The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-10-27
WoRkMEN OPPOSE STRIKE

There wa. no condemnation of the Pres
ident's stand here yesterday The great
mass of the organized workmen were
OF posed to the strike which was ABOUT 10
he called upon the dictation OF PRESIDENT
Lewis of the mine workers without a vote
on the part of the half million men and
the millions of others directly affected
A Sigh of relief was breathed by the
mass of organized labor which reallzed
that the situation did. not warrant the
return of control of all labor.
II heartily indorse the action or the
President" said Frank Nelson, Jr La
bor as a whole is right and fair and it is
necessary in considering the situation to
bear in mind the line of demarcation be-
tween labor and the agitators. They are
separate and apart and must be so con-
sidered The agitators were trying to
run the country and the time had come to
put stop to them. These agitators were
not working in the interest OF the. LABOR
ing men of the country but they were
trying to poison the mind of labor in Or
der to carry out their evil purposes.
Poster and the other so-caled leaders
Of his type are agitators and still believe
and work in harmony with the principles
of the l. w. w. 1t makes no difference
| If they do now claim, when pressed by
public sentiment and in order to further
their schemes, that they are no longer
members o l
its doctrines Their every action shows
that they are just as(radcals and revolu-
tionarv as any who call themselves
IT, w VS.. y
MOMENTOUS DECISION
1.-THE statement issued by President
Wilson Saturday night was his master
stroke No decision he has ever made,
no announcement of policy which has
come from his pen was ever more momen-
tous He served notice on the agitators
that they could not rule and ruin the
American government, and | believe ms
stand will have the support of every pa
triotic citizen His firmness in this mat
ter at time of grave crisis has saved us
from situation which caused the down
fall of Russia and threw that country
into the throes of anarchy more terrible
than we realize now
Labor is entitled to every consideration
and to every concession possible with JUS
tice to capital and the public. But the
agitators who were rapidly gaining the
upper hand in many of the labor organi-
cations had literally gone wild. We must
draw the distinction between labor and
those who were trying to use labor for
their own vile and vicious purposes. The
miners who were about to be called out
did not want to strike. They realize that
a strike meant ruin and destruction to in
duStrY, 10 the pubIS, anu thSiSic "
themselves They were satisfied, yet they
were about to be thrown out OF work
through power over which they had no
control and by an action in which they
had no voice.
.The American element in the steel
| trades was satisfied With conditions and
wages when the steel strike was called.
The same situation existed with the
miners Lewis was calling the mine
strike. not the miners themselves. The
asitators would lead the country to de-
struction and along with the rest of us
| labor would also be destroyed all to ad-
vance the selfish purposes of the agita-
| tors These agitators send out organizers
! among the working men to stir up strife
| and try to make them dissatisfied. Then
| they paint beautiful pictures of how
much more they can get if they will
strike After stirring up feeling of I'M
rest. they then claim that they can't con-
| troll labor and that the men insist upon
! the granting of impossible demands.
| "The President was standing with his
back to the wall and he took the only
wall left open 70 hin, az the executive OF
| the nation Had re failed TO stard firm,
the agitators would have taken charge of
! the country