The Daily Worker Newspaper, August 15, 1931, Page 4

Page Four ne ra DAYLY WORKER, » NEW YORK, SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 1931 > Solidarity Labor Day | nt against mes and relief. workers? Certai salaried oi als cannot c they represent the work their leadership the cl: bership of the A. F. of L. h more than a million be and wage cuts and to struggle for unemployment insurance. Witness the heroic fight of the 40,000 miners under the militant leadership of the National Miners Union! he battle of the miners against @gainst the combined forces of the United Mine Workers’ officials and Day Versus is only the beginning of the labor bureau- who can see| yal of the leadership | are becoming more and are deter-| t the class col- jon of the betraying officials, | and to build a-fighting union in every industry to protect themselves | st starvation. bor Day, which was inaugurated to switch the workers from lutionary May Day, must be into a day of solidarity with ing miners. On this day the| rs of New York City will show] | determination to fight and not| h was organized to help the| in their struggles and to give} g workers on the | y, has arranged a ss demonstration at| ht Amusement Park, Sept. 7,! Labor Day). All trade unions, work- | | ers’ organizations, and the unorgan- ed as well, are urged to participate | in this demonstration, and to raise} | their voices in the protest against the} of the workers by the lead- | ership of the A. F. of L. Our slogan on thet day darity with the striking miners | nd textile workers,” “Solidarity. in| demands for the release of the| ine Negro boys in Scottsboro,” “Soli- | darity in the fight for unemploy- ent insurance,” “Solidarity in the it for Negro equality and self- | determination,” “Solidarity in the de-| | fense of the Soviet Union,” Soli-| } da: will win the miners’ strike. | Solidarity will ultimately put an end | to wage slavery. will be | Shaw and Lady Asto r In the Soviet Union “| neither was she starved to death and ‘|robbed. She. was. given every oppor- Lak *TheSoviet Planned Economic Order” By JAMES LERNER. Move ks dealing with the So- Yes Union have been issued in the last eight or nine months than of any other subject. Up to quite re- cently most of these books on the USSR were inclined to laugh at the workers’ attempt to run their gov- eemment or to show the utter im- possibility of this new system. But suddenly something happened. ‘The. Soviet Government adopted a huge plan which was to change the greatest agricultural nation in the world to a leading industrial country without all the misery that the other §adustriel nations have. So ambitious these plans seem that the en- of all shades raised a huge Guffaw at the “insanity” of the Red etiventurers. The “dying gasp,” the “last stand” were some of the terms used to describe the Five-Year Plan for industrialization. Two and a half years later the ‘auebs have changed to amazement T& reminds one of the correspondence schoo! ed, “When sat down st the piano they all but the vest of the world is dem- the complete failure of capitalist economy. of the latest books to deal the USSR is entitled “The So- Planned Economic Order.” The correspondent of the “Christ~ fam Science Monitor,” William H. Chamberlin has collected a great deal interesting documents issued by the Sovlet Union and the Bolshevik Par- om the carrying out of the plan. Chamberlin also explains the ‘vpsious means such as shook brigades, competition, etc. which the y workers have originated in er to build the foundation of So- I Although the book was published im June the statistics on the results of the plan are out of date. The Stetmerad tractor works which are as far behind the sched- ule are already in line with the called for amount. And the 50 per cent eofiecttvization which was expected at the end of 1931 was surpassed in of May. be swapped part of the ts that which deals with the col- re farm movement. The history the mocement is accurately told a [and the reader can easily see how the farm question, a sore spot to all capitalist nations since they came into being is passing out of the Pic- ture in the Soviet Union. On the whole the book good. And mainly because the author sticks to facts and does not give too much of his own opinions. Although Cham- berlin tries to be “fair” by showing the other side of the picture, any intelligent worker will immediately see that the faults mentioned such as shortages of manufactured goods {and certain foods, and the failure of the quality of the goods produced to keep up the rapid pace set by the amount produced are the result of the Plan’s concentration on heavy industry and that the next two years, in which the attention of the gov- ernment will be turned to producing articles like shoes and clothing, things which the pre-revolutionary | Worker rarely got, will solve these problems. It is