The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1918-01-04
many minor injuries resulted.
Oliver Corrected Conditions

the largest operators in the state,
with mines on the Mesaba and
Vermilion ranges, had corrected
any condition which might have
been criticized existing prior to
the 1916 disturbances and were
taking an active interest in the
promotion of proper leisure hour
activities for the workers. The
wages | found, after personal in
vestigation among the workers,
were, completely satisfactory and
the one condition which | found
open to criticism was the practice
in the pit workings of Virginia
and Hibbing of adhering to ten
and twelve-hour shift schedule.
This condition the men accept
partly because Of the increased
pay it allows them and largely be-
cause they are willing to do their
bit to speed production of raw
materials necessary for the sue
cessful prosecution of the war.
On the whole the grievances Of
the /. w. w. were without foun-
dation and in many instances
fabrications for the sole purpose
of creating industrial unrest.
In the past it had been easy for
clever organizer to weave tale
purely imaginary, but which was
accepted as fact by the worker,
in many instances illiterate and
ofttimes under the influence Of
liquor, and the unskilled foreign
worker, of whom about $4,000
are employed in the Mesaba
range mines, was most pliable
subject.
Activity Multiplied
When the United States de
clared war against Kaiserism the
|. w. w. activity in the iron coun-
try Immediately multiplied mani
fold.
Andreytching, practically I'M
heard of since the troubles OF
1916, was set to work preparing
literature to be distributed among
the Slavonian workers and Mike
Babic, secretary of the Chisholm
local (of which branch the writer
was a member), was instructed to
arrange for the general distribu-
ton Of this matter on the Mesaba
range. Organizers were rushed
into the district and speaking
dates were arranged by Jacobson
covering the entire district. /
heard Giovanni Bolducci, Italian
organizer and who is now in a
Federal prison deliver a speech
at Kinney which fairly bristled
with syndicalism and it appeared
that contrary to policy of ultra
conservatism, which seemed to
have been generally adopted by
the organizers in the fall of 1916,
Immediately war was declared all
caution was thrown to the winds
and they were sacrificing every
thing in order to speed possible
revolution of the workers in min
ing districts.
John Pancher, former general
organizer of the [. w. w.. was
| rushed into the district and, all
told, in tie month Of June thirty
active organizers were employed
| in a concerted effort to tie up the
iron mining by means Of a gene
raj walkout.
The Firms, made use Of by
| Weitola, jacobson, Leo Laukki
and others of their ilk, were told
that the CONSUMPTION law was but
a subterfuge, the true purpose of
which was the registration of the
[. w. W., who would Immediately
be sent with the fighting forces
to France. AS so per cent of the
working Firms on the range are
aliens the righteousness Of this
statement is at once apparent.
Commission S Order Distorted
The Public Safety commission s
order prohibiting the sale. OF Ii
quor in quantities to boarding
houses was maliciously distorted
and used among the Italians with
intent to create dissatisfaction
among them, and the Slavonians
were led to shamefully and In
some instances threatened with
violence if they did not lend as
sistance to strike when called.
All efforts to arouse the workers
to display of their 1916 unrest
failing, the organizers hit upon
the expedient Of having Elizabeth
Gurley Flynn address a joint
meeting Of workers at Virginia
on Sunday, June %, and the fail
ure Of the Queen Of the Revolu-
zionist" to keep the engagement
because of being mavoidably de-
tanned by Chief of Police r. d.
McKercher, who asked the lady
to week end at the city bastile,
was a hard blow to jacobson and
the organization. Our work OF
reinsurance all this while was be-
ing carried on through many
channels, and the effect was al
most immediate.
All natives Of the dual mon
archy, and of Serbia, Roumania
and Mont eneurn were informed