The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-12-24
Gon1pers SZaps Kansas
Court and Allen Comes
Back With Upper Cut
Mill Ruling Step Toward Paternalism, Says Labor
Leader-A Step of Soviet-Governor and Judge
Higgins Suggest That Gompers Read Law.

case is fully as limited as his informa-
tion concerning the purposes and
meaning of the Kansas industrial law
itself. Mr.. Gompers began to talk
about this law before he ever read it
and it is my belief that he has been
so busily engaged ever since that he
has not been able to give it the study
that would produce an intelligent dis
cussion of it and its workings.
THE laborers of this state have
come fully to realize how superficial
Sam Gompers' criticisms of this law
really are. He gave them freely of
his advice as to how they should vote
and in the last election every labor
district in the state disregarded this
advice. The intelligent labor leader
ship is no longer blindly following the
rabid appeals to class passion upon
which Mr.. Gompers has generally de-
pended for his leadership"
Copyright United Press.
After reading Samuel Gompers' crit
icism Judge w. L. Higgins. presiding
judge, said:
mo man ought to criticise court
for any of its rulings or findings or
judgments until he has at least read
them. The charge that the court sets
up socialistic government is absurd
think reading of the opinion in the
millers case and a rereading of the law
in the light of that opinion would con-
vince an unbiased man that, as l have
frequently stated. the prime object of
the Kansas industrial law is the pro-
lection of the public against hardships
and privItions so often resulting from
Industrial warfare.
"The fair wage guaranteed to labor
and the fair return guaranteed to capi-
tai are mere incidents to public pro-
lection
In referring to the principle laid
down in the m:llers' case in which the
court held that essential industries
should care for faithful and skilled
workers during periods of temporary
shut downs, Judge Higgins said:
1T is necessary that skilled and
faithful workers in the essential indus
tries should always be available for the
protection of the public which,
above stated, is the primary and most
important principle of the new Kansas
industrial law"
Answering Gompers' criticism that
the Kansas industrial court ruling in
the millers' case tended towards Boil
shevism and paternalism, Judge Hug
gins said:
LAS I understand 1t the Bolshevik
idea in Russia is the rule of a class,
to-wit: the working class. Democracy
means the rule of the majority without
regard to class. The nearest approach
to Bolshevism in the United States is
what is called economic pressure
brought to bear on, the general public
by class either by the strike, by the
lockout, or by the boycott. The near
est approach to Bolshevik rule to my
knowledge was the forced passage of
the so-called Adamson act by the
threat of a nation wide strike which
would paralyze nation wide commerce
and bring suffering to the home of the
land. If organized workers had made
the threat to carry their grievance
to the polls at the next election, that
would have been a proper function of
the idea of democracy. When they
threaten economic pressure. that is in
dustria warfare functioniug under the
principle of Bolshevism"