The Daily Worker Newspaper, February 20, 1929, Page 6

SCRIPTION RATE in New York only): $4.50 six months 50 three months e of New York): 0 six months onths checks to The Reparations Conference The “Expert Committee” entrusted with the task of in- quiring into the question of German indebtedness and pro- posing a definite settlement of the German Reparations obli- gations, is now meeting in Paris. The formation of this com- mittee was resolved months ago by the Ministers of the En- tente Powers and Germany at Geneva. In the months that have elapsed since the dec question, there have been lively diplomatic controversies and press campaigns in regard to the Reparations problem and with reference to the role and appointment of the experts. The m important events of late have been the publication of Parker, Gilbert’s report and Morgan’s entrance into the Expert Committee. The question as to the powers of the experts has been vehemently argued out. The French imperialists assumed the standpoint that the experts were absolutely bound to ob- serve the stipulations of the existing treaties, with special reference to the Treaty of Versailles. The German demand, again, insisted upon the members of the committee being financial experts and economists, who should examine the solvency of Germany from the expert standpoint without reference to the figures and stipulations contained in the Peace Treaty and the other agreements. A further question. The representatives of the French heavy-metal industries demanded that the Allies should in advance establish the payments to be required of Germany. A repetition, therefore, of the comedy of Versailles. To this both the German Government and the United States objected. Finally, the French Government desired the experts to be appointed by the Reparations Commission. This is symptomatic of the present tendency of French imperialism. As is well known, the American imperialists had with the aid of the British succeeded in depriving the Reparations Com- mission, which until 1924 was a very important tool of French imperialism, of its decisive importance. Owing to the fact that a representative of the United States is attached to it, it is difficult to attain unanimity in its resolutions. And without unanimity it is powerless. To such a state of affairs the French big bourgeoisie cannot become reconciled. Therefore it desires to be rid of its trammels now that the franc has been stabilized and that jts interests are so well represented by the Poincaré regime. All the more so seeing that the Franco-British alliance af- fords it a liberty of action.it did not know before. Finally, and this is the crucial point, the heavy-metal industry desires to place in the forefront of the negotiations on German obli- gations that sum of 132,000 million marks at which the Reparations Commission: originally established the German indebtedness. The French imperialists are of opinion that the Dawes Conference did nothing to invalidate this figure. What results, then, have the French met with in their de- sires as to the composition of the Expert Committee? In two points the French claim appears to have been defeated. In the first place, the German experts are to be placed on the same juridical level as their colleagues from the other coun- tries, and secondly the members of the committee have been appointed by the respective governments. This is formally undoubtedly the case. But in reality the German experts are faced by the compact Anglo-French bloc while the Entente Powers have reserved to themselves the right of arranging for a revival of the Reparations Commission. By the intervention of the United States, however, the situation has been materially changed. The American im- perialists are by no means satisfied at the common action of the French and British imperialists, all the less so seeing that their attitude is also directed against the United States. | Therefore the American imperialists, who are the creditors of France and Great Britain, are intervening energetically in the matter of the reparations settlements. They desire to show that the final decision in the matter lies with them. The report of the reparations agent Parker Gilbert has begun to point the entire question in another direction. In France, it is true, the capitalists of the Foundry Committee and their press lackeys tried to prove that Parker Gilbert’s report seconded their own demands. Thus various news- papers representing the heavy industries, such as the “Avenir” and the “Echo de Paris” jubilantly pointed out that it was now obvious that Germany was in a position to pay 2500 millions of reparations per annum. But this was a wrong interpretation of the Gilbert report, which, while af- | fording an excellent pretext for increasing the offensive of German capital against the standard-of-living of the German workers, is internationally by no means directed towards sup- porting the Franco-British creditors. Indeed, it aims at open- ing their eyes to the fact that their hope of being able to re- place the Dawes Plan by some other system of Reparations