Evening journal., 1919-10-28

The suggestion that the unions in
the American Federation of Labor unite
with the farmers and other unorganized
bodies Of workers to control industry,
and possibly to soyletize IL, is intended
to strike terror to the heart OF the pub
lie. Yet IL may not do that. Organized
labor may have less power 10 exploit
its own interests at the, expense of the
community, II IL is combined i'm one
big group, than it has now, separated
into many distinct and loosely allied
units.
Under the present arrangement IL is
easy for a small minority to intrench
itself and pursue an intensively selfish
policy. A strike in one trade or one
branch Of industry ordinarily doesn't
pinch the public. People don't visual
ize indirect economic results. If they
are not nOticrably affected they look
on strike as remote disturbance and
conceive Of il as a mere quarrel be-
tween workers and employers. They do
not see that any adjustment which
lowers production and makes industry
less efficient is a blow struck at every
body. So minor, localized strikes at
tract passing attention. And the sum
OF them adds invisibly to the cost Of
living.
The existing theory Of labor union
ism is that small minorities may con-
tinuously advance their welfare at the
cost Of the rest OF the community. In
order to get the best results these mi
norlties must remain small. All the
tyranny in the world comes from the
seizure of power by limited groups
They exploit the less aggressive groups.
Organized labor can therefore secure
the maximum benefit for itself without
much resistance on the part Of the
community If it remains spit up into
minor and highly militant organizations.
II these merge into a big union and
draw in other elements, hitherto pas
siye, much smaller outside mass Is
left to exploit II the one big union
grows big enough IL must exploit its
own members at the same time that Il
IS exploiting outsiders.
Anything like a general strike or a
long-continued reduction OF the Volume
of production would defeat It's own
ends. The factory labOrers would suf-
fer If agriculture should be suspended.
The farmers would suffer II transpOrta-
ton and factory production should be
tied up. The evils OF such a dlslocation
Of normal life could not be shunted from
the shoulders of the unionists 10 the
shoulders Of the non-unionlsts. Every
group that works at all would be
drawn eventually into the one big
union. Then policy of selfish ex-
ploitatiOn for the benefit of small sub
groups would become impracticable.
The one big union if carried to its
logical conclusion would probably re-
suit in a return TO older conditions.
The nation is one big union. Loyalty
TO it is loyalty to the common inter
est. This feeling has been perverted
in labor union philosophy Of today
into loyalty TO some small clique or
Fictitious class within the State. We
have now the one big union, politically,
although our government has so far
never realized the implications Of that
situation. It has not fought selfish
minOrltles, as 1t should have fought
them. II has often sacrificed the in
terests Of the whole TO interests OF
various noisy parts. But as between
tho majority and>a minority coming
out in the open and attempting to ty-
rannize over the majority, the govern
ment cannot dodge It's duty. II Mr.
Gompers wants to put the theories Of
present organization Of unionized labor
TO a test he can do so in two ways. He
can apply his principle Of rule in in