The Daily Worker Newspaper, March 20, 1934, Page 4

Page Fout DAILY WORKER, NEW YORK, TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1934 Comintern Revealed Trotsky As Counter - Revolutionary Fought AW Opportunist Masses from By ROBER Article VH The period of relative stabiliza- tion was more relative than stable The mass strikes and revolution- ary uprisings that had begun in India back in 1919-1922, and the mass strikes of that early period in China, proved to be only fore- runners of coming storms that would inevitably develop after the Successful establishment of the| revolutionary workers’ republic. The red magnet of revolution began to draw irresistibly the whole colonial | world to its orbit, in the circum- stances of increasingly sharpened imperialist exploitation of colonies and semi-colo: Part of stabilization volts of the Africa against French and Sp: troops and the revolt of S: against France, and 1926 witnessed | the Communist-led revolt in Java and Indonesia which was brutally | crushed by Dutch imperialism with | the enthusiastic aid of the “Soci- | alist” leaders of the Second Inter- national. | In 1996 the Chinese revolution | led by a young Communist Party | made great advances. From the | beginning of the struggle led by Maotse-Teng, leader of the Com- munist Party of China, against Chiang Kai-Shek in 1927, the) Chinese revolution has made steady | advances, until today there is} established a Soviet territory ex- tending over a sixth of China and embracing a population of from 80/ to 90 million. In these same years of relative | Stabilization of capitalism the} revolutionary war of Nicaragua against United States imperialism cast before it a beam of light upon | a whole series of oncoming strug- | gles throughout Latin America, the | result of imperialist rivalries. The British general strike broke through the complacency of the | stabilized bourgeois world in 1926, | and, together with the lock-out of the coal miners, brought the open betrayal by the British trade union | leaders and the Labor Party. IN THE terrific strain of this period the weaker elements | within the Communist Parties, not thoroughly assimilated to the theory and practice of Leninism, were affected by powerful ideologi- Attempts to Side-Track Revolution | Cee cal currents of the bourgeois world. Within the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics the strain of long drawn-out class struggle in the effort to bring Socialism in a coun- try of small-peasant agriculture generated a tone of pessimism among the less thoroughly Bol- shevik Sections of the Communist Party. Lenin had said: . . as long as we live in a petty- peasant country there will be a more solid basis in Russia for capi- talism than for Communism.” The petty-bourgeois tendency to lose confidence in the victory of the revolution and in the possibility of building Socialism within the Soviet Union began to crystalize to a political group around the more dangerous, the waver- ‘Trotsky and his closest friends. Over-estimating the rength of capitalism and under- timating the possibility of build- ing socialism wth the resources to be found within the Soviet country, losing faith in the firmness and in- exhaustible strength of the indus- trial proletariat and believing that nothing could be done with the peasantry, that the union of the proletariat with the peasantry had to be broken—Trotsky concluded that the dictatorship of the prole- tariat was doomed unless an early revolution in one or more advanced capitalist countries should come to its rescue. Trotsky’s platform of pessimism and lack of faith in the revolution covered its own panic with fantastic demands for a “super-industrialization” at the cost of a break between the proletariat and the peasantry. Trotskyist Counter-Revolution The struggle of Trotsky against the Communist Party of the Soviet Union awakened the support of corrupt elements of leadership in Germany hedaed by Ruth Fischer and Maslov, who covered their counter - revolutionary tendencies with ultra-“left” phrases, and other discouraged and demoralized ele- ments in France, in China, and other countries including a small group headed by Cannon in the United States. The ideological struggle against ‘Trotskyism throughout the Com- munist International resulted in its complete exposure as it rapidly completed its development into an outright counter revolutionary character. (To Be Continued) CONDES IF ANY Comrade Peter Nikiforov, of | Bashkiria, U.S.S.R., wonders how the unemployed and half-employed American workers manage to live, | what are living costs compared to} income, etc. A brief reply: | First, as to cost of existence. | Food: the leaflet, “The Family’s Food at Low Cost,” sent out by the U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, states: “The orders below are suggested for | families suffering from shortage of | home-grown foods and ready cash. These . . . give good nutrition re- turns for a limited outlay of money. See They are not considered op- timum for nutrition, but they are