Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1919-08-22

the Pacific fleet, passing through the u
ART in the strike of the Actors Equity a
)vernment charges with profteering al
market for their goods in Germany.
The witnesses in Boston said their
margin of profit was no larger h
when shoes were selling at much lower
prices. and that a decline might be
expected, perhaps a year hence.
The British, too, are attacking the
cost of living problem with vigor. The
house of commons had before it a bill
to curb profiteering, and after a hard
fight the measure was amended so as
to empower the board of trade, after
an investigation, to fix wholesale and
retail prices. Sir Auckland Geddes'
minister of national service, said this
would operate in cases where COM
munities were likely to be bled by any
combination, national or international,
for the purpose of raising prices; and
Andrew Bonar Law made it clear that
the government had no intention of es-
tablishing a general system of price
fixing throughout the country.
Belgium is suffering, like most of the
rest of the world, and the labor party
there has suggested to the prime min
lister a series of measures to arrest the
increasing prices of necessaries, to en-
courage the home growing of food and
to insure the equal distribution of i'm
ports. The party wants the govern
ment to fix the prices of foodstuffs and
to control the prices of coal and cloth
ing.
Paris was the scene of some lively
scrapping last week between the food
vendors in the markets and the price
vigilance committees and would-be
purchasers. The committees endeav-
ered to prevent foodstuffs bought by
the hotels and other large consumers
from leaving the markets, asserting
that the willingness of those buyers
to pay any prices, however high; re-
suited in the raising of all prices. Dur
ing the fighting many stalls and shops
were looted.
The labor situation in the United
States did not show marked improve
ment. In spite of all efforts to make
them return to work, the striking rail
way shopmen in many localities were
obdurate, and the officers of their in
ternational union were compelled to
threaten them with expulsion from the
union If they did not resume their Ia
bors. Then delegates representing
100000 shopmen met in Chicago and
voted to go back to work.
Before August 25 a general strike
of steel workers throughout the oun
try may be declared. The men have
been taking a vote on the question in
all the plants. They demand 81 al
hour, a 44-hour week and better work.
ing conditions. Such a strike will af-
feet more than a million men.
AS congress has not vet acted on
the Plumb plan, the railway brother
hoods are waiting. Meanwhile the
Plumb plan is getting some very hard
knocks from industrial and railway
experts, some of whom assert it would
increase the cost of living. Charles
Piez says the Plumb bill is about as
bad as 1t could be made. adding: "AS
a shipper and citizen, / should like to
be told what advantage or profit the
public will get outside of the privilege
of paying the yearly deficit" Mr..
plumb fold tho hor1ca oonpoittaa on in
terstate commerce that he either had
OF could procure evidence proving that
a systematized plundering of all the
railroads has been conducted under
the direction of the Morgan and Rock
efeller banking interests.
More interesting than important was
the strike of the members of the
Actors Equity association. which,
starting in New York. spread to Chi
cago. A number of theaters In both
cities were forced to close their doors.
The actors demanded recognition of
their association and various reforms
In the conditions of working. The dis
pute was carried into court by injunc-
ton proceedings.
A situation arose at the Chicago
stockyards which may teach union la
borers a lesson in the matter of OBJ
serving their contracts. Federal Judge
Alschuler, mediator, ruled that the
employees who quit work during the
recent race riots had violated their
pledge moi to strike for one year and
thus had lost their seniority rights.
Union officials objected violently to
this, but it seemed likely most of the
packing house workers would abide
by Judge Alschuler's rulings. Tor the
present at least.
In New York 1900 interior decorat-
ors quit work; and representatives of