New Britain herald., 1920-01-03
Makes Amends" for What Was
 Clerical Error in Report DOESN'T AFFECT MEANING
Mir. Merritt Says Despite Mistake He Meant What Was; Said and Denies Being An "Implacablc Enemy" to Organized Labor.

 Schuyler Merritt today sent to John L. Lewis, actingpresident of the United Mine Workers. Indianapolis, Ind, reply to d letter from Mr. Lewis and made public on Decem- ber ?.
 Mr. Lewis asked Mr. Merritt to make amends for certain state ments in a speech delivered by the congressman the floor of the house. October 29, and to make public admission" of the mistake.
 MT. Merritt says that quotations used by him in his speech were by clerical error attributed to John l.. Lewis when, in fact. they were made by Tom l.. Lewis in 1901 at miners and operators conference when he was a vice-president of the United Mine Workers.
 Used in Trial.
 John L.. Lewis called MT. Merritt's attention to the fact that Judge An derson had referred to the congress- mans speech instructing a federal grand jury in Indiana. MT. Merritt says his facts were from the record of the Coronado Coal company's case against the United Mine Workers of America and he was anxious to make no statement which had not been ver- flied in court and had not been suiy- jected to the rule of evidence, so that the statement could. be relied upon.
 ''The statement from my speech" the letter reads. (which the judge quotes, as set forth in the Indianapo- lis paper (copy sent by MT Lewisl, is that MT. John l.. Lewis, one of the representatives of the United Mine Workers, when attending one of the joint conferences with the operators referred to the purpose of the con- ference as follows:' (Iere follows quotation from a quotation in Mir. Merritt's speech.9~ : ..s < Continuing, Mr. Merritt in his letter says:
 ''Now the only inaccuracy in that statement is. that it was simply due to a clerical error in copying. that the man who made the statement was not Mir. John L. but Mr. Tom '. Lewis and MT. Tom l.. Lewis was at that time vice president of the United Mine Workers of America and later became president thereof"
 Regrets Mistake
 Continuing MT. Merritt said that the quotation he used was intended to lIo" tildL lIlSle NdS at I0dSl some basis for the charge of joint action between the miners and the opera tors to drive out non-Gnion mines and miners from the market and that this policy had been pursued for years. This is the important ques- tion and the question of what par tieular representatives of the United Miners may have made the statement is not I think important. I regret the clerical error as l wanted to be entirely accurate, and I regret also if the error has caused you any damage or inconvenience.
 Not an Enemy
 In your statement published in the newspapers you refer to me as one of the most implacable enemies of organized labor l do not know where you got this erroneous notion, the fact being that I am not an enemy inplacable or otherwise, of or ganized labor or of any labor, but believe I am a good friend of labor and laborers. My speech in congress was intended to call attention to cer- tain illegal pactices of the United Mine Workers and their officials which had been shown in court, and to express my belief, which all good citizens must share, that no man or body of men can place themselves above the law. All labor and labor ing men especially need the protec- tion of the law for themselves and their families and their poperty. Events happening in various parts of the world prove this too clearly to need argument, and I hope that all citizens, whether employers or em- ployed will not only accept this principle a $ theory but act upon It."