believed to be adequate. Any re- duction in the suggested amounts of milk, vegetables, and lean meat must be made with great discre-| tion.” For a family of 2 adults and | 1 child the weekty rations are as follows: | Bread, 10 to 13 pounds; flour, 1) to 2 pounds, cereal, 3 to 4 pound: whole milk, 9 to 14 quarts; potatoe: 8 to 10 pounds; legumes (peas beans, peanuts, etc.), 1 to 2 pounds; tomatoes (fresh or canned or} oranges), 4 pounds; other vegetables and inexpensive fruits, 12 to 14] pounds; fats, 2 pounds; sugar and molasses, 2% pounds; lean meat | (iver, fish, eggs, cheese, etc.), 3 to} 5 pounds; addition eggs for young- er children, 3. | Figured approximately at lowest | discoverable prices, this grocery or- | der costs over $5. If there is an- other adult, as in Comrade Niki- forov’s family, another $2 at least will have to be added. This is the price of a diet which the U. S. government admits is on the ragged edge of starvation. What about housing? New York City, a cheap 4-room apartment, heated, costs from $30 to $40 monthly, according to locality, There’s between $15 and $20 weekly for the barest living ex- Penses, not to mention shoes, soap, carfare, stamps, newspapers, in- surance, doctor bills, and such! And the codes set the “minimum” | wages around $12 or $13 weekly! So what do the workers do? | First of all, they worry. They all worry. Day and night. Nice | deep-veiced politicians and clergy- _ tell folks over the radio that worrying never solves any prob- | Tems, is bad for the health, and stands in the way of success; that confidence and faith, glorious faith are all that are needed to bring back that qoy and recalcitrant prosperity. Somehow, the work- ers don’t listen. They go right on worrying. Then they “double up’—move to- gether, two or more families, into an apartment meant only for one family, and sleep packed so close together there's scarcely room to breathe. Often they are evicted. They move around from pillar to post and back again. Many foraged the garbage cans for food and the ash cans for cast- off clothing. Many are long since without homes of any sort, and sleep in the parks and in doorways in the summer and ride the subway all night in winter. When they just can’t stand it any longer, they commit suicide. the He | Well—in | 7p BY LUKE It’s a dark picture, isn’t it, Com- rade Nikiforov? But those workers who are class conscious, and are uniting in the Red organizations, neither go in- sane, nor do they kill themselves (as the bourgeois psychiatrists are finally discovering, to their apparent mystification.) These “radical” workers are the fighters, the leaders, who are not going to jie down and die tamely, letting the exploiters have everything their own way. These are the workers who are going to fight to the last ditch to bring about the solution that was brought about in your once-oppressed land, Comrade Nikiforov. Can You Make ’Em Yourself? Pattern 1680 is available in sizes 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44 and 46. Size 36 takes 4% yards 39-inch fabric. Illustrated step-by-step sewing in- structions included. Send FIFTEEN CENTS (l5c.) in coins or stamps (coins preferred) for this Anne Adams pattern. Write plainly name, address and_ style number. BE SURE TO STATE SIZE. Address orders to Daily Worker Pattern Department, 243 West 17th { Street, New York City. Gas Fumes/MPROVED MACHINERY |Stickers in IS A CURSE AT FORD’S, A Menace to Life in Mill | Steel Company Tries to Have Workers Blame Each Other (By a Steel Worker Correspondent) CHICAGO, Ill—Here in the gas house of No. 2 Blooming Mill, Wis- | consin Steel Co., 106th and Tor-| rence, the gas fumes are killing, by | degrees, all of us. The company | knows about it, but has never tried to do any thing. They try to blame us for making too much gas, hop- ing that we will blame the heaters and then they have an opportunitp to carry the fight further between the workers by going to the heat- | ers with the hope that they will blame the rollers or some other | workers, thereby making the work- ers struggle one against the other. That is what has happened many times in the past when anything was brought up. They like to know that we are calling the other work- ers dirty names and blaming them for everything because when we do that they know that we are not going to make them pay out any money to make the place a more decent place to live in. We spend most of our time here, except when we are asleep, there- fore it should be made into a decent place. It is true that the most of us are foreign born, but since we have been in this country many years} and have made the company mil- lions where we have only received @ measly weekly salary that was only enough to keep us in good enough physical condition to come back the next day and sweat out our last day’s pay, we feel that we should have some of the pleasures that go with life, but if we are go- ing to have to spend the rest of our existence in the same way that we have spent the last few years then there is nothing to do but start putting up