouses fascism; against world trade unity, universal scabbery; against an all-embrcaing labor party, the infamies of the second internia- tional. : Sigmanism, as formulated above, may contrive to prolong its existence by fascist methods or, failing in that, by the manipulation of fraudulent de- legations, but it must go and that soon for it it a blot upon the labor movement that can not be tolerated. sistance as well, ‘fierein lies*'the secret of the scope 6t°the movemént, on the-one hand, and of the steadfast- ness and duration of fie strike on the other. x The longer the strike’ continued, the clearer it beeame ffidt the basic na- tionalist objects mO¥8d forward at the beginning of the strike, and given ex- pression in the 17 ddtiiands, by their very nature, could not possibly be won by any strike, no miléter how solidly and long continued, | return of the “leased” and in seized ‘ter- ritories and concess! like Shang- hai, which are of ndous import- ance to the imperiali8ts as a Pacific base, can be achievéd only thru an armed struggle of all! China, thru a victorious war. The #trike movement, however was limited only to Shanghai and Hongkong. In tH@° rest of China FAR EAST despite all the sympa and the gen- eral rise of the natiolialist movement, the strike wave reiidftied unorgan- ized. The demonstra’ of the work- ers and students hadj& sparodic. chat acter and were e: put down by the cruel measures fi by the im- perialist and their Chinese lackeys. Such was the case in Hankow, Tient- sin, Tsintao, Nankin, ete, RED INTERNATIONAL OF LABOR ’ UNIONS CALLS ON AMSTERDAM FOR FIGHT AGAINST FASCISM (Special to The MOSCOW, U. 8.8. R., Dec. 3.—The Red International of Labor Unions calls upon the Amstergam International Federation of Trade Unions to make a united front against.the recent attacks of the Italian fascisti‘on the trade unions in a letter seit by Losovsky to national: ¥ Be “The Italian trade mnions, built up as the result of decases of work and struggle have been destroyed by cism, The fascist corporations have occupied the roomssjgf the unions. The police and the fascist. mobs have realized the monopoly; of the fascist trade unions. e Make Noose for'Workers. “The Italian industrjalists are utiliz- ing the destruction of the unions in order to fasten the | je still more tightly around the n ers. The Italian pri very difficult situation’ d the aid of the whole international. pfoletariat is absolutely necessary’ in order to call the fascist bands to a@ halt. “The International Fedération of Trade Unions and the Red Interna- tional of Labor Unions are equally in- terested in assisting the Italian unions. * Propose Common Aetion, “We propose common action {in all countries against the unequalled ter- ‘or of the fascists. There is not the ‘lightest doubt about the urgent neces- sity for such action and we thérefore propose a commencement of the work with united forces’ for the struggle against the destruction of the Italian unions. We should jbe grateful to you if you would inform us in what way you think this common action to assist our Italian bi rs should be organized. We declarenow our readi- ONGKONG in Shanghai in Central’ China were’ in the long run left t6‘their own fate. The strike move have entered a d change was necesBiry, ‘some new basis, the adjustment ofthe objects to the isolated characfér'‘t the strike. It Was here in Perdis ge phase of & the movement, that* tHe other, labor side of the ‘strik ap en itself. Leaving the-force fi’ the national slo- gans as the militait tty of the na- tional struggle, urging’‘on to the de- fence of these demands ali the forces of the nation, and plad! the_respons- ibility for the continwation of the na- tional struggle upon thé Pekin ‘and Canton governments. °ophe Shanghai Labour Council movéd'to the fore, not the, national, but the fabor demands: Trade; union recéghition, higher wages, the reinstatement of all strik- ers and some others.’ The national demands were reduced 'to questions of local significance, such, as the mixed court,’the equalizat of the rights of the Chinese and* foreigners in the foreign settlemé@ft. This again opened up the possibility of maneu- vering, negotiating, compromising. (To be continued next issue.) Daily Worker) e the secretary of the Amsterdam Inter- GbE GO) Workers of All Trades ‘Determined to Stand by I. L. D. in Gitlow Fight (Worker Correspondent) NEW YORK, Dec. 3.—The Paper Plate and Bag Makéfs’” Union, loca 107, Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mil. Workers International, at its regular meeting at Grand Mansion Hall, 72 ‘Ludlow street, unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the convicting of Benjamin Gitlow, '', Denouncing the recent decision of the United States supreme court as a move to deny the right’ of freedom of speech to the labor movement, the resolution says in part: WEREAS, the sustaining of Git- low's conviction by the United States supreme court supplies a precedent whith will méan the railroading to long terms in prison of ‘many other well known fighters in the ranks of the labor movement and will make easier the suppression by the capital- ist controlled government of all and any working class organizations which dare oppose their #yen shop rule, therefore be it \ RESOLVED that we protest against and condemn the action of the United States supreme court;) demand the | t repeal of the criminal anarchy law ourselves as in aupport of the Inter- | seois pre: and will work to that end; record tt HINDER that organiz, forcing: the Negro masses;under