Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-01-08
MEETING
 OF LABOR Annual Session of Connecticut Federation Opened With
 General Assembly
WAS INTENDED So
President Delivered His Annual Ad. dress and DWelled in Detail on Every Department in the
 Labor World.

Hartford, Jan S.--For the first time
 in It's history the Connecticut Feder-
 ation of Labor, which is holding its
 annual meeting here, is in session simultaneously with the opening of
 the general assembly. This is de-
 signedly so, the organization being of
 the belief that by assembling here at
 this time it's members will be in closer touch than would otherwise
 be the case with the states lawmak-
 ing body. It is anticipated that i'm
 portant legislative matters will come
 up for action before the convention
 closes.
 More than half of the POO dele
 gates were in attendance this morn
 ing when the convention was called
 to order by Presidet Doahue. After
 organizing the reports of the va rious officers were submitted and then the annual address of the presi-
 dent was read as follows:
 AitOA WOiSOulluS luo uclcSdleSs President Donahue told of the visits
 made by himself and the secretary to the central union bodies in the state and the good that came from such visits, and continuing said: "It is pleasing to record that no strikes or lockouts of any magnitude have oc-
 cured during the last year, with the exception of the printers general
 strike for an eight hour day, and it is matter for congratulation that the printers have irrevocably estab-
 lished the eight hour day in their trade.
 There has been a marked diminu-
 tion of open shop editorials from the
 opposing press. The philosophy of
 the right to work for whom and
 when, and under such conditions as
 a person may expect, has received a
 rude shock in Connecticut. A citizen of this state residing in Fairfield
 county, after complying with all the
 requirements of the Bar association, otherwise known as the lawyers trust, sought admittance to practice his profession in the courts. His ap- plication was denied. One of the leading lights of the Fairfield county bar has been extremely active for the last few years in denouncing trade
 union tyranny as exemplified in his
 version of the union shop. Yet no
 record appears to show that he op-
 posed the section of his union in re-
 fusing to permit fellow citizen to
 practice his chosen profession. It
 makes all the difference whose OK is
 gored.
 Much interest has been aroused In the celebrated case of the Anti-Boy- colt association vs the United Hatters of North America. One of the cases was brought by a non-union hat manufacturer, presumably a member of the Anti-Boycott association. His complaint set up series of acts by which it was alleged that the United Hatters had succeeded in destroying his trade in different states in the country outside of Connecticut. par ticularly Virginia and California. Two suits were brought for the ter rible crime of asking our adherents to insist upon union label when making purchases; one in the United States court under the sherman act. claiming that the matters had ruined their interstate commerce. Attach ments for $240,000 were levied. On the same cause of action suit was brought in the state court and $100.- 900 attached. Of course. an honor able association like the Anti-Boy- cott association would not resort to ntimidation-that is unlawful-but sometimes think that a person can be intimidated as effectively by the fear of losing the savings of life time as he can by the fear of losing his job. An attachment of the char acter indicated is as potent in com- polling a person to do. or refrain from doing, that which he has legal right to do. as is bludgeon.
 In the case in the United States court the matters demurred and claimed that the things which it was alleged that they had done did not come within the scope of the Sher- man act because the complaint failed to show that they interefered with any non-union goods while they were being shipped from state to state. This point of the matters was sus- tained and the case dismissed. but the case in the state court is st,Il pending. One of the principal points in the defense of the hotters to this latter case is their union label. The matters spent thousands of dolalrs in advertising it. The label is regis tered with the secretary of state. About six months after the D. F. Loewe case had been brought one of the vice-presiients of the Anti-Boy- colt association had eight labels reg istered which were counterfeits of the union label of the United Hat ters. Action was brought by the matters seeking to restrain this hon. orable vice-president from using the counterfeit labels. but the court de- cided that. because this label did not have printed on the face of 1t that the hats were made by members of the United Hatters of North Amert- ca. the label was defertively regis tered and that consequently this manufzcfurer could not De stopped from oounterfeitins it- This is an important decision and every organi-