Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-07-07
BR|TON HAS CURE
FOR WORLD ILLS
Union Official Says Universal
Standard of Labor Condi-
tions Is Needed.
BY GORDON STILES.
Cnblegram to The Evening Star and
Chicago Daily News. Copyright, 1919.


Chicago Daily News. Copyright. 1919.
LONDON, England, July 5.-Ben
TilIett, NJ. P, secretary of the Dock.
Wharf and Riverside General Work
ers' Union. has a very definite idea
of what is wrong with the world.
Also he has a remedy. The panacea
for all ills. political. social and in
duStrial, lies in a universal standard
of labor conditions.
"Once get the workers of the world
together on an equal footing. all the
other kinks in the worlds affairs Will
unravel themselves" said Mr.. Tillett
today AT the present time the
American workmen'S standard of ilV-
ing is the highest known. and as
starter here we desire to bring con-
ditions to the level of our brothers
across the Atlantic. The process OF
internationaliZing the standard has
gone farther than perhaps you think.
Right now we are helping to stand
ardize the living for a low-paid sec
ton of American workers.
For Direct Action.
Il am for direct action all right. but
for economic and not political ends
1t cannot. of course. ever take the
place of parliamentary action. Today
We are using direct action against
firms employing non-unionized black
labor on the Mississippi. They are
undertaking us and think that we
have no recourse. but we can refuse
to unload the lumber they ship US.
Preparatory to this action. however.
We have taken the matter UP with the
longshoremen's union in America. In
Scandinavia the workers were getting
less than we get. We notified them
that we would not take Off their car
goes. So they have obtained raise
that is ~ per cent higher than the
British scale.
You see that national boundaries do
not count if the workers stand to-
gether. 1t is up to labor to bring.
about friendly international relation
ship and there are many difficulties to
be overcome. There is the case of
Japan. a country notorious for low
paid labor. With its accession of 3d.
900 900 people by the peace treaty it is
likely that labor there will be paid
still less. The capitalists. therefore,
have Japan's competition to fear; the
workmen call it a blackleg nation.
bad feeling is to attain a universal
standard. This must come about
through direct, industrial action. ma
tionalization of the key industries and
Observation-Disclosures of trade unions,
according to the Amsterdam plan.
Favors Naturalization.
NATURALIZATION of the key industries
here would help raise living to the
American standard. BY building up
national transportation more work
would be provided and also a greater
variety of food could be obtained
more cheaply. Our Anticipated sys-
tenn holds up the price of living. Our
railroads have fifty-year-old engines.
which you would have scrapped long
ago. We have cattle and grain dis
have quick and direct connection
with all your great inland indus
tries You have straightgoing roads
which arrive directly at modern mar
ket points. while we have parts of
the country, like Worcestershire,
where the ancient Roman maps used
1000 years ago would serve as trav-
elers' guides today.
Modern unloading devices are I'M
common with US. A Liverpool laborer
earns 40 cents. compared with the
New York laborer's 65 cents. 1t must
dividual rate is higher in New York,
the total wages in Liverpool are
more because the firms employ more
men. InternationaliZing unions ac-
cording to the character of the work
done as suggested at Amsterdam will
be a powerful weapon to secure the
needed universal standard. 1t will
mean that workers in the same in
dustry everywhere can unite in direct
action. This union will mean that if
the workers decide that the capitalist
system is the cause of the evils that
ARE pressing on them the workers can
swoof capitalism"
lis there anywhere in the world any
class of workers who are satisfied
with their conditions and have no
grievance / asked.
no, thank God" said Ben Ti1lett