The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-08-21
UNION LABOR BLUE BOOK.


The labor lobby in the last Legislature
has just issued a ''blue book" relating to
members of the General Assembly charged
with being unfair TO organized labor. The
book is addressed to wage-workers and
contains information relating to all law
enactments favorable or against organ
lied labor. The Senate, in particular, is
attacked, that body being charged with be-
ing more inimical to the interests of or
ganized labor than the House. The sena-
tors who are charged with assisting in the
defeat of labor measures are: Conlogue,
Fleming, Whitcomb, Parks, Reyes, kell,
Keeney, Joss, Ogborn, Johnson of Jay
county,, Guthrie, Goodwine, Dausman,
Crumpacker. Binkley. Wolcott, Wood and
Brooks. Those accredited with being ia
vorable to labor measures are Senators
Ball. Burns, Fortune. Gwinn. Harrison.
Winfield, Wampler, Inman, Heller and
Stillwell.
The book, speaking of the House, says:
1.-The House. from speaker down, were, in
most instances, friendly and favorable to
labor measures. Those deserving of special
mention as being favorable to us are Art
man. Burkhart. Burrier, Galley, Clark.
Hbrsfeld. Jakways. Kirkman, Van Fleet
and Mummert." The book says that the
committee was largely responsible for the
defeat of the Agnew antitrust bill, which
was considered unfair to organized labor
and termed "a bill that would wipe out all
organizations of labor" The Merchants
and Grocers' Association of Indiana is also
referred to by the book, and the attention
of laboring men is called to that organiza-
tons garnishee and exemption bills, both
of which were defeated, and speaks of the
association thus: We found a large dele
cation of lobbyists with an attorney and
all kinds of money to secure these meas
ures, who remained until March s, only TO
find their bills smothered by our efforts"
The book frequently refers to the railroad
lobby and says that senators were heard
to remark that the legislature was the
most corrupt In years, and that labor need
not look for legislation unless the bills
were amended to suit the railroads. In
the Senate discussion of the relief bill the
book quotes froni the speech of Senator
Wood, of Lafayette. who said the bill was
supported by labor agitators and human
v%uitures who had swooped down ON this
Assembly and should be cast out of this
chamber"
Senator Guthrie, chairman of the railroad
committee, is charged with having lied
TO the labor committee regarding the rail
road committees action on one of the
labor bills. TIL steering committee" COM
posed of Senator'S Brooks, Wood and VOL
colt, whose DUTY it was to select bills for
passage in the last days of the Iegisla-
ture, Is charged with being responsible for
not getting some of the labor measures
before the Senate The book SAYS that the
Pennsylvania lobby stood at the elbow of
Senator Wolcott all the time. The attack
on these men winds up by saying: Sen
ators Brooks, Wolcott and Wood were men
with the nerve to do the dirty work of the
senate. We must admit that we were
drowned In our efforts on a number of inn
portant measures by the organized lobby
that represented the corporation, who put
paid lobbyists with large sums of money
into the Legislature TO offset the work of
your committee"
The committee was composed of w. M.
Blythe and +. h Alley. Of the Brotherhood
or Engineers; h. r. jackson
end Henry link, of the Brotherhood of
FtremeE; Roscoe Barnett. Ed
gar A. Perkins and j. w. Peters, of the
State Federation of Labor. The purpose of
the book is to defeat the men against or
ganized labor In their future efforts TO
! secure elective Offices.