payments excluding the control of American imperialism, is altogether vain. By the appearance on the scene of Morgan and his part- ner Lamont, the domination of the Expert Committee by Yankee imperialism has become patent. The house of Morgan, which placed the war-loans of the United States to the En- tente Powers on the world market, is now about to dictate its wishes, which naturally coincide with its business in- terests, to all debtor nations. The problem of reparations and debts dominates all French politics at present and has been the subject of the latest parliamentary debates. The French debt-arrangements (i. e. that between Caillaux and Churchill in settlement of the French indebtedness to Great Britain, and that between Bér- anger and Mellon in settlement of the French indebtedness to America) have not yet been ratified. But their ratification is only a question of weeks. As a matter of fact, some 10,000 million francs will already be due next spring. Therefore it is an absolute necessity for the bourgeois parties, including the socialists, to come to some general debt-agreement pro- viding for 62 yearly payments. In this connection, too, there is a difficulty. Poincaré continues to uphold the thesis of an intimate connection between the settlement of the debts and the solution of the reparations question. Coolidge and Hoo- ver have declared their absolute opposition to this standpoint. luded. In view of these differences among the imperialists, the workers of France and Germany have only one interest, viz. of forming a revolutionary front against financial capi- and the heavy industries in both countries. For the enor- s sums at stake will naturally be squeezed out of the _ DAILY WORKER, NEW YORK, WED? SDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1929 | THE TRAIL OF THE “LITTLE BLACK BAG” | ; CROM). |from 315 local unions and 80 agrar- ho, Sour, ariel or te 15 delegates from Puella, repre-|ian groups attended the sessions By Fred Ellis Sis 1.—The CROM was based on class series by Albert Weisbord, repre- sentative of the T. U. E. L. to the | | recent Unity Congress of Work- | senting 10,000 (textile—stronghold | which lasted five days from Janu- CROM). jary 26th to January 31st. These 119 delegates from miscellaneous | were no fake delegates. They were states, representing 43,000, | the real stuff. Straight from mine, collaboration, the new Unitarian Confederation on revolutionary struggle. 2—The CROM had organized | | those industries which were still | Mexican owned, more or less, such | ers and Peasants in Mexico City, td 38 delegates from Railwaymen’s ‘The discussion regarding this difficulty has not yet been con- | pook tne Seepeee uote repre- | Union, representing 55,000. sented at the congress, its pro- Total 167,000. gram, its candidate for president, } No Fake Delegates. the composition of the new execu- | tive elected, ete. Today we print the first half of the fifth article. ee! ae Article 5. By ALBERT WEISBORD. As the economic counterpart to the senting one-quarter of the whole | industrial proletariat and one-half of of funds, many of these delegates, | lutionary gathering. although duly elected from mass or- ganizations, could not arrive but|than the CROM. Miners’ Union Predicts Brutal Mexico, with the Communist Party here, too, as the driving force, have | | just completed the National Assem-' prp7spRURGH, Pa., Feb. 19.—,with which they ‘got their jobs as| bly for the Unification of Workers «phe prutal, savage manner in Coal and Iron Policemen. and Agrarian Toilers. There al- which ex-convicts and gangsters, em-| without such records would never | ready had existed a Committee for 1oveq by the Pittsburgh Coal Com-|take such despicable jobs and could Proletarian Defense that had formed y, took the life of John Burko- not get them even if they would, be- | agricultural workers (2% million) |and connect with the rural toilers, | agrarian groups were also invited to |the conference, which was held under \the auspices of the “National Com- mittee for the Unification of Work- ers and Agrarian Toilers.” Time Is Ripe. The time was very ripe for such |a National Assembly, the purpose of | which was to form a new National | Confederation of Labor affiliated to | the Montevideo (Uruguay) Secretar- |iat, against the CROM and the Pan- American Federation of Labor. I have already described the situa- |tion, which was rapidly leading to the disintegration of the CROM. It will be recalled that during the be looked upon as a mere incident in| voke a reason for doing so. These | life nor as a means by which this| gun-toting jailbirds and gangsters brual “Cossack” system of ruling | are engaged for these miserable jobs the workers will be eliminated.” Says a leaflet issued by the|the strength of their police records, the National Miners Union thru |standing. Thomas Myerscough, secretary, More “Cossac! The miner, John Burkoski, who, “The only use that will be made was killed had done nothing except of this killing by the bosses is the te incur the enmity of a couple of |attempt to increase the force of the the