worth noting that while the 1913 production of shoes in Russia was five and a half million pair, last year 62.8 million pair were pro- duced in the Soviet Union. So great~ ly has the standard of living risen there that despite this huge growth in production the shortage remains. And so with all other goods. Only a few days ago tt was announced that the Soviet Government was con- centrating on huge state farms for the breeding of cattle. Within the next two years these farms will have solved the food problem. Mr. Chamberlin says that the rest of the world should adopt some of the features of the planned economy. Like all those who have come forth with “plans” for capitalism, he does not realize that the reason why plan- ned economy can be introduced in the USSR is because capitalism has been destroyed. Capitalism is by its very nature, planless, and any at-~ tempt to plan this system are only fascist schemes to save the system from collapse. “Planned” Italy is the answer. Not many years ago Herbert Hoo- ver declared that there could not be any economic progress in the Soviet Union because private property had been abolished and therefore the country was doomed. Today the So- viet Union has on its immediate or- der of business “to overtake and out~ strip” the leading capitalist countries and Herbert Hoover is leading the kingdom of private property in its convulsive efforts to keep alive. Irony? No! The difference between planned socialist economy and “in- dividualistic” capitalist economy, ,@bout the victories of socialism. Lady | own words we know that he is fully | the inspection of the model cow-shed country. If the miners win—you, and every worker wins. say ,“we'll stay out till we win.” The whole working class must reply immediately. Va.-Ky. Striking Miners’ Relief Committee, Roo SCENES OF THE MINERS’ STRIKE AGAINST STARVATION— The miners’ fight is a challenge to the wave of wage-cuts, speed-up, Relief is the big problem. SKETCH BOOK terror and unemployment sweeping the “If we get relief,” the miners Rush relief to the Penn.-Ohio-W. m 205, 611 Penn Aye, Pittsburgh, Pa. Bernard Shaw spoke the truth in England about the USSR. Lady As- tor spoke the untruth in England about the USSR. Bernard Shaw came to the USSR in order to strengthen by facts his assertion Astor tried very hard to find “atro- cities” in the Soviet country, about which she spoke with such authority in England. From Bernard Shaw’s satisfied with his trip. We do not know what. Lady Astor will say about the USSR. However, we are com- pelled to say that she was cruelly disappointed; there were no atroci- ties. Despite the fears’ and predictions of Lady Astor's farseeing friends in England, Lady Astor was not killed, tunity. to familiarize herself with the yarious sides of the life of the Soviet country at her own choice, and was not even (oh, Bolshevik atrocities!) prevented from propagating capital- istic, Christian and spiritualistic ideas for which she stands. In the Lenin Commune of the Kirsanov District, and in the sur- rounding villages, Lady Astor held several informal talks with “the op- pressed population of the Soviet Union,” and as these informal talks are of interest not only to Lady As- tor, we will take the liberty of. re- producing briefly their tenor. After of the Commune, Lady Astor who let her companions go on, held her first informal talk with the dairy maid, Maria Kardash: “Well,” — said the Lady—“life is hard?”—“Oh, no, we don’t complain, everything is alright in our Commune.” Lady Astor: I want to know what your own life is like, and not the life of the Commune. Maria: But if everything is al- right in the Commune, this means that everything is alright for me and all the others, for aren’t we all Com- munards? Lady Astor: This is not true. You are made to believe it, if a person does not look after himself or her- self, he or she will not achieve any- thing. Maria: Well, when we looked only after ourselves, our life was not up to much, but when we came into the Commune where we live collec- LADY ASTOR’S FIASCO = emmnn No, collectivization is needed every- where. Lady Astor: Can't you understand that collectivization is a tie, that it gives no opportunity to live as one would like. Take myself, I live in- dependently. I go wherever I want, and I do whatever I want. Maria: But you are a rich woman, what about the workers you em- ploy? Lady Astor: Our workers live well. They are literate and cultured. Maria: I don’t think that they live well, and as to being cultured, the sooner they will make a revolution. Lady Astor: There can be no re- volution in our country. Maria: Go along, there is sure to be one. You know what a lot of illiterate, uncultured people we had here at the beginning of the re- volution, and yet they made the October Revolution. And since you say that your workers are cultured, they are sure to make @ revolution. Lady