a fight, for it is not going to do us any good to stay here and breathe these fumes all day and then go home and spend our time off trying to recover from them. We are asking especially for the support of the workers who are American born, but generally for the support of every worker in the department. Letters from Our Readers. A CORRECTION ON THAELMANN | PROTEST IN CLEVELAND Cleveland, Ohio. | The March 10th issue of the Daily Worker, reporting on the demon- | stration called in Cleveland for the release of Ernst Thaelmann reported absolutely false information. It re- | ported that thousands of Cleveland workers participated in this demon- stration called by the Young Com- munist League. The facts are that the demonstration was a failure, due to lack of serious preparations on the part of the League and failure of the Party to mobilize any of its forces in support of this action. The statement appearing in the Daily Worker can only tend to dis- credit us before those Daily Work- er readers in the City of Cleveland. We feel it necessary that the Daily Worker immediately print a retrac- tion of its previous statement, point- ing to its error, and also using this failure on our part to stress the need of careful and thorough prep- aration in mobilizing the masses of workers in actions for the freedom | of Thaelmann, Furthermore, we would like to | learn from the “Daily” as to how it was possible to print such erroneous information. Such practices must not be allowed in the future. Comradely yours, DISTRICT ORGANIZER, Young Communist League. EDITOR’S NOTE: The report of the Cleveland demonstration was inexcusably written by a member of the staff on the basis of the announced plan for it, without confirmation that it had taken place. This is absolutely contrary to the policy of the Daily Worker, and steps have been taken to make sure that it will not occur again. MUST DEFEAT ATTEMPT TO MILITARIZE CHILDREN Hudson, N. Y. Dear Comrade: Enclosed herewith is a marked article from the Hudson Evening Register, which I though might in- terest you. This is concrete evi- dence of how the war mongers, a la N. R. A. weasel their way into Wall Street's Public School system. In view of Ralph Easley’s great concern for the American public schools, he might direct his pro- fessional patriotic activities against this vicious attempt to militarize public school children in prepara- tion for finance-capital’s next im- perialist slaughter. é There is slight chance, however, that the man, Easley, who was on Henry Ford’s pay-roll a few years ago, and boasted that, “in one year he had written two books that would do the Jews more injury than 10 pogroms,” would do anything to interfere with the hand of Wall Street which keeps him well-fed. (Signature authorized.) GEORGE C. MARCLEY. DISTRIBUTES 6 “DAILIES” AS HIS “BIT Conneaut, Ohio. I am-a man whose 91st year be- gins next May 1. I therefore can- not do the things you want me to do, but what I do for socialism is the following. Five families read the “Daily Worker” which I receive every day, and during the week all six papers come back to me and & farmer, who lives out of town (Con- neaut, Ohio) comes to see me and takes the six papers with him. A BLESSING IN U.S.S.R.) 35 Percent Output Rise Soviet Union Workers in Detroit Means Only Greater Speed-Up By an Auto Worker Correspondent DETROIT, Mich. — There is no limit to the speed up in the core- room Dept. K in the Foundry Build- ing. Six core-makers working in| ing used to make six flywheel | cores in an hour. Later the work) was speeded up to 10 an hour, and then to 20 and 30 an hour in a gang of six workers or on an aver-| age of 450 core boxes in three shifts. After a general layoff, only 13) workers remained at work. A épe-/ cially designed machine was in-| stalled where one worker now makes 450 cores an hour. Produc- tion increased 36 times. Under such condition of speed-up we have no time to go the toilets for natu- ral relief. With the flywheels are also included 4 to 6 smaller cores to fii the core boxes. | ‘When we worked in gangs of six) we had to insert various forms of wire to strengthen the cores. This | is now eliminated by the use of | some powdered composition which | makes the cores strong without the wire. We now must keep up with the speed of the machines, which is wrecking our health. Signs of Breaking Down About four months ago one of the workers was so exhausted from | overwork that he could not get up| and stert working after his lunch hours. The foreman sent him to the factory hospital, and the doctor after examing him sent him home. Three weeks after, this worker came back to work. He was only able to work one week and then was laid off for good. The strongest work- ers who are sti at work are show- ing signs of breaking down. On other makes of cores the work also has increased to inhuman speed, which is nothing new at Ford’s. On the water jacket job it required 8 workers in a gang to make a com- plete core. Now one worker oper- ating a machine makes more cores than perviously the eight working in a gang. ‘The continuous, strenuous mus- cular movements gets one tired and sore from head to food after eight hours of slavery. The workers have been afraid to speak of unionism because of the strong espionage at Fords. But now the tide is turning where some of the workers are not only talking about the nerve-wrecking speed-up but the need of organizing to put a stop to this. The Auto Workers News is finding its way into our department as well as to the whole factory. The militant workers pasted up stickers calling workers to organize against $4 and speed-up, and de- manding $6 for a 6 hour day; 2 weeks lay-off pay. The foremen and service men scraped the stickers off but others found their place. ‘We must immediately organize committees of action against the slave driving conditions. Workers Council in Spur, Tex., Formed; To Meet March 21 By a Worker Correspondent SPUR, Texas—Saturday night, March 10, here, we organized a Workers’ Council. I joined. About the 21st we will meet again; more are coming in to the Council. Conditions are getting serious here. What happened to the $300,000,000 that Hoover appripri- ated? F. D. R. appropriated $3,- 300,000,000, then $950,000,000 more. What has become o this money? The working class certainly has not had the benefit of it. We will have a delegation at the Houston Convention if nothing happens. About two weeks ago the Dallas News gave out. these figures: 11,500,000 unemployed and 4,000,000 being turned loose. Al- ready a C.W.A. worker has been threatened with being taken off the C.W.A. rolls, because a farmer wanted him to work 185 acres of crops, or 10 acres, and his wife to do the cooking for this slave- driving rascal. Gentlemen, if there ever was a time to organize, it is now. Why not do our best to get 10,000,000 voters by the next presidential elections and see to it that the working class has a voice in these problems? From now on, think of the thousands that go to bed hungry every night. I will write more after the Houston Con- vention, | | Get Benefit of Every Profit Increase (By a Soviet Auto Worker Correspondent) ROSTOV ON DON, U.S.S.R.—We had a very good harvest, which, of course, means an increase in our standard of living. Our plant direc- tor made his report to us last month on the progress of the plant in 1933. | According to his report, we made | Get Results Company Gives in Thru Fear of Militant Organization | | PARTY LIFE Steel Mil] | Building of LSNR Is Problem | of Great Political Importance || Where White Comrades were Active, We Won Confidence of Negro Workers, Says Ford | By a Steel Worker Correspondent | | CHICAGO, Tll—An example of | Extraordinary Party Conference de- how the Illinois Steel Co. fears or-| cided that Harlem should become | ganization was shown last week | a national concentration point. Fol-| the L.S.N.R. program. | when a sticker was issued in one | lowing this, | shifts. The Steel and Metal Work- By JAMES W. FORD, Section Organizer, Harlem. In line with the Open Letter, the the Harlem Section Struggle for Negro Rights, taking 2,000,000 rubles profit im addition | ers Industrial Union local issued a| into consideration that Harlem is to about 18,000,000 that was paid in social insurance and social improve- ment around the town. I am wondering how much profit the plant in which you work in the United States had made last year, and if it went back to the workers. I certainly would hate to return to the States and work for a capitalist firm after enjoying the freedom and pleasure of working for a plant owned and managed by the workers and for the workers. America seems so far away from me now after working in this coun- try for the past two years and three months. When I read the papers about the U.S.A., it seems to me that I am reading the pages out of past history, about a period in which capitalists owned all the land and factories and the workers worked for them like horses and slaves. I feel that I am in a land of sun- shine and that America, although the country of my birth and where I lived for 48 years, is a land of darkness. Life here (U.S.S.R.) is so lively, everything and everybody is moving forward with great strides. The center of Moscow now is like Wood- ward and Michigan Avenue used to be back in 1928-1929. Some day sooner or later the American work- ers will wake up and take things into their own hands and run the government themselves for the in- terests of the workers. My 6-year-old boy is learning very fast in the kindergarten. And I am attending classes to improve my technical education. Every one is urged to attend some educational institution in this country. In the course of the next 10 years this country (U.S.S.R.) will become the most highly educated country in the whole world. As you see I am still living in the same place and I can live here the rest of my life if I want to be- cause I shall always have work in the plant. No layoffs and no worry about tomorrow. The food supply is getting better, especially in quality. The clothing and other supplies are becoming more pienti- ful, and every one is working and has money. The Communist Party is now holding its convention in Moscow and all the workers are very much interested in Stalin’s report, and the report of the other officials of the party. We have discussions almost every day on the report. I suppose the capitalists press in America also is reporting some of the doings at the convention. I hope to hear from you soon. Let me know the news from Detroit. Fraternally yours, BEN THOMAS Rostselmash, Kombine House 6, Apt. 27 Rostov-on-Don, U.S.S.R, Wages Paid While Under Free Medical Care in U. 8.8. R. By An American Worker in the Soviet Union DONBAS, U.S.S.R.