Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-02-19
P|CKET|NG BILL
ADVANCED At TER
. BITTER FIGHT.
Gen. Warren Charges
Members Are ''Buffa-
loed" by Labor Unions
Sponsor of Measure En-
courages Labor and
Capital Split, Claim.
Staff Correspondence.

Staff Correspondence
Helena, Feb. 18.-In face Of
bitter opposition, H. B. 40, by
General G. S. Warren Of Silver
Bow county, prohibiting picket
ing, was brought out from be-
meath an unfavorable commit
tee report and was finally re-
ferred to general orders for full
consideration upon the floor of
the house.
The anti-picketing measure came up
under special order of business for
the consideration of the report Of the
committee on corporations other than
municipal which has had it under con-
sideration for several weeks. The COM
mittee recommended that the bill be
not passed.
General Warren, father of the mea-
sure, took the floor in opposition to the
report and said the bill had been jock
led back and forth between committees
and that it had first been in the ju-
dietary committee which he said was
composed principally of chippy law
yers." Speaking of the action Of the
other Silver Bow county representa-
ti.es he said they had been ''buffaloed"
by the labor unions.
Claims 1t Constitutional.
F. A. Silver, Of Silver Bow county,
+, said as a member of the committee
which considered the bill he would al
ways protest against the taking away
of the rights Of a man as this bill
would do, claiming it to be contra
vention Of the provisions of the consti-
tuition. He quoted Article 5, Of the
Montana constitution, the declaration
of rights, and particularly Section 8,
providing that no law be passed i'm
pairing the freedom Of speech, then
quoting supreme court decision in
connection with this section and relat-
Ing to picketing, taking the stand that
under this decision the legislature has
no right to pass this measure.
A. 0. Gullidge of Prairie county said
the committee had been in session for
five hours listening to arguments on
this bill. sWe heard the 'red;' we
heard the insurgent labor man and we
heard the other side. Our friend Bill
Dunn spoke briefly on the bill and if
he had. been opposed to it he would
have talked for two or three hours"
Moves For General Orders.
r. A. O'Hara of Ravall: county.
moved as a substitute to the motion
>for adoption Of the committee report,
that the bill be placed on general or
ders. He said he believed in freedom
Of speech and of the press but he was
not in favor of force, and for that Tea-
son wanted the bill brought out on the
floor SO the bill could be made to ap-
ply to this freedom of force.
S. G. Skulason Of Sanders county
said there was nothing in the bill which
would take away any Of the inalienable
rights of a man. II am opposed to
force. You cannot tell me that any
man has a right by banner or by
picketing to interfere with any honest
man in following his business"
General Warren said he had been a
member of the constitutional conyen-
ton which had framed the constitution
and the article which had been reffered
to by Representative Silver. In this
connection he slurred the members of
the supreme court who had interpreted
that article.
Packed a Musket Seven Years.
Dunn and Ely, at the public hearing
they would not obey it," said General
Warren. II packed a musket for seven
years for some fellows who would not
obey the law; but they did obey. I EN-
going to put this house on record and
find IL they are q bunch Of shepherd
ers or legislators"
Alex Fairgrieve of Carbon county,
chairman of the labor committee, said
the bill comes from Silver Bow, but
''by whom and from whom"
1--WE talk of labor unions mob vio-
lence but we forget the work Of the
interests. The man who is behind this
bill, Mr.. Mcintosh Of Butte, draws q
fat salary Of $1,000 year to encour-
age trouble between capital and labor.
He has got to keep capital and labor
separate in order to keep his job.
I'm my country, Carbon county, we
Republican representatives here did
not carry a precinct in the mining
district The miners there are con-
sidered Reds We have not received
single protest from the miners upon
this bill. Why? Because they want
this bill passed SO they can use it as
propaganda with which to defeat the
Republicans next election"
Labor's Only Weapon.
T. H. Mcdonald, Of Flathead county
opposed the bill upon the grounds that
picketing is the only weapon the labor
men has against government by force.
Edward Scharnikow, of Powell coun-
ty,. opposed the bill in its present form
believing it unconstitutional but want
ed it considered in committee Of the
whole so it could be remedied.
Fl. r. Stevens, of Cascade, said that
while he was union man and at
one time president Of a labor union
he was opposed to bannering and he
wanted TIN bill considered in committee
(Continued on Page Thirteen.)