New-York tribune., 1921-10-26
u. S. Steel Held
Strife Breeder
By Untermyer
Corporation Is Greatest En-
emv to Industrial Peece
in This Country, He De-
clares in Mime Inquiry
Iron League Here Cited
Trus. So Big Courts Feared
a Financial Caiaclyem If
They Broke Its Power

States Steel Corporation "a "thc great
est enemy to industrial peace in this
country" in the opinion of Samuel
Untermyer, of New York, who testified
to-day before the Senate committee
which is investigating the Ming) situa-
tion and the industrial condit ons in
the coal fields in West Virginia. Mr..
Untermyer said the steel company was
heavily interested in properties in the
strike region.
Mr.. Untermyer. who was before the
comm ttee througho out the forenoon,
drew picture of the Steel Corpora
tion as having grown to "monstrous"
size: bigger thar the nation itself; so
big the Supreme Court did not dare to
break it for fear of financial cata-
clysm. Along with it's subsidiaries, he
said. It was the great foe of union
labor in this country.
Frank P. Walsh. counsel for the
miners, requested the committee sew
eral days ago to ask Mr.. Untermyer to
appear as q witness. Mr. Untermyer
told the committee he was counsel in
the Lockwood investigation in New
York, was still conduct ng that in
quiry, and that disclosures in that in
vestigation as to the attitude of the
steel company toward union labor and
the open shop were pertinent to the
West Virginia situation.
Discusses Steel Ownership
The witness was asked by members
of the committee to what extent the
Steel Corporation owned the mines in
the Mirgo region.
"Well, as, understand it," he re-
piled, "the Steel Corporation operates
the largest of these properties. not in
Mingo County, but in Mcdowell County.
That is the statement made to me. 1t
also controls and owns, understand,
through it's subsidiary companies, large
acreages in other counties"
Mr.. Walsh asked whether in the
lockwood Investigation the attitude of
thu steel company toward industrial
relations came into the West Virginia
issue.
uI ONCeIluyeI IGpllcu IL was very
pr omirent issue" I'VE are conducting
housing investigation in tie sta,e Of
New York and | am representing the
joint legis arive committee on housing"
he said.
Zone of the difficulties about the con-
struction of houses in New York was
the steel situation, with respect to
structural steel. 1t appears that the
steel company felt that it was neces-
sary to ntrude into the State of New
York in the building situation for the
purpose of carrying out it's campaign
for what is called the open shop, what
apparently, to extend their field and
strengthen their ands in the so-ca led
open shop fight Up to that time, which
was in 1919, any builder could get
structural steel delivered f. o. b. at New
York and could erect it either by union
labor or non-union labor as he saw fit
1t had necessarily to be erected by
union labor because all the building
trades are unionized. In 1919 the steel
company, or the steel companies which
had Heretofore been members of an
association called the National Iron
Erectors' League, organized local
league in New York al subs diary to
the National Iron Erectors' Association,
and they called it the Iron League, and
the steel companies, most of them, be-
came parties to it,"
Dominated Iron League
The witness went on to describe the
formation of the Iron League by the
steel companies. saying the steel COM
pany never Joined any such constituent
organizations, but by reason of its in
dependent power dominated them from
the outside. After the Iron League
was formed the builders did not get
any structural steel f. o. b. New York,
the witness said.
He declared the testimony in the
Lockwood inquiry showed there was ga
crusade against organized labor" an
he reiterated that the steel company
lis a great enemy to industrial peace
in this country"
Mr.. Untermyer said he wes a large
holder of stock in the Bethlehem Steel
Company and he had for years con-
tended against discriminating against
organized labor He said the steel com
pany maintained "an elaborate staff OF
private detectives" and Investigators
and people in the factories to find out
whether there was any activity toward
organizing labor.
He described the steel company and
subsidiaries as being one In Oeail7g
with the men, but objecting to the
unionizing of employees. He said tina
"can never lead to industrial peace in
this country" He asse ted the stee
company virtually refused to employ
union men, although not openly.
Advocates Federal License
He spoke for the Federal licensing of
interstate corporations and putin,
them under the Federal Trade Commits
sion, subject to certain reasonable
regulations. He held the corpo alton,
should enter into collective bargaining
with organized labor and at the same
time permit the individual to deal with
them it he did not choose to belong t.
the labor uni m
"1f / read the West Virginia situation
right" said Mr.. Untermyer at one point
when interrupted by representative Of
West Virginia operators, you want to
slaughter the union men. You can
slaughter them by starving them, you
can Slaughter them by all kinds of in
justice, by rigging the courts and run
ming their machinery"
Counsel for the operators, Mr. Greey-
er, took issue with Mr. Untermyer, but
the latter persisted in his view He
declared "the dominating parties in the
West Virginia fields, back of the scenes.
arc the United States Steel Corporation
and it's ramifed corpora. .ions"
oper tors Of Mingo, Mcdowell, Longan
4.