—Just a few lines to let you know I am very well now, and I start work again. I was in the hospital two months and I had everything free besides 576.50 rubles from the Soviet Gov- ernment when I came out. I remember when I was in Amer- ica I worked and starved. I want to tell you that no matter what office I go into here in the Soviet Union all of the office workers ge’ up, let me sit down, and give me a cigarette. When I was in the U.S. A. those in the office didn’t even look on my face. When I left Pittsburgh, Pa., to go to the Soviet Union lots of my comrades told me to write, but I couldn’t write everyone, so I write to the Daily Worker for my com- rades to know what goes on in the Soviet Union. ANTONIO REA. MEMBERS OF M. E.S. A. EDUCATED BY ‘DAILY’ By a Metal Worker Correspondent DETROIT, Mich.—The resolu- tions adopted by the Mechanics Educational Society of America’s National Convention show the good work of the Daily Worker ‘Trade union articles, articles con- cerning the M. E. S. of A., Un- employment Insurance, etc., from the Daily Worker have been clipped and posted in M. E. 8S. of . halls, Die-makers and associates who would not look at the Daily Work- er, for fear they would become After he reads them they are dis- tributed among his farmer ac- quaintances. As you know, the farmers’ pock- etbooks have shrunk to the point where they can’t even spend a dol- lar for the “Daily Worker,” but after they read the “Daily Worker” for a while they will be ready for the proletarian revolution. Comradely, ce polluted read these posted clip- pings and began to think. The Daily Worker was moulding their thoughts. They were disturbed at the article concerning spies in the M. E. S. of A. Now Matthew Smith has gone further and discovered that Con- gressman Carl M. Weideman was the head of a spy organization. The M. E. S. of A., the Trade Union Unity League organization, and A. F. o L. Rank and File will smash the spy system. M. E. S. of A members who are readers of the Daily Worker should bear in mind the value of the printed word and should post cuttings from the Daily Worker in their local halls; near employment of- fices; employes’ entrances and other places where the workers may read them, Every place should be covered. The new constitution of the M. E. S. of A. recognizes the class struggle. Around that radical base, we must form the united front of labor, |small sticker demanding that all | shifts be put on a rotating basis, as | was formerly done, and not to keep | these men on nights all of the time. The union members took the stick- ers inside, and results followed. The boss came around and saw the sticker, and, of course, wanted to know, “Who did that?” No one know, so he went to the main night |boss. This boss came down and jasked the men, “What is the mat- ter? Don’t you boys want to work nights?” About 20 on the crew yelled, “No.” He said: “All righ*, boys, come out on the 3 p.m. shift tomorrow.” This is not the first time that stickers have gained small demands in the Illinois, as well as other mills in South Chicago. The steel company does not seem to mind a leaflet as much as they do a bunch of stickers on the in- side. On one previous occasion small stickers *were put up, and, on the strength of this, steps were taken to remove certain fumes that men had been forced to work in. Also, in another mill, when stickers were put up, even the boss refused to take a chance on removing a sticker, and it was up there until one of the assistant superintendents came in and took it down. These stickers are easy to make, being made on a hectograph, and, if a certain amount of care is used, they can be made very attractive. The cost is very small, and they produce more results many times than leaflets. The sticker the union uses here is made in two colors, green and red, and is about 3x3, so that they fit inside of a man’s hand. Melted Iron Goes InCranes Overhead Withou it Warning (By a Metal Worker Correspondent) WILLIAMSPORT, Pa.—The Ly- coming Foundry here preaches “Safety First” and practices “Safety Last.” All vestige of human rights are ignored. Cranes carry ladles Ca full of melted iron over workers continually, without warning. Men are driven like slaves. Spies in- vestigate all conversations. For the slightest pretext, men are coerced to leave. This is a pie-in-the-sky shop. |. Piece workers are driven until the pace is maddening, and they’re charged for errors and paid the minimum rate. All kinds of tricks are used to get skilled men to leave. Experience is not considered in this shop and unskilled are given the preference on any work. Shop Committee Fights Polishers Who Ask Raise By a Metal Worker Correspondent DETROIT, Mich.