The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1909-01-04
ROOSEVELT IS MAN
: WHO ATTACKED
JUDICIARY
lTT SAMUEL GOMPERs.
NSLAUGHTs WERE FAR MORE
SWEEPING AND ABUSIVE THAN
ANYTHING LABOR EVER UT.
TERED, SAYS MR.. GoMPERs.
SAMUEL GOMPERs.

WASHINGTON, Jan. Samuel
Gompers. president of the American
tederati,:il OF Labor, says in this
months issue OF the American FEEDER
ationist
I'm view of the utterances of Presi-
dent Roosevelt during the recent cam
paign all looked forward with keen
interest to what he would say In ms
recent annual message TO congress-
lie disported himself as was anticipat-
ed. There was a mixture OF sugges-
ton of reform, with criticism, denun-
citation, abuse. and Misrepresentation
of all who differ in any degree from
him. 1t is perhaps impossible to fnl
IN all our country another public man
SO intolerant. bitter, and relentless to-
ward any man who happens to be
unable 20 agree with him.
THE presidents suggestions on the
employers liability law and the eight-
hour law are sound and to the point.
but Il Is doubtful that hew i'll publicly
give credit TO the sources OF his m&n-
tai development on this score. In go
far as organized labor can work IN CO.
operation with the reforms the presi-
dent recommends, so as TO secure th@lc
enactment hy congress as well as Their
enforcement by governmental oincers,
this will assuredly be done. When
labor dissents from the views exnresS-
cd by the president. it surely Should
not be counted to the discredit or our
movement, our cause, or our men, that
ne may nave Jagged in his mental de-
Nclopment.
I'VE wish 10 concern ourselves he'e
particularly with what the press char
3cterizes as can attack on labor lead
ers" in the presidents message. III
Goes not call for much disccrnment to
infer TO whom the president directs
his abuse II is doubtful that any pres
ident of the United States in an official
message 20 congress ever before de-
seconded TO such misrepresentation ard
Nilfcation OF individual citizens as
Mr.. Roosevelt has in his last annual
message.
president Roosevelt absolutely
misrepresents the attitude of certain
leaders OF organized labor In his
sweeping denuncia,ions. He does this
knowingly and wilfully, because he
has from tine TO time during the last
seven yeas conferred with the Ger
tain" and nearly all the well-knoWn
officers Fld other representatives Of
labor unions, and has had ample OPP
portunity &c know how fair and just
is their contention against the abuse
OF the injunction power by the courts,
ana how different their attitude from
what he charges It to be- Mr.. Roose
he. HtaH
any violent and sweeping attack upon
the entire judiciary of the country
which he charges the men Of labor
with making.
THE fact Is that no representative
If labor made any attack upon ahy
individual Judge or the judiciary as
such. We leave such fulminations TO
Mr.. Roosevelt We need go no further
than his present message to discover
attacks upon the judiciary far more
sweeping and abusive than anything
We have ever thought, much less Mt
tered. We have had occasion before
80 point out that in previous messages
lie did not hesitate to attack judges
whose decisions displeased him-he.
as usual. constituting himself the
iudge OF whether or not his attack was
justified.
'Labor's representatives have 1T all
times attacked the Principle under
which unjust decisions have been Is
sued ana lever the judges who ma to
these decisions We refer TO all that
we have said about the supreme court
in connection with the Danbury hat.
ters' decision which classed Labor IN
ions with trusts under the Sherman
antitrust law. We refer to anything
we said OF President-elect Taft in CON
nection with his history as a Judge,
when issuing injunctions. We have
never used personal abuse as our
weapon"