The Connecticut labor press., 1920-10-09
Announcement That information
al Union of Machinists Controls
Two Of Washington's Largest
Banks and Buys UP Notes and
Mortgages of Hostile Manufac-
turers Creates a Sensation.
More Powerful Than the
Strike.

Strike.
A most amazing glimpse of the pos
sibilities of organized labor operating
as capitalists is given in dispatch from
Washington. d. c., which states that the
international Machinists' union controls
two of Washington's largest banks and
is, through defense fund of $0,200,00O,
buying up the mortgages and notes OF
manufacturing concerns which are con-
sidered hostile TO organized labor.
The announcement has created a
genuine sensation and the possibilities
Of what may be accomplished by organ
ized labor IN general along these same
lines Is astounding when one stops TO
consider the immense resources winch
labor could command through the pool
ing Of that capital that could be accom-
plished from the wages paid to mem
bers.
The Connecticut Labor Press feels
that the dispatch is of sufficient inter-
est to its readers to reproduce IN full.
It is as follows:
The extent to which labor is pre-
pared to WELD massed units of capital
in attaining its end is indicated by the
interesting fact now publicly disclosed
n, Washington for the first time, that
the International Machinists' Associa-
ton is the largest single stockholder IN
and claims control Of two banks IN
Washington. One of these banks IS the
Commercial National, housed in hne
new building at Fourteenth and Y
streets, the second largest financial m
sfitution in the city.
The president of this bank is Rolf
Boiling. relative of Mrs. Wilson. 1t
is popuIarly known as the sadministra-
ton bank because the President keeps
his personal account there E. G. Davi-
son, general secretary of the Machin-
lists Association, said that his Organlza-
tion is in actual control of this bank
and also the Mount Vernon Savings
Bank of Washington.
Two Union Oficers Directors
Officials Of the Commercial Bank
were reticent as to the exact amount
of stock owned by the union, but they
admitted that the labor organization
has been sufficiently influential to place
tive or ity officers. Dawson and WlilfarSl
H. Johnston, its president, on the board
of directors 1t was also stated that the
Mount Vernon Bank, which is situated
i'm the rnachinists' new stone building at
n Ninth street and Mount Vernon place,
was started largely through the joint
efforts of the Commercial National and
labor organizations.
Ii now appears that the Commercial
National Bank stands as the powerful
representative of labor at the national
capital Just as the Riggs bank has stood
for years as the representative OF the
great New York financial interests. The
further disclosure was made by Davi-
son that the machinists' organization
has collected defense fund of $9200,-
OO0 much of which has already been
expended in buying outstanding mort
cages and notes of manufacturing
plants, which have been regarded as
hostile to organized labor, and that this
fund is piling up at the rate of about
$350O00 a month The machinists'
union is the third largest of the con-
stituent bodies of the american Fed
Grafton of Labor.
Another Weapon Than Strike
sWe are demonstrating that labor has
another weapon than the strike, a weap-
on a thousand times more effective, I
says Dawson. We have used the
weapon of financial power, and we will
use it again 1t is for the employers
themselves to say whether organized la
bor must finally take over control of
erce and secure fair share of the re-
turns for the workers.
The organization in the South of a
so-calIed Association of Ironmasters
with the avowed purpose of driving the
Machinists' Union out of all plants in
its territory led to our entering the cap
italist business to fight this anti-unior
organization We levied a special
assessment of 81 month on each of
our 350,O00 members and we were sue
cessful in forcing the ironmasters In
every city excepting Norfolk, Va, to
sign agreeemnts. In Norfolk we first
used our union fund in a business way.
We bought up mortgages and notes
outstanding against one of the largest
machine shops.
Made Plant Closed Shop
"We worked under cover until we
got control of this plant and then we
made it unoin shop. We have pur-
chased two other Norfolk plants since
and we are conducting them in sue
cessful competition with the non-union
shops at Norfolk. We have served no
tice on the employers in the non-union
shops that we will reduce wages to SO
cents a day in our plants if need be to
force them to come to terms. This is
exactly the sort of tactics employers
have used for years.
There is no copyright on these tao
tics. We are proving that we can use
them Just as effectively as the employ
ers have used them We have not taken
over the general management of the
plants in which we have become inter-
ested The plants are managed by the
same people who formerly managed
them Our control has been solely on
the fianncail end. We bought stock in
Washington banks primarily because we
needed the advice of the hnanciers IN
handling and investment of our union
funds. We have accomplished this
purpose"
NOT MUCH OF Al GoUGER.