The Daily Worker Newspaper, June 23, 1926, Page 5

‘the explosion. . “The fellows were * they had to live under most miserable $5, WOM THE DAILY WORKER THE FIRST PRIZE WINNER. ILLINOIS STEEL "SEEKS TO HIDE BLAST CAUSES Cover Up Number of Workers Killed By a Worker Correspondent. GARY, Ind., June 20.—Officials of the Illinois Steel Company, a subsid- jary of the Gary-controlled United States Steel Corporation, and the city’ authorities of Gary are. throwing a cloud of mystery around the accident which occurred in the by-products plant last Monday and which re- sulted in the death and maiming of a large number of workers, most of whom. were Negroes and foreign-born. Company Hides Real Facts. The concensus of opinion of the many individual workers interviewed by The DAILY WORKER reporter is that a great many more workers were killed and injured than has been offi- cially reported by the steel corporation and its agents, the Gary newspapers and the civil authorities. “I am sure there were more killed than what is given out. There were three or four hundred men working in the plant, which was completely de- stroyed by the explosion,” declared one of the workers in another depart- ment. “It is not possible that the number of killed and wounded can be as low as what the company hands out.” Company “Forgets Dead.” Another worker, who was an “old- timer” at the plant and knew how the company acted in such cases, de- clared: “There must be more than 12 killed. I know of many accidents and deaths that happened in the steel mills here and there was not a peep from the company. I’m confident that there were at least 50 killed in that department. “When anyone is killed or hurt in the shops the company does not both- er to report them. They just forget them. They’re doing the same thing now. You can’t learn how many were killed, as the company is damned wise. It ships out the bodies as fast as it can.” 100 Unaccounted For, “My foreman came into our depart- ment after the explosion and told us there were at least 100 cards in the time rack at the by-products plant whose holders were unaccounted for,” stated an aged Negro worker, who begged The DAILY WORKER report- er not to mention his name, as he feared the terror rule of the steel trust, “I know of at least 26 that were killed in that department,” confided another worker. “My brother worked in that by- products plant. So far I have been unable to locate him,” declared a Ne- |’ gro porter on the New York Central railroad. Gases Intolerable. “Weeks before the explosion came, the gases in the by-product plant be- gan to be unbearable,” declared sev- eral workers when asked what caused afraid to kick. If you kicked you lost your job. Jobs were scarce and hun- dreds waited outside the gates ‘for a chance to get a job. “Nobody could work in the by-prod- ucts plant very long. The work was too hard and the gases too much for anyone. Only Negroes and ‘foreign- ers’ were employed in that depart- ment.” Mostly Negroes from South, “Most of the Negroes that worked in that department had just come from the south,” declared one Negro worker, who had worked in the by- products plant several weeks before the explosion. “Down south they were farmers or share-croppers. They came north to get away from the rot- ten conditions down there. There conditions and live in fear of lynch mobs. They came north to escape those wretched conditions. ps Seek Big Money. & % “They came north ing . they could get big money. ney here and were forced to g in the steeel mills here. They found ‘wages to be very low. They had to work ten'hours a day. They were also forced to live in tar-paper shan- ties that were in many cases worse than what they lived in down south. “Most of the Negroes that worked in that shop are without families or here. They had no real ad- here. They lived in hotels and cheap rooming houses, Many of them wanted to make a few dollars 80 they could get out of Gary and try their luck somewhere else, The names of many of them will never be known.” Workers’ Resentment Aroused. The negligence of the steel corpo- ration and its utter disregard for the lives of the workers has caused a widespread resentment among the workers of all races in Gary. The resentment against this subsidiary of the steel trust has increased because of the high-handed methods used by WIN THESE BOOKS For the best story of work- er correspondence sent in this week, to appear in the issue of June 25, you can win THESE PRIZES: A beautiful’ cloth bound edi- tion of a book no worker ‘can be without. oclal ‘Forces in American History, by A. M. Simmons. The only radical interpreta- tion of American history in a new edition just issued. Q—My Flight From Siberia, by Leon Trotsky. A story of escape from exile, in an at- tractive board-bound edition. —Lenin on Organization. THE THIRD PRIZE WINNER. EXPOSE BOSSES’ ‘VACATION’ RUSE FOR SCABBING Workers Find Out in Time, Balk Plan By A Worker Correspondent MILWAUKEE, June 20.