New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-09-14
|. w. W..
Not Primarily Policeman, 1.
Industrial Terrorist.
To the Editor Of The Tribune.

view which seems TO be entertained I, nm
ington concerning the I. ". W. orsani,.,;.s
and 7 am quite convinced that ,bo,.
fancy it's activities are promoted BY n. e
mans are on the wrong train Of thou-..
Doubtless there are some connected viii =.
rowing bands, christened II won't voy,,sx
people OF the Pacific Coast, who mr.. 4.
ceipt Of subsidies from Germany. bu. y..
chief support comes from another sour.
You Of the East overlook the fact thu, ~.
activities Of the I. W. W. began long b.,.,'
the outbreak Of the present war, and a..
, they took the form Of melting strike, a.,
creating a condition OF unrest among ma,
ganized workingmen. For quite tim. "a.
were regarded as tramps OF IN. sort ~.
would rather do anything than earn An IA,
est living; hence the nickname quoted r..
when their numbers increased and they b.s,.
70 march in formidable bands they ben, !.
be feared, and not without reason, for u.i,
visitations were attended By disagr..,u.
results In California, where larg. nuns.,,
Of men are employed By farmers on III. ,.,.
sonal plan, they were especially dreaded. "a,
when they made their appearance desertie,,
Of the workers Immediately followed.
They were no more welcome in the town,
and cities, but the inhabitants Of such plse,,
were able to take care Of themselves. and a,
occasion dealt summary with the organi,.s
Migrants There was notable instane. a,
shat method of dealing with the situation !,
San Diego, Cal, during the administration o.
Governor Hiram Johnson, af:erwsrd elected
United States Senator, which prompted him
to send Colonel Harris Weinstock on a n;,.
sion Of inquiry, the citizens Of San Diego nav.
ing forcibly elected the I. ". W. band, vhiek
was devoting itself TO making incendisry a..
peals. The soap box orators before u,
process Of extrusion was begun INDUCED !,
mensces against those who threatened 70
drive them out, but when the driving ben,
they submitted to the humiliation Of bei,,
booted" out OF town, no arms being used By
those who undertook the work Of election
When Weinstock made his report conser,.
tive men were amazed. There was no cues.
ton concerning the nature Of the threat,
made by the orators, and no one doubted that
they were seeking 70 incite riot, but ii.
colonel declared that the people Of San Diego
we're making an assault on the right Of fr.
speech. Harsh critics connected his atti,ud.
with the fact that Johnson had entered into
pact with the organized trade unions Of Cal.
ifornia. particularly those Of San Francisco,
which required him TO steer clear Of all con.
plications calculated to embroi him vita
organized" labor.
Armed Invasion
Although the /. ". W. band driven out 0.
San Diego failed to show fight, members o.
The organization operating in Montana, Idaho
and Washington did In one instance the.
was practically an armed invasion Of sm,9
town near Seattle which resulted in some
fatalities. In this latter case The purpose
was to break up the operations Of lumber.
ing concern. Although mild surprise vn
sometimes expressed that'these men, VITO
never appeared to earn any money. should BE-
supplied with funds, the fact was not much
commented upon until after the declaration
Of war against German, but there were sOr'
who were firmly convinced that the props
sanda was financed by the organized trsa
unions. Just as that which resulted in q,
,lynamiting of the Office Of THE Los Angeles
Times" was, and later the bomb outrage Il
San Francisco, when several people were klle;
and a number injured. In both these cases
the persons accused OF having committed the
crimes were openly defended by the trade
unions, and large sums of money were a'
pended in the effort to free them.
These facts are related with the idea mat
If properly understood they will sugset
guarding against a far greater danger tnan
that contained in possible feeble attempt "
arouse opposition to the prosecution OF ne
war against Germany. The pernicious aetIVi-
ties of the I. W. W. began before the ou''
break of the European war, and they VIII
continued when il is over unless healthier
political sentiment is inculcated IN this eouh'
try. mean by that that il will be necessary
for those who are possessed OF the very toF
Grant opinion that the exercise Of resIraa,
is unnecessary in the United states wiz
have TO greatly modify their views. and ths'
our courts, in some way, Will have 10 or'ns
about a state Of mind which will cause the"
Cor whose protection laws are eascted F"
realize that it is of more consequences 70 m
sure the safety OF society than that Of 'a'
few individuals who are eager Tor us w
struction.