New-York tribune., 1920-12-11

licity agents. had begun n fight ia
block the investigation just as 1t is
about to enter upon its most crucial
stage"
He pointed to an attack Of the Iron
League on the statements of Louis
Horowitz, president Of the Thompson
Starrett Construction Company AN
other attack" he said, "is Forthcoming
from the Insurance companies in the
way of published figures whidh are
point of this investigation"
Witnesses informed the committee
that the marble industry in the city
was in the grip OF the Marble Industry
Employers Association, which has
national organization with branches II
various parts of the country. There
are thirty-six members in the loca
organization. which has relations with
the Building Trades Employers Asso.
cation, of which it is a branch The
organization worked in close harmony
with the labor bodies in the industry
which 1t used unsparingly to enforce
its DEGREES, it was testified
In this connection it was said that
payments mounting into the thousands
of dollars were made by the associa.
ton TO w. U. Bowen. president; I. C
Preece, vice-president. and j. William
Dobson, secretary of the Bricklayers
Masons and Plasterers' international
Union, for extraordinary expenses
advice" and special trips" which
were really said to be 'gratuities."
Morris II. Petigor was the first wit
ness. to shed light on the marble COM
bination. He was a marble, tile and
soda fountain manufacturer, and testi-
cd khok l. 1. \. \
admission into the Marble Industry
Employers Association, he was unable
10 obtain union men to do his work
and his business was wiped out. He
related how delegates of the marble
cutters union told him he could not
gef union men until he was taken into
the association. The association, de-
spite his repeated requests for q
membership card, turned him down,
simply, he said, because they didn't
want me in the business"
Srblet His Contracts
He added that when ne appealed to
the Bricklayers' International Union at
its headquarters in Indianapolis for re-
lief, he was told that it could not give
him the relief and at the same time "do
its duty to the other employers"
AS result, he said, he had to sublet
his marble contracts to members of the
association, which resulted to him in an
increase of about 45 per cent in the
cost of the jobs. Five times, said Peti-
gor, he went through the same expert
ence, and each time he had to get some
association man to complete his con-
tracts, resulting in great losses to his
business. He was eventually ruined and
has nothing to show for q big marble
and tile works but q comparatively
small soda fountain business, he said.
Petigor said that his firms were
known as the Oceanic Marble Company
and the Howden Tile and Marble Com
pany. In February, 1917, he declared,
several members Of the Marble Cut
ters' Union, Pat Crowley, Joseph
Lazanofsky and man named Dun
phry, visited him and asserted they
would call off the union men working
on his operations unless he Joined the
Marble Industry Employers Associa-
ton. They told him he would have to
pay an initiation fee Of $500 and $15
a month in dues. These men were af-
filiated with the Brindell Trades
Council said Petigor.
Says He Was Turned Down
at seemed funny to me that these
men, who were labor men," said Peti-
ger, SHOULD ask me to join an EN-
ployers' association. Well. I then
found out they were the employers
agents, trying to force me in. So
to the secretary Of the association, ask
ing for admission as member"
well, did you get in 20
mo / wrote several letters asking
them what they were going to do about
the matter, and soon they returned my
check and was told could not get in"
WAS any reason given?"
Nothing very definite. I was given
TO understand that I had entered a
bid for contract that was lower than
that Of any member of the association
and they didn't want me in the bust
ness"
We'll, what happened?"
Il had job at Seventy-fourth Street
and Fifth Avenue from the Ravitch
Construction Company and another at
Thirty-sixth Street and Fifth Avenue.
"One day all the union labor was
called off. I was advised by the union
delegates to appeal to the international
union at Indianapolis. ] wrote them g
letter and they replied that it would
not be fair to the other employers if
they let the union help work on my
operations and that l would have to
conduct my business without the
unions help"
Lost on Many Jobs
"And that meant you could not con-
duct your marble business at all.
didn't it!"
Eyes. I had to sublet the contract
to another firm, which was listed as
g member in the Marble Employers
Association and to whom / had to nav
an advance of As per cent Of my orig
inal contract price for the job to Be
able to go through with my contract.
was able to meet the loss in this in
fountain business"
Petigor then told OF the other three
jobs in which he had almost identical
experiences. The marble work for the
Beth Moses Hospital in Brooklyn. he
said, cost him $4,000. He had con-
tracted to do 1t for $4,000. A contract
for the Holland Building, at Fifth Ave-
nue. and Ihfrtieth Street, which he had
contracted to do for $500, cost him
$4,000. The tile contracts on the same
building were not interfered with be-
cause his firm was q member of tho
tile branch OF the Building Trades
EN- mployers' Association, he said.
He was attacked on the marble work
because the labor unions, in their al
legged understanding with the employ
ers' association, required that the CON
tractors be affiliated with the various
branches Of the association, includin0
the particular lines
he was doing on the Hebrew Guardian
"a l+nr