The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-03-24
|HD|ANIAN SAYS LABOR
UNIONS ARE COERCERS
State Senator Matson Asserts
Their Policy Is to Intimidate
and Browbeat
JOB ASSAILS THE LEADERS

WASHINGTON. March 23-The House
judiciary committee to-day continued hear
ing on the anti-injunction bill. State Sen
ator Matson. of Indiana, spoke in opposi-
ton 10 it. lie was unsparing in his criti-
cism of labor unions and said their policy
was to intirlidate. coerce and browbeat.
They were seeking by the proposed bill. he
said, to overthrow a settled condition. to
tear down established institutions and to at
tack the respect of the courts at the most
vital point. He characterized John Mitchell
as the most conservative labor leader in
this country. but said no man ever uttered
a greater untruth than when Mitchell de-
clared. 'Once a workingman always a
workingman.''
The afternoon session of the hearing was
devoted to arguments in favor of the bill.
III. r. Fuller, representing the Railway
Trainmens organization, Andrew Furuseth,
representing the American Seamen's Union,
and President Gompers. OF the American
Federation of Labor, were heard, and the
hearings ended with his testimony.
Mr.. Gompers challenged many of the
statements of the opponents of the measure.
Taking up the statements of Daniel Daven-
port. in which the charge was made that the
labor leaders as a rule were Socialists, Mr..
Gompers said he had refuted this statement
at the time IL was made by Mr.. Davenport
before the labor committee of the House
Judiciary committee. For this reason he
declared that Mr.. Davenport had stated
what he himself knew to be false, Mr.
Gompers declared that the use of the in
junction against labor was of compare
lively recent origin and entirely unjus-
titled.
James NJ. Beck, who had opposed the bill,
he said in his hearing before the commit
tee, had quoted him (Gompers) as saying:
L believe II l was exercising my right as
a citizen of this country and was enjoined
nv no ir1ir i'm I x-ottld mot
obey that injunction" Commenting on this
Mr.. Gompers declared: Il resent that state
ment most empha tically.' Speaking OF
the extent to which labor is organized Mr..
Gompers said: Il agree that we do not
represent a majority of the workingmen
of the country, but l venture to say that
we represent the most intelligent, the most
skillful and the most manly of the work
men OF the country and this. too, without
any reflection upon the nonunion men,.
Frederick w. Job, secretary of the En-
ployers Union of Chicago, to-day said to
the Senate committee on education and
labor that he did not believe the labor lead
views of the rank and file of workingmen,
organized or unorganiZed. He made at
tack on the leaders, asserting that from
Gompers down these leaders persisted in
misrepresenting conditions Mr. Job called
attention TO labor troubles where nonunion
men mad been beaten down with clubs or
lied labor never had contained one word of
denunciatfon OF these crimes. He said the
organs mentioned were edited largely by
the labor leaders themselves and therefore
they assisted in making criminals of the
men, AS an illustration of his assertion
that the leaders did not represent the men.
Mr. Job said that he had been told in con-
fdence by laboring men in Chicago that
the surest manner of defeating a candidate
for political office TO get him in
dorsed by the labor leaders, and then the
rank and file, under the Australian ballot
| system, would turn and vote against the
| candidate. Mr.. Job said many instances
where this had been done could be cited to
| prove the contention.
| Mr. Job quoted from pamphlet prepared
| by Secretary Gushing, Of the National Man
| ufacturers Association. in opposition TO the
| passage of the eight-hour bill. The pam
| phlet contained a passage from a Senate
| report. written by Chairman McComas, of
| the committee on education and labor. SEN
ator McComas condemned the pamphlet as
containing miSstatements In regard to the
! exemptions under Section of the bill.
Daniel A. Tompkins. of North Carolina.
| also spoke before the committee. MIR. Temp
| kins was questioned IN regard to child labor
| in the South and answered that the manu-
| featuring interests of the South were now
recovering from the labor restrictions
| caused by the slavery system. Slavery was
| a form of restriction. he said. but the i'm
/ provement for all classes in the South was
| progressing and would work out satisfacto-
| rily without legislation better than with it.