Pittsburgh Coal Company’s state police, whose members are police, hired and paid by the com-jequally and sometimes more vicious pany, and given police authority by then the gun-toting convicts who the state, under the infamous pro-|make up the Coal and Iron outfits. visions of the Pennsylvania Coal and | Like the Coal and Iron Police, the Iron Police statutes. prime purpose for the existence of In punishment for knocking this |the state police (cossacks) is to act Calles government then calling itself miner senseless, dragging him to the |as strikebreakers. Always they are revolutionary, that the government company jail, and there doing him |on the side of the bosses. Always, had actually aided the CROM which to death with a beaten that lasted |and with the* assistance of the Coal at one time claimed over a million|six hours. Governor Fisher has jend Iron Police, they beat up and members (although the industrial |dropped the officers from the force, |sometimes kill the workers who are proletariat numbers but approim- truly a light penalty for murder! on strike for better conditions.” ately 700,000 workers.) The National Miners Union de-| The union tells the miners that Hpwever, due to the treachery |Clares: \they must organize themselves and and exposure of the CROM leaders,! “The police records of these brutal,” compel a stop to the brutalities their | the move to the Left of the masses,|savage barbarians who took Bor- jemployers and their employers’ state the attack against the CROM koski’s life, were the very references | visit upon them. through the new governmental pol-) icy, and mass desertions, the CROM | had fallen to 150,000 members with | about 150,000 other workers organ-| ized in various independent unions, | some under anarchist leadership and | \influence. The disintegration of the | HILARIO MONTENEGRO By MARTIN FEINSTEIN | CROM, coming at such a revolution- | ary conjuncture, offered tremendous | (Read at the Mass Meeting In Protest Against the Murder of possibilties for the new movement | Hilario Montenegro) (ane eal pea ee movement) ‘They laughed, and left a field of wounds upon your breast, — TUEL Rephasented: Surprised you into rest, > Yo this National Assembly for) They left you without breath, ‘ the Unification of Proletarian and | Stark-staring upon the clamorless plains of death, Dark-stricken upon the bloody fields, Agrarian Toilers, I was sent as the} Sayernal | Geleeate of araie| Where death yields nion jucational ague, e + American section of the R. I. L. U.| Perabo arid — sd pot When I arrived I found that al- hers: have fallen, others will tall again, ready about 450 delegates represent-| It is the habit of the brave ing one half of all the organized) To fall, not slave, | workers in Mexico had been elected,' To die, besides about 100 agrarian delegates | Kn Berk Rohe. who came from the National Cam- i way en pesinos League (semi-proletarians) These are not our disasters, covering 22 of the 27 states in Mex-| Inclement are the storms that shake the masters, ico, The delegate list was as fol-’ The day comes, ‘ itoles | The day of importunate drums, | 100 delegates from Jalisco, repre- "The day of shadow for the money-changers, senting 20,000 (mining). When thered ranvers 20 delegates from Sunaloa, rep- Rid g resenting 5,000. Side. by aid 25 delegates from Nayarite, rep- vy side, f wi ‘ resenting. 5,000. 7") Breaking a way through death into the living light, + 50 Gen sor ey He cage FightingMontenegro’s fight, representing 15,000 (oil). Lightin: 10 delegates from Nuevo Leon, | With the pe ri bp he of a world’s new birth representing 2,000 (metal—Monter- | srienibanigtee then in f} rey). , | taal 4 50 delegates from Coahuila, rep- Hilario will know, resenting 8,000 (coal). Wherever children play 28 delegates from Vera Cruz, rep- filario will stay. i |by the Coal and Steel companies on | paren and field they came, repre- | as traction, taxis, public works, tex- tile, food, some mines and govern- ment works (firearms) ete. The those organized, and made up | new confederation had, on the other | Unfortunately, due to -great lack | most enthusiastic and earnest revo-| hand, those industries most import- | ant to attack American imperialism Already this body was stronger} in Mexico, such as oil, ports, mines, | | metal, railway, agricultural workers, | | ete. The basic heavy industries were | | with the new assembly. | 8.