Astor: In any case, there will be no Bolshevism in our country. Maria: There will be. There will be Bolsheviki, without them no revo- lution. Lady Astor: No, no, no. This ended the conversation. Ledy Astor continued to inspect stables, pig-styes, laundries and the hotels of the Commune. In the kitchen she came face to face with Gontar, the woman cook who was preparing the meal. Lady Astor: How do you do. What hard work. You see whether under capitalism or under socialism, house- hold drudgery remains household drudgery. bs Gontar: ‘True, it is not easy work. Only this'is a Commune, and the work is well distributed. We work in three shifts, the washing up and dying up is done by special workers. It is different than what it is with you, when there is only one servant. Lady Astor: How do you know how it is with us, you have never been there. Gontar: I have been told by my husband, he worked in America, but had to leave with his daughter. Lady Astro: How old is his daugh- ter? Gontar: Thirteen. Lady Astor: I should like to talk to her. The girl came, and Lady Astor tively, it was quite another matter. made her talk about America. The Girl: Of course, here. Lady Astor: Well, where do you feel happier? Lady Astor: But why? The Girl: It is a better life here than there. Lady Astor: How old were you when you left America? The Girl: I was ten. ‘ Lady Astor: Then how can youp Judge where life is better and where he’s happy. Barr said: “Yes, I am happy.” “This is not true,” — ex- claimed Lady Astor. Barr shrugged his shoulders, smiled, and said: “T’m not interested in saying what is not true.” This ended the con- versation. “This man is unhappy,” —said Lady Astor on leaving the workshop. “I have read it in his soul.” Lady Astor said this quite seriously. This is evidently “spiritualism in it is worse. What do you know of America, since you were only 10 when you left it. The Girl: I remember perfectly well how it was there. In the large bakery of the Com- mune, Lady Astor came across with the working woman Pelippenko, who had lived a long time in Australia, After a few leading up questions, Lady Astor plunged again into the subject which interests her most. Lady Astor: I suppose after Aus- tralia you do not find this very nice? Pelippenko: I live here much bet- ter than there. Lady Astor: But how is that? Pelippenko: I feel here much freer. I have always work, and my labor is appreciated. I have three clfildren who are educated at the ex- pense of the state for any speciality they care to choose. I would not have enough means for this kind of thing in Australia. Lady Astor: But you are living under worse conditions? Pelippenko: No, I live better here. Lady Astor: Did you have a sep- arate room in Australia? Pelippenko: Yes. Lady Astor: And here? Pelippenko: Here I live with five other people in one room. Lady Astor: Good God! And yet you think that it is better here? Pelippenko: Certainly. However, Lady Astor couldn't get over it. She turned excitedly to Shaw who had just come in, and told him about Pelippenko living in one room with five other people, “It depends on the room,”—remarked Shaw. We inspected the room. When Shaw entered this large room with many windows, he said turning towards Lady Astor: In England fifteen workers live in such a room.” In the repairing shop Lady Astor talked with the American worker, Comrade Barr. Lady Astor asked him about the conditions of labor in the Commune and wanted to know if GH, Pa. August 12— While the IWW continues, at last tion which records its members by number, its dues payments by letters, and which calls itself the “All Work- ers Union.” One of the things which opened the eyes of the Kentucky miners was the cold blooded sectarian policy of giving relief to IWW members only. That smacked too much of an at~ tempt at bribery for the Kentucky miners, whose solidarity had been lit- erally cemented in blood. Then came the ITWW General Defense Commit- tee’s dictum, surprising and appalling slike to the miners as a whole and to the Harlan prisoners, that these Prisoners must go on trial as a “pure and simple murder case—not a labor case.” The later day IWW theory, abhorrent to all militant workers and to the old time Wobbly as well, that < very little of strikes too, was startling to the Kentucky miners, who are all ational Miners Union Displaces UMWA, IWW in Harlan for action. So the cards of the treacherous United Mine Workers who called the| taken out during last winter. Most from April troops down on the strikers, and the cards of the IWW, who come jone must taboo all self defense, all| with pacifism, legalism, and extreme action of any sort except organiza-| sectarianism into the class war in tion into the IWW for strikes, and Harlan, are alike finding their way into the NMU museum of antiquities and other queer things. practice.” In the adjoining village, Shaw and his companions visited a series of “Izbas,” talking to the collectivized Peasants and to the peasants who have not yet joined the collective farm. There, too, Lady Astor had an informal talk which, let. us hope, she will never forget. Near one of the “Isbas” she came across an old collectivized peasant, a collectiviza- tion enthusiast, a village non-Party activist, of whom there are so many now in the Soviet villages. “How are you getting on?”