Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1902-11-22
ENUMERATION FOR
PRESIDENT COMP RS
Charges Against Him Have
Fallen Flat.
REPoRr SPECIAL COMMITTEE.

For the Time Being at Least All Op
position to the Election of MIR. Com
psrs Has Died out-session Feder
alton Of Labor
New Orleans, Nov. 20.-President
Compers has been completely exon
Grated Of the charges Of inddeLity to
the principles Of trades uni0nism sad
to have been made by Theodore j.
ShaHer, president of the Amalgamated
Association of Iron, Steel and Tin
Workers. The report of the special
committee, which conducted the in.
vestigation reported to that effect this
morning before the convention of the
American Federation of Labor. The
report was not a whitewash.
The charges against Mr.. Gompers
fell as fat as a piece of dough dropped
from the clouds. The committee re.
ported that when Mr. Shaffer appear.
ed before it, he had not at any time,
either in writing or otherwise, made
any charges against Mr.. Gompers Of
inddelity to trades unionism, nor did
he desire to do so before the commit.
tee.
P. J. Sheridan, who brought up in
the convention the resolution when
resulted in the investigation was also
present at the hearing and was asked
IL it was true that Mr. Shaffer had
shade any charges before the last con.
vention Of the Iron, Steel and Tin
Workers against Mr.. Gompers, and he
replied that heb ad Mr.. Shaffer de.
MED it. Mr. Sheridan denied it. Mr..
Sheridan offered to read from the min.
utes Of the meeting at which the
charges were said by him to have
been made. Mr.. Shafer objected to
this, because the movements were
those of a secret meeting and if read
by Mr.. Sheridan it would involve him
in trouble with his own organization
Cor divulging the inner workings OF
the convention.
The committee decided that the
question Of veracity of Mr.. Shaffer and
Mr. Sheridan was something with
which it had nothing to do, and there
being no charges against Mr. Gompers,
there was nothing to do but return a
finding to the effect that Mr.. Gom2ers
was completely eXonerated. This was
done.
For the time being at least all oppo-
sition to the election of President
Gompers has died out Since the re-
fusal Of James Lynch, of the Typo
graphical union to run for the office,
no further effort has been made to Sc
cure a candidate nor is it likely at
the present time that there will be a
rival candidate.
The Federation then entered into an
animated debate on the resolution in.
troduced by Victor l. Berger, of Mil
waukee, committing the convention 20
the doctrines Of socialism. The com
mittee lad reported at the Scranton
convention of last year that the prin-
ciples of the labor union moveme 1t
contain all that is necessary for the
present time for the advancement of
the wOrkingmen of the country. Del.
egate Max Hayes offered a substitute
for the report Of the convention to the
effect that the Federation advise the
working people to organize their eco
nomic and political power to secure
for labor the full equivalent of its
toll and the overthrow of the wage sys.
tenn and establishment of an industri.
al cooperative democracy. The sub.
stitute was ruled out Of order by the
chair as being substitute for the re.
port of the committee, which was a
substitute for the original resolution.
Delegate Hayes then offered it as an
amendment. and it was so admitted
by the chair
Delegate Hayes took the floor in de.
Tense of his amendment as did Der.
ger, Ward, Brewer and Sherman. In
opposition to the amendment and in
favor of the committee were delegates
B. A. Hayes. Vice President Duncan,
Lewis, Duffy and others.