The Washington herald., 1918-02-22
BORLAND PLAN
ATTACKED BY
ALL SPEAKERS
Mass Meeting of Employees
Cheers Opponents Of
Extra Hour.

A mass meeting Of government
clerks last night at the Typographical
Temple, last night gave a demonstra-
tive denial to the statement OF Rep
resentatiye Borland that opposition to
his eight-hour day amendment was
not coming from government clerks
themselves, but from selfish in
terests' exploiting" the Washington
public.
A veritable sea Of hands sweIled
into waves above the heads Of clerks
when Frank Morrison, secretary Of
the American Federation OF Labor
asked. How many are opposed to
working eight hours a day as pro-
vided in the Borland amendment?
Hall Overnowed.
Now. show me-" asked Mr.. Nor
rison, how many are not opposed
to working eight hours a day as
provided under the Borland
amendment"
One hand went UP.
why. little girl" said Mr.. Morri-
son to the owner of the hand. You
do not appear to be old enough 20
work"
Crowds arriving for the meeting
soon taxed the upper hall of the
typographical Temple to its ca
pacity and an overflow filled the
aisles and corridors. More than six
hundred clerks were jammed in the
hall, and crowded in corridors at
the head OF the stairway, when Mr..
Morrison began his remarks.
HnndrAda -
the top Of the stairs. and an over
flow meeting was started in the
smaller lower hall OF the Temple by
w. W. Paine, an official of the To-
cal union. This hall also was
crowded beyond its capacity.
After speakers finished their ad-
ed through the crowd and took their
places before the waiting members in
the lower hall.
Miss Rankin Cheered.
When the audience in the lower hall
was asked its status on the Borland
amendment, not a hand was raised in
favor of the Borland plan. The scene
OF the upper hall was repeated when
opponents of the measure were asked
to signify their opposition.
1t was pointed out that the clerks
did not object to working eight hours
under abnormal conditions, as their
work at the present time demon
strates. when many OF the depart
ments are engaged in emergency war
tasks, but what they opposed, Off
cials said. was the placing OF the
eiGht-hour day on the statute books
and making il mandatory after the
war
Miss Jeanette Rankin, member OF
Congress from Montana, arrived late.
A bodyguard OF officials of the union
formed a wedge to cut their way
through the jammed mass Of audi
tors.
Miss Rankin took her stand on
the platform while Morrison was
speaking He turned to bow to her
and a thunder of applause shook
the hall.
John $. Beach. president Of Local
No. ., Federal Employees Union. pre-
sented Miss Rankin.
In a short speech she emphasized
her stand on the side of organized
! labor and intimated that she came
to the meeting to apologize for Mr..
Borland's action.
Apologize for BOIand.
II don't know what my older col
! leagues in Congress will think OF
my coming her to apologize for the
efforts of an older Congressman. -
she began.
Its hard to tell an audience of Fed
! eral workers that the BoTland amend
ment is a mistake. You realize bet
/ ter than We members of Congress
wherein the fault lies. l know that
you are working only seven hours or
some days. but 1 also have learned
that many of you are working eight,
/ nine and ten hours per day on other
| days"
She reserved a suggestion outside Of
| the line of discussion until last.
'Of course" she concluded. Il have
not very much patience with people
CONTINUED ON PAGE TWO.