—asked Lady Astor. “We get on splendidly, my dear,’ answered the old man.—“We get on splendidly now, and there are no words to describe how splendid will be our life in a little while. There are of course difficult times, but we are our own masters, we arrange our life ourselves.” Lady Astor: “It is pleasant to see @ jolly and happy peasant.” “We are working, my dear, we are working. Just feel how my heart beats.” Getting hold of Lady Astor’s hands, he pressed them to his heart. We do not know what Lady Astor will say and write about the USSR. But one thing is certain: Lady Astor has been able to see with her own eyes how little truth there is in the legends of her fellow conservatives regarding forced labor in the USSR. Lady Astor has seen how actively and consciously the workers and peasants in the Soviet country are building up their life. Lady Astor came with the intention of having “heart to heart” talks with Workers, collectivized and individual peasants. Lady Astor wanted to con- vince her interlocutors of the ad- vantages of capitalism. Lady Astor met with a sharp rebuff which show- €d her how convinced the workers of the USSR are of the correctness of the line pursued by the Bolshevist Party. There was nothing left to the dissillusioned lady but repeat over and over again: “Bolshevism is a religion.” ‘The UMW cards are older than the IWW cards. Some of them were of them date, however, from all sections of Harlan County and hear-by territory. There are cards from: Pineville, Wallins Creek, | Everts, Springton, Harlan, Molus, and many other places . OM RAEE RL | Rally to the Defense of the Harlan, Ky. Miners HARLAN, Ky.—Every day sees new preparations of bloody cruelty and torture against the Negro and white miners who are “organizing against wage-cuts, starvation and blacklisting. . Each day- is~another page in the story of ruthlessness and terror on the part of the: “law”. in the desperate attempts of the op- erators to smash the organization: of the Negro and white workers irito the National Miners’ Union and to break the defense which the International Labor Defense is carrying on for the Harlan miners. But the miners in Harlan County are not going to give up easily. They know their enemy and are determined to fight to the limit. On Saturday, between 7 and 8 p.m. four deputy thugs came to the home of Henry Thornton, a 60-year-old Ne- gro miner, active in the National Miners’ Union in Harlan; Two“of the thugs entered the house, threat- ened to kill him and ordered him to come with them under-the com- mand: “Get up and come. on. We are going to kill you.” Nothing was sald about arrest and no warrant | Was produced. The deputies grabbed ‘Thornton, and forcibly lodged him in the’ car, “cursing and manhandling him. Two deputies were in the rumble seat and Thornton sat between the two in the front seat at they drove away from the: direction of the jail and out a lonely road. While driving him about three miles out of town, they cursed him freely and said: “You didn’t think that we. saw. you last Sunday going to that.meeting.” The reference was to the Kentucky Convention of the National Miners’ Union held at Wallins Creek on Aug. 2. Threats to kill Thornton were te- peatedly made. When he stated: “I haven't done anything,” a deputy or- dered him: “Shut up, or I'l blow your damned brains out,” punching Thornton's head with the barrel of a pistol. When they came to a stop at a dark spot on the road, the dep- utis jumped out of the car‘and told ‘Thornton, “Come out of there,” and jerked him out, slugging him with a solid object. Whether this was a blackjack or pistol butt, he couldn't tell. A two-inch gash was made in his scalp above his left eye. He fell to the ground and was unconscious for 4 short time. When he struggled to get up, the thugs were standing close by. and one of them sligged him again, knocking him down: ‘As soon as he would try to get up he was beaten down again with repeated threats to kill him. Then one of the deputies said: “We will let you go, if you will beat it and never be seen in Harlan County ‘again.” Thornton's. reply was cut short by a curse from an- other thug and the. statement, “Hell, no, we will take him to jail and let him stay there for 60 days.” They threw him back in the car and drove him to the jail. He was thrown into jail at about 9 p.m. No doctors came to dress his wounds. His head con- tinued to pound with pain. Thornton is 60 years of age, has been a miner for 42 years and has lived in Harlan County since 1917, where he is: well known and liked by his fellow-workers. In addition to attending local meetings and the convention at Wallins Creek; he was one of the Kentucky delegates to the Pittsburgh Convention of the Na- tional Miners’ Union. Threats of death and brutal treatment at the hands of the law offly thaéke him more loyal to the union. Now he has committed the most heinous” of “crimes” in the eyes of the opéra- tors, that of organizing the Negro and white workers together against their common enemy, the coal bosses. . . . Tc HARLAN, Ky.