—A short time ago the bosses in the National Enameling and Stamping Company here were busy organizing an excur- sion to Granite City, Ill. The workers of the plant were invited to partici- pate, but were required to remain in Granite City to work in the branch of the concern in that city. Nothing was said about a strike being on in the Granite City plant. Get Suspicious. A militant worker employed in the plant here suspected a strike in Gran- ite City and by correspondence car- ried on thru the Workers Party he found,that he was correct. He got on the job immediately, spoke to many of the workers, and they became interést- ed in the matter and decided not to go to Granite City to scab. The result was ‘that the trip was called off altogether and the workers in Granite City were. in a better posi- their strike. However, tion to conduct 1 _ the company found ‘out who starte this campaign to get. the workers i refuse to innocently become stri breakers. Worker Fired. x This militant worker was called be- fore the management and soon there- after he found himself discharged. But he again obtained employment and is not worrying, confident that he did a good job for the labor movement. Pittsburgh’s Daily Worker Builders Hold Lively Meeting By a Worker Correspondent, PITTSBURGH, Pa., June 21. — Ata well attended meeting of The DAILY WORKER Builders’ Club, the question of the drive and how to speed it up was discussed, Every comrade present was sure that Pittsburgh could still win first place and therefore be able to send a DAILY WORKER represen- tative to Moscow. The slogan from now to the close’ of the cam: will be Pittsburgh Over The Top for the DAILY WORKER. Every comrade in the district should take advantage of the two weeks re- maining, and get on the job stronger than ever, \ PRIZES AWARDED T0 THE WORKER CORRESPONDENTS FOR WEEK'S BEST STORES This week first prize, goes to the author of the story on the horrible steel mill blast in Gary. It gives an Inside view of the causes that brot aabout the disaster and the attempt of the steel trust to avoid responsi- bility, assas”, by Upton Sinclair, The second prize, “The Awaken- ing of’ China,” by Jas. H. Dolsen, goes to the author of the story; “Mayor Walker’ Breaks Subway Workers’ Strike. : The third prize: “A Moscow Diary,” by Anna Porter, goes to the worker correspondent from Milwau- kee, who exposes the attempt of the The author gets the book “Man- | THE SECOND PRIZE WINNER MAYOR WALKER ‘BREAKS SUBWAY WORKERS’ STRIKE City Squanders Funds to Get Scabs NEW YORK, June 20.—The Walker administration has within the last few weeks broken two strtikes of subway workers who went on strike in an at- tempt to force the transit companies to pay the prevailing rate of wages al- ready granted them by law. The city administration is squandering thou sands of dollars advertising over the length and width of the land for men to come here for jobs building sub- ways. Not a single New Yorker can be found building subways because they demand the prevailing rate of wages. This sensational charge and many others were ‘hurled at the Tammany administration by Delegates Curtis, Hanna and the many other represen- tatives of the city day laborers and mechanics to the Central Trades and Labor Council of New York. Betrayal Denounced. The meeting of the Central Trades and Labor Council, usually a placid af- fair of.conservative trade union men, at the last meeting seethed with pro- test and discontent. Delegate after delegate of the per diem employes, loyal Tammany men most of them, bit- terly denounced what they termed the “betrayal” of the Tammany city ad- ministration. “It is no secret that or- ganized labor put over the Walker ticket,” said Delegate Hanna, “They promised us the prevailing rate of pay (union scale). They promised us the 8-hour day. They even appropriated a million dollars for equalized rates. We now have 42 applications for equal- ization of pay pending before the board of estimate. They are com- pletely ignored. They are referred to the morgue—the budget committee.” “The million appropriated, the comp- troller to me in plain words, is for raising salaries of yearly employes and not for wages of day laborers,” re- ported another. “And some of, the commissioners there are our own la- bor men, too” Forsake Non-Partisan Politics. Delegate Lefkowitz of the Teachers’ Union, sadly repented his political nai- vette. Last October the teachers were promised a raise in salary and he worked his