The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1918-11-22
BoIshevik Groups Had To Be Conn
bated In Foreign Lands, To
Win War For Freedom

4 brance
] The meeting was held under the
auspices f the American Alliance for
Labor and Democracy. Officials of
the American Federation of Labor,
the Illinois Federation of Labor and
the Illinois Council Of Defense had
joined their efforts in the task, all
glad and proud to contribute to the
success Of this tribute from the hearts
of the people.
The vast theatre was filled to the
last seat The 900 seats on the stage
were filled to the last chair. The
sailor band crowded the big orchestra
pit The warmth of personal feeling
pervaded the place The stars and
Stripes and the Allied colors and the
Alliance emblems We're draped every
where Here was life and color and
the flame of friendship and admiration
This was such a welcome as few men
have had from their fellows.
Frank p Walsh, chairman of the
evening, was introduced by Samuel
insult, chairman Of the Illinois Coun-
ell of Defense. Mr.. Walsh, in ring
! ing speech that kept the audience
ripping with hearty applause, intro
duced James Duncan, first vice pres
ident of the American Federation of
Labor, who welcomed President Com
pers in the name Of organized labor.
Mr. Walsh then presented Mr.
Gompers.
Here are some of the things Sam
uel Gompers said to that great au-
dience:
Text of Gompers' Speech.
1t was a great mission entrusted to
my associates and myself, a mission
to convey the message Of fraternity
and good will and cooperation and
sacrifice that the opportunity to live
the lives of free men and women shall
not be crushed from the face Of the
earth, the message. that America had
arisen to the stature of her greatness
and thrown herself across the path of
the conquering Hun 1t was a mes
sage that if needs be our America
would sacrifice and die rather than
live the ignominy of cowardice.
Where a great principle is involved
and men fail to defend it, refuse to
make a sacrifice to preserve it, there
is no hope for them or for those who
come after them. Fight for the right
and even though you are defeated, the
spark is still in the heart and the
brain, handed down from father to
son, from mother to daughter and to
the generations until finally that spark
bursts into a flame and the torch of
liberty is relighted.
The man of the men who would
not fight in defense of freedom-the
men who would not fight in defense of
their country engaged in righteous
cause, are unworthy to live and enjoy
the privileges of a free country.
In the work of our American Fed
Grafton of Labor Mission to England,
to France and Belgium, our confer
ences with our men there, our public
discussions with the men of labor and
of other affairs there, we predicated
our position upon the declared basis
of the American labor movement and
we put forth our position not only
upon the righteousness of our cause
and our stand, but upon the further
fact that we had two million Of our
own American boys over there.
Before the United States entered
the war it might have been regarded
as gratuitous for us to even suggest
thing to any of the democratic ma
tions involved in the struggle, but
now that we we're in the war up to
the hilt, well, nothing could be done by
Kings or Cabinets on men of labor
without the full consent of the repre-
sentatives of our Republic. And it was
witl no mealy mouths that the Ameri-
can labor mission expressed their
firm convictions.
/ call your attention to part of the
declaration adopted by the conference
of Americas workers at Washington,
the capital of our nation, on March II,
1917, where the Executive Council had
summoned representative labor men