—C. H. Walker, a of the arrest, ‘The previous. evening Walker, with A Hungry War Veteran Helps the Miners herolc struggle against starvatitn,” he said.. “I want to help them, but I have no money. All I have to thy Here—take them and sell them. Give the money to..the miners.” The former sergeant said be was ashamed of his medals, 4 his wife and children, were going & the cemetery at Black Mountain w visit the grave of his daughter. .Twe Black Mountain gunmen, Frant White and Estes Cox, mét and or dered him, “Get; off the company’ premises, and stay off. Be sure tha you don’t come back.” Both Mr and Mrs. Walker insisted on thei: right to visit their daughter’s grave but the gunmen, became only mon threatening. : On Saturday, before his arrest, « girl from Evarts, who had been let out of the Harlan jail because shx told all she knew about the uniar men, inquired of Walker regarding conditions at Evarts. Walker stated “They have a Kitchen there to feet the blacklisted miners and families They fed over 400 workers yesterda} and would be able to feed more by the 15th of 30th of this month, 2 I have just brought in a carload ¢ foodstuffs from another county. The kitchen referred to was installéc and opened on Aug. 6 by the, Na- tional Miners’ Union. At present) they are giving one substantial mea’ of meat and vegetables a day; fox which these workers have no had fa months, About ten minutes after this com versation, Walker was taken into. the Sheriff's office and questioned Walker stated that he had lived ir Harlan County for 14 years and hat nothing against his record. Sherifi J. H. Blair agreed to this. Ther Walker stated, “Oné reason why’) have watched my step is because’) don’t believe I would get any jus: tice in Harlan County.” Blair or- dered his deputies, “Take him out and try him. I'll learn him to talk his damn head off.” He was taken before acting Judge Whitehead, and a peace warrant was written out against Walker Bond was set at $1,000 and Walker had to go to jail without oppor tunity to secure bondsmen. His tria’ is set for Tuesday. He remains ir jail because he solicited aid anc made the statement regarding Har- lan County justice. HARLAN, Ky.—James Simpson of Evarts is the most recently arrested on the triple charge of murder ir "connection with the Evarts battle. o( May 5. There are 34 other unior miners arrested, or with warranti against them, for the same chargr of murder against the same thret company thugs. Jim is one of tht old-time miners and world war vet- terans in Harlan County who ha been working for the defense of. hi: comrades. He was arrested in spit of the fact that everyone knows tha’ he had nothing to do with the Ev’ arts battle. The only name ‘whict appeared on the warrant agains Simpson was that of Fred Jones local attorney employed in prosecu tion of the union leaders, who. wa far from the scene of the battle Fred Jones is openly accused in Har lan County of framing ° evideno against miners and their sympa thizers. All the murder cases and bandin and confederating cases will com up for trial on Aug. 25.' Theré ist evidence against any of the miner: but unless there is tremendous pro test throughout the: country; ‘thes militant fighters will be sent to th electric chair. There is not even th slightest pretense of legality even i) the court records. Witneéses ‘arn defnse attorneys are threatened. Th machinery is already set for the rail Toading of these leaders. 6 erators plan. a change of venue,.t spread the cases all over the stats so that the defendants will not.b able to afford the transportation:¢ lawyers or witnesses: But, most all, the operators fear the’ protes of the miners in Harlan Couatt They fear the strength in the soli darity of these organized miners an the mighty pressure that. is. beib organized by the International Labe Defense. Rally to the. defénse of th Harlan miners. Break down. the wa of silence around these cases, In sist that these cases be tried in Har Jan County. ‘ r war for “Democracy.” “I will-neve fight for the bosses’ profit again.” » deadly “flux” is daily taking: of lives among the miners’ “Flux” is really 40,000 miners! Rush food, clothin and money to the Penn-Ohio St ing Miners’ Relief Committee, 205, 611 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa.