The Connecticut labor press. (New Haven, Conn.) 191?-1921, 1920-10-23
LOCAL MEN ARE
INTERESTED in
new YORK MIXUP
Alleged Illegal Relations Between
Employers and Employees Or
ganizations Being Probed.
UNION MEN SKEPTICAL
Believe Bosses Are Trying to Be-
cloud Issue at Expense
of Unions.

Union men engaged in the building
trades of Connecticut are much inter-
ested in the muddle of alleged illegal
combination on the part of contractors
in New York city and the grating rep
resentatives of the unions. Until the
latter have an opportunity to present
their side of the case local union men
are inclined to give them the benefit
of the doubt and to see possibility
that the big contractors are trying to
becloud the issue in an attempt to save
themselves.
The result of the investigations being
conducted by the Lockwood committee
into the combinations alleged to exist
in, the building material and eonstruc-
tidn trades, as well as into the re1a-
tions between the Building Trades EN-
ployers' Association and the Building
Trades Council, are already sensational.
1t was charged in sworn testimony
given at the hearing that $4,000 had
been paid by Ephraim B. Levy, a real
estate agent who is erecting the Textile
building on the block front at 31st
street and Seventh avenue, to settle
strike which had interrupted the pro-
gress of the work early this year.
Levy sWore that he gave the money
in cash to George Backer. one of the
largest builders in the city, with the
understanding that the money was to
go to Robert P Brindell, president of
the Building Trades Council
Backer on the witness stand contra
dicted himself a dozen times, acknowl-
edged he was swearing falsely, said he
was an "o1d friend of Brindell," denied
he had ever paid any money to Brin-
dell personally, but admitted that after
an interview with Brindell he had hand
ed the $4,000 given him by Levy to
two walking delegates" whose names
he did not know. This occurred May
II, 1920, and the strike was called off a
couple of days later
Chairman Senator Charles c. Lock
wood, when Backer's extraordinary tes-
timony was concluded, announced that
it would be given to the proper prose-
cutting officer for such action as he may
deem best"
Backer was in close conference with
Deputy Attorney General Samuel A.
Berger, who advised him that he faced
an indictment for perjury if he did not
tell the truth as to just what he had
done with Levy's SIS 600 in order to
call off the strike on Leyy's building
Mr.. Brindell has been asked by Mr..
Untermyer and Chairman Lockwood to
appear if he wishes to answer the Levy
Backer testimony
John T. Hettrick was declared in
contempt of the Lockwood committee
yesterday because he refused to produce
his books, papers and other records re-
lating to the manifold transactions of
the stone, plumbing, ventilatlng and
heating contractors combinations for
revising their bids, collecting a toll of
1 f,-o, to
amount of the business under the polite
name of insurance" and generally
supervising and controlling all the busi-
ness of these contractors, amounting to
many millions of dollars every year.
Following his refusal, Hettrick's office
was raided by Deputy Attorney General
Berger and every card, paper, book and
other document relating to the business
| transactions the lawyer-who says all
these plumbing, stone and heating con-
tractors are his. Clients was removed
| to the Deputy Attorney Generals Office
| at 81 Chambers street, where eight
accountants were busy all night examin-
| ing and indexing these vofuminous rec
| ords. The raid was conducted under a
search warrant issued by Chief Magis-
| trate McAdoo, who had examined Het-
| tricks evidence and other evidence
| given concerning Hettrick's combination
| and insurance" operations.
| Thursday night Backer, the builder,
still adhered to his position that he had
never actually paid moeny to Brindell
| though he had previously sworn, last
Tuesday night, before Mr.. Berger, that
he had given Levy's SIS 600 to Brin-
| dell The plan of Attorney General
| Newton and of Samuel Untermyer,
| counsel for the Lockwood committee,
in regard to Backer, is to request Gov
ernor Smith to designate the attorney
| general at once to undertake any neces-
| sary prosecutions and ask for indict-
ments, if the evidence warrants, before
an extraordinary term of the Grand
! Jury.
| Interesting as were Thursdays de-
velopments in the manner of Lawyer
| Hettrick's contempt of the committee,
the raid on his Office and on the up
town offices of the Greater New York
/ Cut Stone Contractors Association, and
| the examination of Hettrick himself
revealing a most comprehensive plan by
which all the business of his clients
/ is managed for the benefit of the diff
Continued on Eighth Page.)