The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-27
ARGUMENTS HEARD FOR AND AGAINST. TRADE WITH REDS.
Union Spokesmen Urge Trade Resumption While Opposite View Is Held By Other
 Witnesses
By Associated Press

Washington, January 26.-Arguments for and against resumption of trade with soviet Russia were received today by the Senate foreign relations committee. which also heard charges that the state department actually was maintaining blockade against that country, although technically none was supposed to exist.
 Spokesmen for organized workers Ill many lines of industry appeared to sup port the resolution of senator france, republican, .Hary.anu, wnich would sen- able American nrnls 10 accept sod ui tho old mperiai hussian government which is benng offered by the soyiet au- thorities in payment ot foreign goous. They said resuinption Uf trace would go long way toward renewing Inc present industrial depression Mhicn has tnrows. more than J.cvu,uSu persons out of em- ployment.
 John Spargo of New York, who has written extensively on Russian conui- ,tions, expressed the opposle cpinion. m a formal statement, Mnich Was aumlttel to the record, he deriared that renewal of trade, .mIght easiiy prove the means ol bringing aDout the conapse Of our en- tire economic system, as vast creoits would have to pc extended to carry on the trade.
 CITES BRITISH CASE
 Declaring that Lenlne and lfo.sny mo- neponzeu r.uss,an ,raue, senator Branue- gee, republican, Connecticut, asked how 1t would be possible to work out plans for trade with Russia without dealing with them Senator France replied that British statesmen have worked our plan for the possession of the whole of Russian trade, and that he believed l, lxttsN to Chat of the British.
 Charges that the state department maintained an actual blockade against soviet Russia were presented to the committee by Mrs. Harriet Stanton Blatch and Miss Lucy Branham of the American Womens Emergency com mittee. They declared that the de- rartment hau prevented their organi- 2ation from sending clothing and foodstuffs to needy Russian children and that ships actually loaded had been prevented from going to Russia.
 Finally, they said, the committee had been forced to send It's supplies to the American Friends society in England for transportation to Russia.
 Labor representatives before the committee included E. C. Davison. sec retary of the International Association of Machinists Joseph Sciossberg, rep
  Workers of America ard Timothy Healy, president of the Brotherhood of Firemen and Oilers. MT. Davison said the Russians needed 1s,U00 locomotives and that the construction of these VI this country would give employment to many railroad workers who have been laid off
 WOULD AID WORKERS
 Mir. Sclossberg declared that 158, 8,000,- 900 Russians were badly in need of clothing shoes and many other things and that the supplying of these from America would cause the resumption of activity in the textile, leather and other industries
 Mir. Healy told the committee that 2.000, 900 organized workers had de- manded resumption of trade with Rus sia and in view of the hardships la Dor was suffering throughout the country, the governments policy should be to allow immediate resump- tion of that trade.
 Information as to the means em ployed by other nations to trade with Russia was given to the committee in executive session by a Russian in business in Boston who was presented and whose name was withheld He is the system involved the sending of sia. Upon arrival of the shipments examining and paying for the goods in gold, they accompanied the ship ments to their destinations In Russia
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