head off to put Walker and Tammany into the city hall. Then Gov. Smith vetoed the Ricca bill grant- ing an increase to teachers and Brother Lefkowitz is sore and enlightened. “Last fall I was out of politics,” he gaid. “Now I’ve learned my lesson. I think we may soon have to get into politics, and it will not be non-partisan politics either.” Division of Forces Blamed. Chairman Mulholland hit the bull’s eye when he told the delegates that the main reason why the chaotic state among the city employes prevailed was because the various locals en- gaged in the controversy with the city administration persisted in acting “on their own,” even intimating to the ‘Central Trade and Labor Council to keep its “hands off” and‘ “to mind its own business.” Action Demanded. One of the delegates demanded that the Central Trades and Labor Councii arrange an immense demonstration on Labor Day to show the world that 750,000 organized New York worke: can no longer be ignored. This was not accepted, though it received con- siderable support. A motion finally prevailed that a special meeting be called of the Central Trades and Labor Council for the purpose of taking joint action on the matter of making the city administration live up to the law of paying the prevailing rate of wages. Furriers Triumph: One triumphant note sounded in this welter of discontent. A committee of the triumphant furriers appeared and thanked the Central Trades and La- bor Council for the aid extended dur- ing their fight for the 5-day, 40-hour week and urged the Central Trades and Labor Council to help carry on the fight for the workers in the other in- dustries, Aid to Briitsh Miners. The British women’s committee for the aid of the miners appealed for help to the British miners, The Cen- tral Trades and Labor Council gave them a cordial hearing and granted a credential to allow them to visit all affiliated local unions, A collection taken up among the delegates netted over $77, Progressive Resolutions Adopted, On the initiative of the Italian La- cal No. 89, International Ladies’ Gar- ment Workers’ Union, a strong reso- jution was adopted condemning the at tempted inroads of fascism in Amer- ica. In another resolution Mayor Walker was called on to give the workers of the city adequate represen- tation on the citizen's municipal and educational survey committees that he is now selecting. We need more news from the shops and factories. Send It int Ohio Prétest Meetings Demiand Freedom for Sacco and Vanzetti BELLAIRE. 0., June 20. — Mass meetings have been held in Neffs, Til- tonville, Bellaire and Bradley protest- ing against the atempt to send Sacco and Vanzetti to the electric chair. I, Amter, of Cleveland, spoke at these meetings, giving a review of the cases and the present situation, Pro- test resolutions were adopted at all the meetings and forwarded to the governor of Massachusetts. The subdistrict of the United Mine Workers has sent out resolutions for adoption by‘ all the locals in the sub- district protesting against the mur- der. Ise e Adolf Poéifico, vice-president of the subdistrict ofthe United Mine Work- ers of Ameriea, presided at the Bel- laire meetifigt PASSAIC. STRIKE LEADS MOVE FOR TEXTILE UNITY Amalgath at ation of Small wel E Necessity PASSAIC'N, J., June 18.—Comment- ing upon the recént textile workers’ conference at New York, the “Textile Strike Bulletin,” issued by the Passaic strike committee, lends significant leadership to the textile workers thru- out the country in the following edito- rial: “A new era is dawning in the tex- tile industry. The conference held in New York promises to have very far reaching effects. Must Have Unity. “There are a number of struggling unions and committees in the textile industry that have been fighting val- iantly for. years to become strong enough to..cope with the situation among textile workers. But it is fully recognized that the power of the bosses is not to be dealt with on a small scale. In many cases there have been defeats of the workers and the conditions have constantly grown worse. ry “Leaders in these organizations have recognized the necessity for uni- fication of all the forces and amalga- mation of alt'the organizations. This problem wa$’taken up at the confer- ence and the first steps were taken towards deffiite work along these lines. ry 43 “The Passaic strike thas inspired the other workers to more determined effort to organize the unorganized in the textile industry. The existing unions afford a splendid basis for such work. With all these united into one live working force it would be possible to make a tremendous head- way among tle unorganized. “The committee that has been elect- ed to carry on the work will have the unanimous support of all the workers in this important and vast industry. Only hope and encouragement is seen with nothing> but full success as a |} final result.’ « UNEMPLOYMENT DECREASES 1.3%, ON RAILROADS A distinct gain in railroad employ- ment compared with 1925 is reflected in wage statistics for March 1926 is- sued by the interstate commerce com- mission, According to the commission the roads were employing 1,745,414 workers this year, compared with 1,722,275 in March 1925. This is an increase of 23,139 or 1.8%. Maintenance of way and train and engine service forces ‘practically mo- nopolized the.gains over last year. The commission reports this year 21,085 more workers in maintenance of way and 10,931 more in the train and engine groups. The number of shopmen fell off 10,295 in the 12-month perfod. , %* Railroad workers in March 1926 av- eraged $143 a'month in wages, com- pared with $138 in March 1925. But the commissién attributes this gain almost entirely’ to one more working day in March 1926, The averages in- clude high-salaried executives and of- ficials. Employes paid by the hour averaged $137'In March 1926. The report féatures a table the proportion of railroad and expenses going to labor each year since 1911, In 1925 wages represented 63% of the total cost of operations and 47% of total revenue. This compares with 61% of operating expenses and 42% of gross revenues in 1911, Marine Workers for Unit Strike Rules SYDNEY. — (FP) — The Marine Transport union executive has carried the following resolution: “In future no strike shall be declared by any sec- tion of the transport group unless the a PASSAIC MILL OWNERS AGAIN FOR VIOLENCE “Nimmo the Brutal” to Return to Garfield (Special to The Daily Worker) PASSAIC, N. J., June 20.—That the mill owners of Passaic are determin- ed to go to any length to break up the strike of textile workers is seen by the petition of Mayor William A. Burke of Garfield to the city council that Sheriff George P. Nimmo, whose brutal sluggings of strike pickets aroused the whole country and led to his withdrawal from the city, be call- |; ed back to the city with his deputies to “maintain order.” There were not enough councilman present to have a quorum, but Mayor Burke said he would act on his own responsibility in asking for Nimmo’s return. Nimmo is sheriff of Bergen county and in his “military occupa- tion” of Garfield previously, read the “Riot Act” and ordered his deputies to break up meetings of strikers, and beat them up savagely and arrested them when they gathered anywhere. He and his men were not paid by the city, and it is said that they were paid by the mill owners, Neither could anyone be found who had asked him to come into Garfield. Weisbord Issues tatement. Declaring that all the disorders that did exist were caused by the mill owners, the police and the scabs, Al- bert Weisbord, leader of the strike, issued a statement saying that the mill owners had imported gangsters to break the strike and that these characters are “parading thru the streets armed to the teeth with guns, knives, clubs, blackjacks and lead pipes, beating up our strikers while the police look on and laugh.” “What does all this mean,” con- tinued Weisbord, “It means that the mill owners have déclared open and violent war against the strikers. The mill owners understand that they are above and beyond the law and can with impunity perpetrate all of the outrages they continually charge against the strikers. Up Against Capitalist Government. “What can the strikers do? Can we file complaints with such bitter and biased judges as Davidson and Baker? Davidson has repeatedly de- clared that he will listen to no strik- er’s complaint against policemen of Passaic. Recorder Baker has proven himself a fascist who would stop at nothing in crushing the union and toadying to the mill owners.” In confirmation of this, Baker had officers ejected an attorney, Jack Rinz- ler, from his courtroom, because Rinz- ler protested at Baker’s remark that he did not believe the testimony of a striker, Stephen Bores, charged with striking a scab. “If you can’t come into this court without running down the court like you are trying to do,” said Baker, the mill owners’ judge, you can stay out of it.” So the judge ordered Chief of Police John A. Forse to put Rinz- ler out. {Government States Business Is. Good; for Business Men WASHINGTON, N. ©., June 21, —/ Further gains in business over 1925 were registered in the second week of June, as seen from the figures on check payments, according to the weekly statement of the Department of Commerce. Reduced to a daily av- erage, the carloadings of merchandise during the first week of June were more than 10 per cent greater than