whose moral, spir who hi capitalized on the exploita- tion of the.Negro, masses, what are they doing to deserve the further con- fidence of, these, Negro masses? Mission, Appeals To. Coolidge. Whereupon. a group. of these self: appointed leaders, under the leader- ship of one, Melvin Chisum, field sec- retary in recent years of the National Negro Presb association; veteran of many shady’ deals; erstwhile promot- er of bogus’ stock companies that were instrumental in ‘filching the working class of his*race out of many of their hard-earned dollars and whose ques- tionable career in the field of Negro Journalism ‘has-been highly enlivened by many charges of slander; went to the white ‘House to interview Presi- dent Coolidge in behalf of the “Negro People of the United States.” It-should require no great amount of. mental exertion to Jay. bare the op- portunistic character of their enter- prise. This charlatan, Chisum, and others of his ilk merely'seek to capi- talize upon ‘the interest. aroused by the American Negro. Labor Congress and regain. fast ebbing confidence of the Negro masses, To. bring the once, docile long suffering flock back into, the, fold: .isythe task to which these shepherds of depravity have set themselves... This group, re- cently formed under. thé. pretentions title of the National, Political and Economic ,Conference has been high ly acclaimed by the Negro petty bour thruout the. nation. In their plea. for. executive, aid for the abolition of-discrimination jn the vari- ous branches of government was em- bodied, reg warning, to, the repub- ‘lean party, delegation, stated that “while in the past, the black race has usually aligned themselves with the party of Lincoln and. Roosevelt be- cause of their belief in t set forth in its platform, we thot it advisable to say to the Party leaders that if they expect the black race to fealty, we shall expect full particip tion in all that pertains to party activ. itl (Bold type mine.) And we might also add, the spoils accruing therefrom, ‘ , Look For Jobs.” Altho this group went up to see “Silent Cal” ostensibly on the pro- gram of racial welfare and betterment we h no doubt that their mission ccessfully” terminated as are the usual run of these pre-election crusades by the throwing out of a few mediocre jobs as campaign spell- sby the chairman of the na- Fepublican committee. harlatanism amply , demon, true character of « certain .| ing up thruout the country in an at- continue in the practice of their part |’ NEGRO POLITICIANS APPEAL TO COOLIDGE FOR CONCESSIONS TO WORKERS’ ORGANIZATION ates By HAYWOOD HALL. The, world-wide reaction of the capitalist press to the American. Negro Labor Congress.has, amply demonstrated the significance and importance of nm, The American Negro Labor Congress has succeeded in Le ¢¢ problem” to an uppermost place in the national mind. In other words, .jt:has called for a showdown on the part of the big political bossés and the self-styled leaders and protectors of the inherent rights of the ‘itual and political guidance they have been for go many years. It has asked of these emissaries of big busine: and also-efctheir;henchmen, the Negro politicians, the “good man Fridays” WAR DEPARTMENT FLATLY REFUSES TO RECONSIDER PAUL CROUCH FRAME-UP (Special to The Dally Worker) ALCATRAZ, Cal., Dec. 3—Paul Crouch, Communist ex-soldier im- prisoned here, has received a flat refusal from the war department to his request for an invegtigation of the illegal“manner in which he was tried by general court-martial and given a sentence of 40 years at hard labor. The war department has declined to give Crouch the op- Portunity of. presenting new evi- dence, The Communist ex-soldier offered to prove that his trial was a pre- Pared farce and that the charges against ‘him and Trumbull were manufactured for the purpose of preventing soldiers from expressing sympathy with the Workers’ cause and the only workers’ country—the Soviet Union. yee It is obvious that something was wrong when a sentence of 40-years was reduced to 3. It is evident, even. fromthe viewpoint of the war de> partment (after a bombardment of. public protest), that the court mar tial had a perverted and distorted sense of justice. But like the’ Tea Pot Dome incident and other erimes of the master class, it must not be _ Investigated, The masses must not be shocked by an. expose of this bosses’ crime: : SSS ee | ciliatory movements are daily spring- tempt to stem the rising tide of unrest manifesting itself within the | the Negro masses, Newspapers hitherto hostile or in- different to the Negro are adopting a more friendly tone. All are solicitous in “keeping our blacks from turning reds”; some even go s0 4 ea as to admit that it is thru their n gence in regard to the welfare of Negro that is responsible for their wn- rest and to insinuate that in the fu- ture they must do better, ‘Ko To Fight Negro Workers, Basing our deductions upon the matter that has come before us since the congress, we are ready to predict that many conciliatory movements fostered by the ruling class will now arise for the purpose of counteracting the “pernicious red propaganda,” The Negro petty bourgeois leaders will again divulge the inate par ness to make/all efforts to remove |, possible hindrance which may occur in our common struggle against fas- cism.”—Signed: Losovsky, bodies and tions to take leadership now obtaining in of their class by adopting the role bias scart a role, the character of which, will at same ‘time,, _ advantages to ‘ By H. M. Wicks , | the ranks of / —