The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-09-15


Boston, Sept. 14.-Governor Coolidge
in telegram today to Samuel Com
pers, President of the American FEEDER
alton of Labor, expresses his determin
alton to defend the sovereignty of
Massachusetts," and says that Com
pers's charge that Police Commission
er Curtis was wrong does not justify
the wrong of leaving the city OF Bos-
ton at the mercy of all the criminal
elements.
The Governor adds that the sugges-
tion of President Wilson that the po-
lice of Washington remain on duty
pending the national industrial confer
ence in October does not apply to Bos-
ton, for here the police have deserted
their jobs and left the city unprotected
and in violation of the law of the state
while in Washington they remained on
duty.
A meeting of the Central Labor
Union was held tonight to debate the
adyisability of calling a general strike
in aid of the police, but at late hour
no announcement had been made.
The meeting tomorrow between Po-
lice Commissioner Curtis and repres-
entatiyes CT the Policemen's Union and
other labor organizations will be but
prelude to the real battle. The re-
suit of that meeting aiready.is almost
certainly known. The Commissioner
has made his position evident by re-
fusing to take the strikers back and
declaring their places vacant. 1t is al
most foregone conclusion that Mr..
Curtis will act in accordance with the
stand taken by Governor Coolidge, who
though he has refused to interfere
with the Commissioner. is in supreme
command of the situation.
More than twenty unions met today
to ballot as to whether or not they
shall walk out in support CT the police
men if they are called. To those lin
charge of the city's fight to re-estab-
lish and maintain law and order there
was more than little significance in
the refusal of the labor leaders to dis
close how these labor unions voted
Their decisions, in the form of signed
and sealed communications, were plac-
ed into the hands of member of the
Committee of Seventeen appointed by
the Central Labor Union to handle the
situa ion
There exists a strong belief that all
this secrecy as to the labor vote is in
dicative of general apathy toward the
proposed walkout. This arises from the
firm conviction that if the proponents
of the general walkout held in their
sands such trump card as favorable
declarations on the part of many big
unions, they would play 1t now when
the policemens cause is in such dire
peril
There is persistent rumor tonight
that the city firemen have voted to
walk out in sympathy. The officers of
their organization refuse to affirm or
deny They are affiliated with the
American Federation, which during
the past few days has publicly taken
a firm stand against municipal ser
wants of safety striking Though Fed
Grafton heads have made plain that
this national organization has no pow
er to prevent individual unions from
striking
There seems little Likelihood that the
fire men will walk out in defiance of
the sentiment of the national body up
on which they would find themselves
dependent, just sthe policemen are
now. In any event ample preparation
has been made to man the fire houses
If they do go with engineer troops or
with regular navy men.