The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1913-03-29
M'EWEN HAS EARNED
SUPPORT OF LABOR
Compelled Great Northern Rail-
way to Return Money Extorted
from Greek Laborers.

by their works We shall know
them." Is as true today as in the days
OF the Apostles and we hope to be
pardoned again for bringing to pub
lie attention our record while in Of
flee, and particularly when the inter-
ests of labor were vitality concerned.
ceived a letter in November, 1909,
from Greek laborer engaged as a
section man in the employ of the
Great Northern Railway company,
stating that money was deducted from
his time check each month for the
payment of interpreters fees. The
writer Of this letter also stated that
all Greeks employed by the company
were obliged to pay $1.00 a month for
this service.
Immediately an investigation was
made by the department and affida-
Wits secured from the men to the ~ef-
feet that sums amounting from $500
to $1,000 had been deducted from
their wages. Each man questioned
sWore that he had never asked any
person to act as his interpreter. Our
investigator interviewed the foreman,
also Greek, who declared that he
never was required to pay for the
services Of an interpreter, and while
no deductions were made from his
check, he knew of his own knowl-
edge" that sums Of money were de-
Quoted from the pay checks of labor
ers, and further that he believed the
system to be graft"
FOupht for Common, To1,or
Testimony was secured from 412
men, all of which is now on file in
the office of the Bureau of Labor.
The Great Northern railway, &C.
cording to the affidavits, employed an
interpreter named John Toscas to rep
resent the company in all relations
from the Greek laborers. The wages
were from $3.50 to- $3.50 per day,
and from these wages the sum of $1.0O
was deducted each month for the in
terpreter. Toscas had charge of this
line Of business from Superior to
Deer River, MINI.
The records in the office Of the
Bureau of Labor are replete with tes-
timony from these men, stating that
they had never seen Toscas until they
went to the division headquarters for
their money; some of them never
heard of him until told that the de-
duction from their wages was made
to pay interpreters fees. Nearly all
testified that they had never signed
any paper agreeing to pay for such
services.
AS Commissioner of Labor We re-
ceived a letter during the course OF
these investigations, from an employ
ment agent in northern Minnesota,
who, after reviewing some Of the
practices followed by other employ
ment agents and petty officials Of the
railroad companies, had this to say
relative to the cause of the Green
laborers:
Went After the Padrone.:
1.-THE Greek laborers are to be pitied
as they are under a padrone and the
padrone is connected with the. en-
ployment company. They get the
passes and they charge these poor
men as high as $500 per head to ship
and this is cut between the employ
ment company and the padrone."*
think the Great Northern officials
will get on the right track soon, and
they can see where the blame lies
After making the investigation, we
sought the opinion of the attorney
general as to the course to be pur-
sued, and whether a criminal action
would lie.
Section 5096 Of the Revised Laws
Of 1905, dealing with extortion, seemed
to be the only provision or the
statute on which We could rely. The
provision mentioned contains the fol.
lowing: "every person indebted to an.
| other for labor, or any agent of any
person, co-partnership or corporation
50 indebted, who, with intent to Sc.
cure discount upon such indebted.