Denver labor bulletin., 1917-02-10
GERMAN CRISIS UPSETS
LEGISLATIVE SCHED-
ULE IN HOUSE.
While Statesmen Talk of Battles,
Leaders of Organized Labor
Prepare for Uniting Work
ers on Western Hernis-
phere in One Body.
By LAWRENCE TODD
Special Washington Correspondents The
Denver Labor Bulletin-)

Special Washington Correspondents The
Denver Labor Bulletin-)
WASHINGTON, Feb. 6.-With the
Adamson law still in the balance be-
fore the supreme court, and the rail-
road legislation program stalled in
the senate interstate commerce COM
mittee, the coming of the threat of
war with Germany found congress in
a muddle, SO far as legislation direct
ly affecting labor is concerned.
Four labor bills from the house
committee on labor have been waiting
their turn for a vote in the lower
branch, under suspension of the rules
Meyer London's social insurance in
quiry resolution had the first place.
Next came John J. Casey's bill pro-
viding for the creation of a women's
division in the department of labor.
Third was John l. Nolan's bill grant
ing a So minimum wage to all United
States civil service employees. Finally
there has been pending the Booher
bill, forbidding the shipment of con-
vict-made goods into state against
the law of the state.
Possibly some one or two of these
will have been passed or killed before
these words appear in print. More
likely, the German crisis will upset
the schedule of work in the house and
the labor bills will go over for an
other two weeks. II they still remain
to be disposed of, the last six days of
the session are open to their consider
alton at the favor of the speaker. He
can at any time recognize member
who may move suspension of the rules
fer the passage-o of any 6ih.
Chance For Labor Bills
So there is still a chance-only
chance-that labor legislation will
be enacted before this congress shall
expire on the fourth day of March.
Organizations backing the various
bills are trying to line up support for
them among the house membership.
Casey's bill provides for separate
organization within the department of
labor to look after the welfare of the
nine million women who are employed
in industry in this country. Most of
these woman are unorganized and are
at the mercy of their employers, both
as to wages and hours and as to con-
ditions surrounding their work. Casey
wants the government to create this
division, with capable and expert
enced woman investigator as its chief,
and TO back it with an initial appro-
priation of $4,000.
No Mausoleum Wanted.
Like the children's bureau, it would
pay more attention TO improving the
conditions of the women wage earn
ers than to compiling statistics as to
their past comparative earnings. 1t
would be a live institution, not a
mausoleum of facts and figures no
longer of value. The National Wom-
ems Trade Union League is doing its
utmost to advance Casey'S bill, but in
the face of the demand that no money
be spent on anything but military pre-
paredness the prospect is not favor
able.
OF all the labor lobbyists who have
been in Washington this year, San
tiago Iglesias, president of the Free
Federation of Workers, of Porto Rico,
has been the most successful. He has,
up to date, prevented the passage of
the Porto Rican civil government bill
in the vicious form approved by the
house and by the senate committee.
1t seems certain that the bill will be
so modified as to protect the full pol
itical rights of the Porto Rican work
ers.
Pan-American Federation
On the very day that President Will
son was announcing 20 congress that
ne had dismissed the German am
bassador, and that war might result
from the new submarine policy of
NSEIhailS. the plans IOr the CalAlnG OF
convention to organize a Pan-Amer-
lean Federation of Labor were being
discussed in the offices of the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor. Mr.. Com
pers, with Carlos Loveira of Yucatan
and Santiago Iglesias of Porto Rico,
went over the list of pledges of sup
port thus far received, and drafted "A
formal invitation which will be sent
to each of the republics of this hemis-
phere.
Loveira, it will be remembered,
made report to the Baltimore con-
vention last November. on the results
of his trip thru South America in be-
half of possible Pan-American la
Dor federation. He showed that in
Argentine, Chile, Uruguay. Peru and
in Ecuador the labor organizations
were ready to share in such general
movement.
Planning First Convention.
A federation formed by the labor
movements of Chile and Peru, as a
means of cementing friendly relations
between those two republics, had been
highly successful. Jingoes had been