The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-10-31
Farmers Not Ready to En-
dorse Radical Programs
of Labor Leaders
WOULD WELCOME
COOPERATION
Direct Dealing With Consumers Would
Please Farmers Did Not Commit
Themselves at Labor Meeting In
Washington.

WASHINGTON, Oct 31.-Organ-
lied labor is credited with an inten-
tion of effecting an alliance, economic
and political, with organized farmers
in the United States and the first step
to that end was the invitation given
by the American federation of labor to
various organizations of farmers to be
,, represented in the labor convention
called by the federation for December
Is, in Washington.
Newswriters and politicians have
been busy since this convention was
/ announced figuring the voting strength
| of such a combination. Some of them
estimate third party could be Great
ed which would crowd either the Re
publican or Democratice parties out
of the presidential contest IN 1920. 1t
is not exaggeration to say that some
alarm is manifest in congress and else
where at the possibilities of the con
vention. For the farmer labor vote
with sufficient degree of solidarity
indisputably could WELD an enormous
influence, possibly decisive influence
While organized labor is playing an
uneoncealed role of ''Barkis is will
in, the assumption that an alliance
already has been tentatively effected
is unwarranted. The actual facts up.
on which some prognostications of Sc
rous import have been built are as
follows:
The executive council of the Ameri-
can federation of labor, coincidentally
with the decision to withdraw the labor
delegates from the national industrial
conference, reached decision to rally
all the forces available for impending
industrial struggles. The four rail.
road brotherhoods and four farmers
organizations were invited TO meet
with the executive council last Satur-
Iday. One assumption was that asoms
Legislation pending in congress was as
inimical to the interests of the farm
ers as it was thought to be to the in
terests of labor.
Before the meeting was over the dis
cussion hranched off into general in
dustrial conditions. but when the time
came to issue call for q convention
the representatives of the farmers de
clined 10 sign it, although agreeing t.
lay the question of representation il
the convention before their organiza
tions. Thus the status of the so
called alliance of labor and farmers j!
uncertain and will be until the farm
crs themselves in their own conyen
tions decide whether they wish to b,
represented in the Washington eonven
| ton.
So far as the National Board o.
Farm organizations is concerned. j
| was learned that some of its officers
attended the meeting called by the fed
Grafton expecting that some scheme o.
cooperative buying would be the mail
subject of discussion The officers ex
planned that they had no authority t,
commit any of the organizations whicl
are members of the board, to any form
of an alliance with labor. They were ii
| sympathy with the plan of collectiv,
bargaining by labor, but further thar
Ibis any approval of labor policie
must come from the farmers.
G. S. Barrett, of the National Boar,
If Farm organizations, in a statemen
ssued after the national industrial
conference failed, intimated that on
| orm of alliance was possible between
armers and labor, namely ''an often
sive and defensive alliance between al
constructive forces of the countr,
against the common enemy of extrem
ism. In other words, so long as labo
travels the road of primitive Ameri
canism, labor viii have the compan
IF farmers. Another officer in the Ma
tional Board of Farm organization
ventured to amplify this statement b
asserting that naturalization of il
iustries. arbitrary strikes on seal
that endangered the existence of til
iwholc nation, or Bolshevist tcndencie
of any kind, are issues which the ms