—The Metal Pol- ishers’ Shop Committee at the Douglas and Lomason plant, Lin- coln Ave. have a cheap but easy racket. The committee working on day turn have an hourly rate of 90 cen's. This committee approves the picce-work rate for the others in the shop, but they do no piece- work themselves. Last week the afternoon-turn polishers demanded an increase in the piece rate of a Ford job from $3 a hundred. The management pointed out that the piece rate was approved by the shop committee and nothing could be done. The men prepared to walk out. The management then increased the price to $4 a hundred. Next day the shop committee learned the news and reported the matter to the local for disciplinary action against the polishers, who got a 33 per cent raise without approval of the shop committee. These shop committees are actu- ally acting as agents for the bosses, and the militant metal polishers should take them off the job. Get the money now. Next month you may be walking the streets. B Gloucester Shipyard Layoffs Increasing By a Shipyard Worker Correspondent GLOUCESTER, N. J.— There is slackness of work among the work- ers employed in this district which seems to be increasing daily. Places such as the New York Shipbuilding Co., which are supposed to have large contracts, are laying off in- stead of employing. I, myself, a shipyard worker, have been out of work the national center of Negro re- formism and that a strong revolu- tionary liberation movement in Har- lem would counteract Negro re- formism and thereby help the de- velopment of the L.S.N.R. nationally. We understood also that the rul- ing class tries to block any head- way that revolutionary influence makes in Harlem. It is no acci- dent, for example, that along with | the support that is given the Negro reformist leaders by the ruling class, | We see that the renegade Communist groups find it important to carry on their counter-revolutionary ac- tivity in Harlem with gusto. Every leading and responsible comrade of Harlem and the mem- bers of the Section Committee understood from the outset that our task was not simply a ques- tion of mathematics, of building so many branches of the L.S.N.R. But that our work involved ques- tions of great political importance in line with the open letter and the building of the L.S.N.R., was in connection with one of oar other concentration tasks, that is, shop concentration and the re- cruiting of Negro workers into the Party from the larger and basic industries. In Harlem this meant the laundries, etc. This was to insure a strong proletarian base for our liberation movement. We knew very well the social char- acter of Harlem and that Negro reformist influence was wide- spread among honest Negro work- ing people. This was, let us say, the first stage of our work. Another stage. Each unit of the Party in Harlem had within it an LS.N.R. group. The comrades of these groups had as their major task the building of a branch of the L.S.N.R. in their neighborhood. The national committee of the L.S. N.R. had already met and revised the program of the LS.N.R., which was distributed in pamphlet form. This program was a great help towards building up branches of the LS.NR. One difficulty, however, which we frankly face was the following. The National Committee of the LS.NR. was an elaborate top heavy list of officers. Many of them residing in New York; they were like generals without armies. It was difficult to get some of the generals to see that they should get down off their horses and help to lay a base for the L.S.N.R. in Harlem by building members. For a time confusion arose between the national officers and local officers. Finally, however, this difficulty was greatly overcome. National officers were persuaded to give some assistance to building up local branches, through day to day activity. Another stage. During the sec- ond Scottsboro trial we had two excellent protest demonstrations in Harlem, involving thousands of workers, and several mass meet- ings. The indignation of the masses against the second death verdict was very high. These ac- tions brought in several hundred applications for the L.S.N.R. To- vether with the applications brought in by the day to day work of the units and the loyal coopera- tion of the Harlem branches of the I. L. D. we had a basis for starting to set up branches of the LS.N.R. The applications were assorted according to territory or neighbor- hocd. The avvlicants were visited. There were. of course, duplications (of I. L. D. members); some of the applications were no good. The set- ting up of branches in given neigh- NOTE: We publish letters from steel, metal and auto workers every ‘Tuesday. We urge workers in these industries to write us of their working conditions and of their efforts to organize. Please