The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1921-05-06
THE REPORT OF THE PEOPLES RECON
STRUCTION LEAGUE CONFERENCE
HELD IN WASHINGTON ID. C., ON THURSDAY AND FRI
DAY APRIL 18th AND 18TH

"The most hopeful development of
! the present rather discouraging
situation. "-Reverend DR.. John A.
Ryan.
| Farm, labor and women's organi-
cations with a membership of over
| three millions were represented by
over a hundred delegates at the two
days conference of the Peoples
Reconstruction League held at the
La Fayette Hotel, Washington, DC,
April 14th and 18th. This confer
ence is regarded as the most sig
nificant conference ever held in
Washington because of the large
and representative attendance and
the fact that for the first time rep
resentatives of farm and labor or
CARNATIONS met in conference for
the sole purpose of considering
Joint legislative program, adopted
such program and a plan for
carrying it out. The conference
decided to organize state branch
or committee of the League in ev-
cry state of the Union and to have
small committee or at least a
group of representatives of farm,
labor and women's organizations in
every congressional district of the
country so far as possible, and to
organize these state and congress
sional district committees at once
in the states and districts of the
chairmen and important members of
the committees in both the senate
and house to which legislation to
carry out the Leagues program
will be referred. The committees
of congress which are dealing with
this legislation are the Senate Com
mittee on Finance, the House Ways
and Means Committee, and Senate
and House Committees on Agricul-
| ture, Interstate Commerce, Manu-
features, Banking and Currency, and
J Military Affairs.
The Leagues program will save
the workers of America on the
farms, in factories, mines, offices,
trade and transportation, at least
six billion dollars year and many
Of the speakers at the two days
session of the conference empha-
sized the fact that because the
stakes are so large this program
will be most vigorously opposed, and
stressed the necessity for the active
cooperation of every member of
farm, labor and women's organiza-
tions to carry it out.
The conference was peculiarly for
tunate in having a large number
of progressive leaders in the senate
and the house address them, includ-
ing senators La Toilette, Ladd and
Borah, and Congressman Frear, and
Sinclair, as well as prominent lead
ers of labor and farm organizations
such as VIM. H. Johnston, presi-
dent of the International Associa-
ton of Machinists, George P. Hamp-
ton, Managing Director of the
Farmers National Council, James
p. Noonan, president of the Inter-
national Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, Miss Gertrude McNally,
member of the executive committee
of the National Womens Trade
Union League, Grant H. Slocum,
president of the National Cleaner
Federation, and Frank Morrison,
secretary of the American Fedora
ton of Labor The interest of the
participation in the program of the
conference by Rev. DR.. Ryan, while
Hon. John Shelton Williams, former
Comptroller of the Currency, show
ed that he continues in private life
the interest and purpose which he
manifested as Comptroller of the
Currency in improving credit con-
dtions for the producers of Amer
lea.
The Peoples Reconstruction League
at this conference decided to con-
tinue it's educational campaign on
the disastrous results of private
operation of the railroads under the
Cummins-E sch law and work for
legislation to restore the railroads
to unified government operation as
soon as it is feasible; to work for
federal control of the packers in
GLIDING registration of packers, the
acquisition by the railroads of the
principal and necessary stockyards
and special equipment cars and fed
eral advice and direction for indie
pendent, municipal and government
tai slaughterhouses, and cold stor-
age plants; to fight the sales tax
and work for a definite bill to
impose a high and rapidly progress
sive tax upon incomes, estates, and
the excess profits of corporations;
to work for an amendment to the
Federal Reserve Bank Act to limit
the spread between the rate at
which the member banks secure
money from the Federal Reserve
System, and the rate at which they
loan it, and for a short time rural
credit system The League also
endorsed the principles of the Calder
bill to provide for Federal publicity
as to development of coal mines and
distribution of coal and reaffirmed
its opposition to universal compul-
sorry military training. The League
also authorized enlarging the Exec
utive Committee and inviting the
Presidents of all the Railroad Broth
erhoods, and all the important In
formation labor unions and all pro-
| gressive national farm and women's
organizations endorsing the Leagues
program to become members
thereof.
Hitherto the financial support for
the Leagues work has come largely
from farm and labor organizations
but the conference determined to
make a general appeal for financial
support for the peoples program to
the general public as well as to the
farm, labor and women's organiza-
tions endorsing the Leagues pro-
gram and working for it.
Delegations to Majority and Minority
Leaders of Congress
A very practical feature of the
conference was the visits made dur
ing and Immediately following the
meeting by large and representa-
tive delegation from the conference
To ma ioritu and minority leaders in