—During the course of the as- sembly the whole powerful Railway- | anarchist group was _ practically | wiped out of the leadersip. Very/| important CROM unions’ (textile, | workers, printers—5,000 members, Proletarian-Agrarian Toilers . . .. | men’s Union became one of the lead- Bloc, the revolutionary masses in Police Murders W all Continue factors in the convention. The | Men} | etc.) came over. Order of Business. An ambitious order of business ; een pn |shop committees all over Mexico; ski in the company-established |cause they are expec@:d to beat up| was worked out. This included: but as it was necessary to win the) .i.on at Imperial, Allegheny defenseless men, women and children| 7, General report on the situa- County, Penna. recently, must not|during the strikes and to even pro- | tion facing the working class and the struggle of the proletariat against capitalist rationalization for better sccial legislaion, against company | unions and for the abolition of the | “white guar for protection of Western Pennsylvania District of all claims to the contrary notwith-/ the unemployed, etc. | +2. General program for the agra- | rian to’ including fight for con- |tinuation of land grants, for the arming of the agrarian toilers, and {to fight against the daily murder of rgrarians by civil and military au- thorities. Questions of organizations of the unorganized workers (in gen- jeral, but particularly miners and agricultural workers) and support of strike struggles (lessons from the | railway strike and the Jalisco min- | ers’ strike, etc.) 4, Formation of a new National | | Unitarian Confederation of Labor | (constitution, executives and ques- | tions of organization and relation- ship to unions not in the new uni- tarian confederation.) | 5. Formation of various National | | Industrial Unions (and problems re- lating thereto). | 6. International Trade Union Unity (relations with the T.U.E.L.,| with the Montevideo Secretariat, and | with the Mexican masses in the U. Ss.) | Intense Discussion, | It is not necessary here to give! in detail the reports that were given. I have given the points, roughly, | | that were covered in these reports. It is sufficient now merely to point out that the discussion was most in- tense and serious throughout, all delegates participating and speak- ing freely. More, the passion with which they spoke showed clearly that they were releasing all the pent up feelings and emotions which |they had stored up, crushed as they | |had been by the government collab- | ‘oration of the CROM officials. A, whole decade was expressed in the | torrent of words that flowed out at | ‘this assembly, | We cannot give the points that | made the discussion so interesting | |and valuable. However, the discus- sion on international relations must receive brief attention. {| * * * Tomorrow we shall print the continuation of the fifth article by Weisbord, fraternal delegate from the T. U. E. L. to the Mexi- | can Unity Congress of Workers | and Peasants. It takes up Weis- bord’s reception as fraternal dele- gate, the resolution on relations with the T. U. E. L., the solidarity pact signed and the achievements of the Congress, Copyright, 1929, by Internationat Publishers Co. Inc. HAYWOOD’S BOOK The Battle Field of Cripple Creek Before Hostilities and After They Begin; Class Harmony Disturbed All rights reserved. Republica- tion forbidden except by permission. Previously, Haywood wrote of his early life as a miner, cowboy and homesteader in Utah, Nevada and Idaho; of years as union member in the Western Federation of Miners; he becomes its out- standing leader; the W. F, M. battles in Idaho and Colorado, He is now writing of the famous Cripple Creek strike of 1903. Now go on reading. * oe By WILLIAM D. HAYWOOD. PART XLI. N 1903 the Cripple Creek district was producing twenty-four million dollars a year. Small cities and towns were built on these summits, some of them above timber line. Railroads climbed, twisting, tun- neling, trellising mountains to the very shaft-mouths at the top. Cripple Creek and Victor I found to be neat sub- stantially built towns with streets and avenues, marked here and there with high smokestacks indi- cating mines in the center of town. The miners’ unions in the different camps owned their own build- ings, usually two stories with the lower floor rented to some merchant, and on the upper floor halls, club rooms and library. The halls were rented out to various fraternal societies. The Cripple Creek Min- ers’ Union had a library of eight thousand volumes. The miners of this district as a body were as widely read men, and of as high a standard of intelligence, | as could be found among workingmen anywhere. They lived in pleas- The Assembly for Unification yresenting 4,000 (textile—stronghold even as it was, over 400 delegates , ant little cottages, with such flowers in the yards as would grow at ten thousand feet above sea-level. The town of Altman was the high- est, over eleven thousand feet. hpi eae For years the miners and business men had associated with each other, belonged to the same fraternal societies. They were mostly American born, But the strike had been on only three days, when on August thirteenth, 1903, the merchants of Cripple Creek district, through the influence of the Citizens’ Alliance, announced that from that day on, their business would be conducted on a cash basis. As usual, all the miners had paid their bills on the first of the month, and the merchants expected to catch the miners without enough money to carry them through the month. George Hooten of the Anaconda Miners’ Union came to Denver and talked over the situation with me. They needed potatoes badly in the district. I authorized him to look around the city and see what he could do with the jobbing merchants