during thte corresponding week of last year. Building contracts let for the second week in June were 12 per cent greater than during the corre sponding week of 1925. Wholesale prices averaged higher than in the first week of June but were still below a year ago. Loans and discounts of federal reserve mem- ber banks declined from the previous week but were higher than last year. Interest rates, both on call loans and time money, showed no change from the previous week, but increases were registered in each over a year ago. Loans on stocks and bonds to brok- ers and dealers by federal reserve member banks in New York City de- lined from the preceding week, while prices of representative stocks aver- aged higher than in either the first week of June or a year ago. Bond prices continued to advance, while the volume of stocks and bonds sold on the New York Stock Exchange was greater than in the previous week and for stocks larger than a year ago, Business failures were more numer- ous in the second week of June than in the previous week but were slightly smaller in number than in the corre- sponding week of 1925, Many Stave in Surinam. THE HAGUE, June 20.—The news- papers here today ask the country to support the Dutch colony of Surinam owing to crop failures there as a re- sult of drought. The coffee, cocoa and sugar crops completely are wiped out. More than 3,000,000 guilders (about $1,200,000) damage has been done, and the stock and cattle are starving. Violent forest fires have damaged millions of guilders’ worth Gplon Sinclair (Copyright, 1926, by Upton Sinclair) WHAT HAS GONE BEFORE, + ARNOLD ROSS, oil operator, formerly Jim Ross, teamster, drives over the smocth California roads with his young son, “Bunny”, beside him on the way to Beach City. In the hotel they meet Ross's leasa-hound, Ben Skutt, who has arranged for Ross to meet a group of property owners, whose land Ross is anxious to get because it contains oil. Those that own the lands at first agr alike. But intrigues soon split the group. A number of oil promote: few of the more influential ones in an attempt to get the lease. Skutts e: Ross and the boy when the discord is at its highest point, He attempts to get — them to sign a lease with Ross. At the moment when threats begin to fly Skutt introduces Ross. Ross arises and in his southwestern American language tells the owners that he is an oil man; that they must beware of mere promoters and crooks; that he will drill quick and drill right and guarantee them good royalties, Many of the owners are imprersed. But there are still recalcitrant ones. Bunny ting mear the window taking it all in. A boy appears at the window. He tells Bunny he is Paul Watkins and the lady of the house his aunt. He ran away from home but he is afraid his aunt will send him back. He wants Bunny to go out in the kitchen on the excuse he wants a drink and opén the back door. Then Paul can sneak in and get something to eat. Bunny does thi of the house. While Paul eats the borrowed food, they talk. He father is a “Holy Roller”. That’s why he left home. Bunny offer: but he refuses to take it. As Bunny is inviting Paul for dinner at day a scrap starts in the house. The meeting ends in a row and Ross comes out in disgust and says he doesn’t want the lease. Just before they get into the car Bunny runs off to find Paul. Paul has gone. Bunny is very down-hearted. Mr. Ascott said that yes, he did; and Dad said that he had come to that field to give most of his time to it, and he was a-goin’ to make a big thing there, and he wanted to get a little « organization together—they would all stand by one another, and that was the way to make things go in this world. Mr. Ascott © said that of course, co-operation was the word in modern busi- ness, he granted that; and he wrinkled up his forehead, and studied some papers on his desk, and did some figuring on a pad, and asked at just what hour Dad had to have that lumber. And Dad explained that his cement-man had the cellar and the found- ations half done, and his boss carpenter was a-gettin’ a crew together—in a matter like this he wouldn’t trust no contractor. It would suffice if Mr. Ascott would have the sills there by Thurs- day night. Mr. Ascott said they were having a lot of trouble be- cause the roads about Prospect Hill were in such bad condition; and Dad said he knew that, and something would have to be done about it quick, he was jist a-goin’ to see the county superintend- ent of roads. part; and Dad invited him to come down and look the field over, and let Dad put him onto a few good things down there; and they shook hands, and Bunny had his hair rumpled again—something _ hing in the course of business he had to pretend that he didn’t . mind. ‘ So.that was that. And as they got into their car and drove © away, Dad repeated his maxim that grease is cheaper than steel. Dad. meant by that, you must let people have a share of your profits, so they would become a part of your “organization,” and do quickly whatever you said. And meantime they had come to the office of the superintendent of roads, where they had another very special private interview. This official, Mr. Benzinger, a sharp little man with nose-glasses, was not dressed like a man of money,.and Bunny knew it by the difference in the tone Dad took. ‘There was no exchanging of gold-foil cigars. and no talk about,the weather; but Dad got right down to business. He had come to Beach City to put through a job that would employ hun- \ So then Mr. Ascott said all right. he would do his’ * } dreds of men, and mean millions of dollars to the community; the question wis, would the road authorities co-operate to make,this _ / possible. : Mr. Benzinger answered that of course, the authorities wanted to do everything to that end—it was the purpose for which they were in office; the trouble was that this “strike” at Prospect Hill had caught them without any funds for rush work. Dad said that might be, but there must be some way to handle such a situation, everybody’d ought to gef. together. Mr. Benzinger hesitated, and asked just what it was that Mr. Ross wanted. So Dad explained that he was jist about to drill on such and such a tract, and he drew a little map showing the streets that he needed to have graded, and the holes filled up with crushed rock, so his sills could be delivered on Thursday night. Mr. Benzinger said that might be arranged, perhaps, and asked his secretary: the only other person in the room, to step out and ask Mr. Jones to come in; Dad caught the meaning of that, and as soon as the secretary was gone, he pulled a little roll of bills out of his pocket, remarking that Mr. Benzinger would have to work overtime on the matter, and be put to extra trouble © and expense, and it was only fair that Dad should make it up to him; he hoped Mr. Benzinger would understand that they would have many dealings in future, as Dad believed in taking care of his friends. Mr. Benzinger put the bills quietly into his pocket, and said that he understood fully, and the county authorities wished to give every help to men who came in to build up the community and its industries; Dad might count upon it that the work on those streets would start in the morning. So then they shook hands, and Dad and Bunny went out, and Dad told Bunny that he must never under any circumstances mention what he had seen in that office, because every publicy — official had enemies who were trying to take his job away, and — would try to represent it that Dad had paid him a bribe. But of course it wasn’t anything of the sort; it was the man’s business to keep the road in repair, and what Dad gave him was jist a little tip, by’ way of thanks, so to speak. You wouldn’t feel decent not to give him something, because you were going to make a lot of money yourself, and these here poor devils had to live on a beg- gar’s salary. No doubt Mr. Benzinger had a wife and children at home, and they were in debt; maybe the wife wag si¢k, and they had no way to pay the doctor. The man would have to stay late at his office, and go out tonight and hustle up some men to do that job, and maybe get scolded by his superiors for having acted without authority; the superiors were doubtless in the pay of some of the big companies, which didn't want roads built except to leases of their own. There was all kinds of wires like that being pulled, said Dad, and you had to be on the watch every minute. Never imagine that you'd be allowed to comé into a new place and take out several million dollars worth of wealth from the ground and not have all kinds of fellers a-tryin’ to get it away from you! m That all sounded reasonable, and Bunny listened while Dad impressed his favorite lesson: take care of your money! Some day an accident might happen to Dad, and then Bunny would have the whole thing on his shoulders; so he could not begin too early to realize that the people he met would be trying, by devices more or less subtle, to get a hold of his money. Bunny, not thinking of opposing his father’s arguments, but merely getting things straight in his own mind, was moved to remark: “But Dad, you remember that boy Paul? He certainly wasn’t trying to get our money, for I offered him some, and he wouldn't take it; he went away without my seeing him again.” “Yes, I know,” said Dad; “but he told you his whole family is crazy, and he’s jist crazy a little different, that’s all.” i , (To be continued.) 4 j we