get the letters to us by Friday of each week, borhood meetings and general meetings were called. At these meetings the general program of the L.S.N.R. was carefully explained |and localized. In most cases the workers were very enthusiastic for I do not know of a single case of the departments where the com- | Committee undertook as its central/of a worker disagreeing or oppos- pany had refused to change the/| task, the building of the League of ing the formation of the L.S.N.R. Ten branches were set up in Har- lem. Each branch had its execu- tive committee, consisting of the of- | ficers of the branch. Some branches |had 200 members, the average at- | tendance at meetings ranging from 50 to 100 members. | Six of the branches functioned | well; four were rather irreguiar. general membership meeting of |the branches was held after @ couple of weeks and the Harlem Council of the L.S.N.R. was set, and a president and other officers were elected; it meets periodically. These officers work on a voluntary basis. Another stage. In carrying out our work the question arose as to how the units and Party members in the territory were to work in how were they to work inside branch; what were comrades to do, ete? We had had somie experience with the TLD, im this connection. ing and directing part in work of the branch. First we settled the question white workers should be members of L.S.N.R. branches. We instructed our white party comrades who were assigned by unit or territory having membership in an L.S.N.R. branch that they should do everything possible to prevent the justification of suspicion that they, as white workers, were usurping the eg od Tole of the Negro workers but at the same time they should be active members, leading forces, helping and guiding as mueh as possible, thereby winning the con- fidence of the new Negro worke! that they should lead in the strug: gle for Negro rights. We have got- ten good results with this policy. Some of our white Party comrades have won the confidence of the Negro workers. In no case have we had from honest rank and file Negro workers any objections to our white comrades who are members and who have been assigned to LS. N.R. branches. One white comrade through house to house canvassing with the Liberator has got more applications for the L.S.N.R. than any single comrade. His method of work should be instructive for other comrades. We warned against automatic: ally filing up L.S.N.R. branehes with C. P. members where they would be in each other’s way and often (as we have found through experences with building the I. L.D.) where there are so many C. P. members it is usually they who cause all kinds of confusion, and even disrupt and break up branches. With these 10 branches as a starter, each unit (all units are now organized on a territorial basis) has the task of building up a branch of the L.S.N.R. in its territory. We can say that this meager work has been a great step forward in oer LS.N.R. work. (To be continued.) Join the Communist Party 35 E. lath STREET, N. Y. ¢. Please send me more informa- tion on the Communist Party. Name Street City ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS COMPRESSED AIR OR CAISSON DISEASE (Continued) In order to prevent Caisson disease, the decompression must take place gradually. This means that the working-man has to reach the surface in stages. About nine years ago, the Bureau of Mines found that if helium is substituted for nitrogen in the diver’s bell, that the danger of “bends’’ is lessened and that the decompression can take place more rapidly. But owing to the cost of helium, the greedy ex- ploiters under our present capitalis- tic scheme prefer to endanger the health and lives of the working- men, rather than spend a few extra dollars for their protection. When the symptoms of Caisson disease develop a few hours after the working-man has left the mine, the tunnel, or the diver’s bell, he should be taken back immediately, to the decompression chamber where he stays until an equilibrium By PAUL LUTTINGER, MD. is established between the internal and external pressures of his body. After this, he may be permitted to pass gradually from one decompres- sion chamber into another. Each of these decompression chambers are designed so that there is a gradual difference in the atmospheric pres- sure therein. In all places where working men work under increased air pressure, there should be a well- heated medical airlock, furnished with bunks and emergency supplies. In your case, Mike, we doubt that anything can be done for your chronic headaches and eye disturb- ances. The X-ray does not show anything in such cases and the only thing you can do is to avoid work- ing under air pressure again, but instead of that be as active as pos- sible to bring about a new order of things, where the government will protect its workers from a disease, like Caisson disease, which can be Positively avoided. Remember that you are one of the millions of vic- tims of the rotten capitalist scheme of greed and exploitatior —< eee :