about getting two or three carloads of potatoes. He found three carloads of Greely potatoes, came back and told me what they would cost. I gave him a check for the amount, including the freight. When the potatoes arrived at Anaconda they were sold to the miners right out of the cars. Then we got some carloads of flour. As we bought in wholesale quantities and paid cash, we got lower prices and saved discounts and were able to sell these commodities to the strikers and their friends for less than they could be bought in any store in the district. $5. oe pe A little later Hooten, with Tom Parfet of Cripple Creek and John Harper of Victor, came to Denver to talk over the proposal I had made to the unions, to start stores as a means of distributing strike relief. It was the first time this had been tried in America. These three men had been appointed store managers by their unions, and it was the intention to put the stores in our own buildings as soon as we could have them vacated. With this agreement, the three managers we to the jobbers and wholesale merchants of Denver and selected their stocks of goods. I got out a series of coupon books with the emblem of the organiza- tion on each coupon, each book containing coupons of different values. These were good at face value for anything in the store. When our stores were vacated by the merchants who had occupied them previously, we moved in our stocks of clean, wholesome goods. There was a meat market, a grocery, and a green grocery The stores were a big success. We did a large cash bus the strike relief. Not having to make big profits for the st nor large salaries for the managers, we were able to sell first goods cheaper than they had ever before been sold in Cripple Cre district. We had the merchants so worried that they were in a e of insomnia. There was not a striker nor a working member of the union but was well pleased with the experiment. They realized an increase in real wages, through being able to buy necessities so much cheaper. We had good luck, too, in having such good men for man- agers, and in having our own stores from which we could not be evicted. * * * It seemed that the management of the El Paso mine was going to start a little circus of its own, as they built a high board fence all around that mine. For this and other work they paid the scabs in their employ a dollar an hour, which was large wages considering that the miners of the camp had not asked for more than three and a half | aday. The members of the District Union were on the job and learned that an attempt was going to be made by the Mine Owners’ Associa- tion to destroy the old shaft house at El Paso Number 2 in order to blame it on the strikers and have an excuse to bring in the soldiers. The miners prevented this by making the foul scheme public. By this time the secretaries of the unions had sent me pictures of scabs and strike-breakers with detailed descriptions. I got out 4 cir- cular, headed by a description of a scab in lurid terms. In the center of the poster was Bill Gleason, a notorious strike-breaker, one of the leaders among the scabs. Around his picture I put a circle of others, with their personal descriptions, and sent about two thousand of these to the Cripple Creek district to be posted up on telephone poles, bill- boards, and other public places. One miner pasted a copy on the plate glass window of a Victor store. Bill Gleason came along and recognized his picture. He became so angry that he pulled out his six-shooter and smashed the circular, plate glass window and all. CaO Teg The strike had been on only two weeks when a conference was held with James Burns, the president of the Portland Mining Com- pany, and a settlement was brought about which put seven hundred men to work. The Portland mine was one of the leading properties of the district. At that time it had produced seventeen million dollars in gold. The management was exéeptional. During the strike of 1894 an agreement had been reached at once and the Portland never shut down during that strike, and would not have done so at this time if there had not been a misunderstanding between the manager and the committee from the district union. The district union reported to head- quarters that when terms were reached with the Portland and the men went back to work, the city of Victor went wild with joy. We took it | as an indication htat the strikes on the other mines would not last long. It was about this time that we seemed to have reached an agree- ment with the mine managers of Telluride also, but the conspirators of the Citizens’ Protective Association were at work. ._ 8 In the next instalment Haywood writes more of the great Cripple Creek strike; how the commission of Governor Peabody made “a brief and stealthy visit” and then called in 1,000 troops; the infamous General Sherman Bell; the federal government helps with rifles; open military despotism. Readers who wish to obtain the whole story of Haywood's life in one bound volume may do so without extra charge by sending in one yearly subscription, renewal’ or extension.