Great Falls daily tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1895-1921, 1919-09-25
STRIKE IN PART
DUE To MURDER
C0MPERS SAYS
Uses Steel Grievances
to Fight Cummins An
ti-Strike Proviso.

Washington. Sept. o4.-Declaring that
Chairman Gary of the United States
Steel corporation had dealt 'in flppant
and autocratic fashion" with labor rep
resentatives. President Gompers. of tho.
American Federation of Labor, in sum
ming up before Che senate Interstate
commerce committee organized labor's
opposition to the anti-strike section Of
the Cunlmins railroad bill. said the steel
strike was an example of the necessity
for the use of the strike by the labof
unions.
Appearance of Mr. Gompers before
the committee came at the end Of the
second day of contintGd attack by labor
leaders against the provision of the
Cummins bill which would make striking
railroad men eonspirators against com
merce and liable to fine and imprison-
ment.
Only Strike Can Convince.
The labor chief summarized the ar
gnments presented by 2. !. MacNan.ara,
vice president of the Firemen's and En-
gineers' Brotherhood: ]. E. Hedgerling,
president of the Switchnscns union: W.
y. Doak, vice president of the Train
mems brotherhood and Fred Furuseth,
of the Seamen's union, and other wit
nesses and discussing the steel strike,
declared:
when employers say there is no.
thing to talk over. when they refuse to
meet representatives T labor. when
they say these representatives represent
nobody. how else are they to convince
them but by strike. Look at the steel
strike now. That was the position Mr.
Gary took. A letter to him from me
last June still is unanswered
Gary Declared Flippant.
"A committee to see him was greeted
with the word that he had nothing to
discuss with them. He treated US in
| flippant and autocratic fashion. The
| strike is now on. much to my regret. be-
| cause / wanted to see it delayed until
| after the presidents industrial confer
| ence.
| But if you knew conditions in dis
| tricts the United States Steel corpora
| tion controls you would understand.
| There has been assaults and arrests Of
men. prohibition of meetings on rented
| ground. workers dispersed by thugs,
| gangsters and detectives and crooks en-
pIoyed by the companies; woman murd
! cred in cold blood and the detective who
| did it released on bond Of $1,000. while
| men arrested in the meetings are held
/! in $4,000 BAIL"
Last Effective Form of Appeal.
whats that" committee member
interrupted.
| AT Mckeesport. Pa Mr. Gompers
! rejoined That's the sort of things we
/ have to meet in guiding labor organiza
/ tions. We've done and will continue to
| do our level best. men in the labor move
/ ment. to keep things going, but if You
/ take from us our last effective form Of
| appeal for necessary things as this bill
! does, whatever comes is on your heat!
and not On ours
| Warns of Unrest Peril.
/ Dealing with the subject of general
! unrest M-= Gempers said that labor or
i ganizations were experiencing difficulty
| in holding radicals in check.
The dissatisfaction is so great now"
he ADDED. that democracy is sneered at
/ by certain groups. who say that it Ia
! only :. pretext which the employing
| classes hold up to cheat workers and that
workers can only secure justice by rev.
! olution. Nothing would give these peo-
| pie opportunity to spread their doctrines
| like the passage of this bill. Nothing
/ would cheate so much unrest"
/ ELECTRIC POWER MEN MEET.
Seattle. Sept. 24-Oregon. Washing
1 ton. Idaho and Montana delegates We're
here, today, at the opening Of the 1919
convention Of the Northwest Electric
Light and Power association.