The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1921-07-15
STEADY JOB Is
OFFREED TO THE
ATTY. GENERAL

why ulu Jne AJIOIIley-GeHeTdl IN
vestigate the Peoples Reconstruc-
tion League?
Has the Attorney-General inves-
tigated the big business lobbies -
the United Chamber of Commerce,
the Association of Railway Execu-
tives, the International Association
of Meat Packers, and the National
Coal Association
Recently an agent of the Depart
ment of Justice called at the Of
fices of the Peoples Reconstruc-
tion League, and asked the Execu-
tive Secretary where the League
got its money and what it was
spending it for. He was given full
information. The agent said he
came under order of the Bureau
of Investigation of the Department
of Justice, but that he did not
have any written order nor would
he answer Mr.. Marsh's question as
to whether he was specifically told
to come to the Peoples Recon-
struction League. The Secretary
of the League has asked the At
torney-General to explain the pro-
ceeding, and has asked several
United States Senators to investi-
gate it at the proper time. The
investigation of the League re-
minds us of several things.
AS soon as the report of the
Federal Trade Commission on the
meat packing industry was pub
lished the United States Chamber
of Commerce started a vicious and
insidious campaign against the Fed
eral Trade Commission. 1t pub
lished a pamphlet criticising the
Commissions report on the meat
packers. These spokesmen before
the Senate Committee on Agricul
ture referred to the Federal Trade
Commission as the one utterly dis
credited.
The United States Chamber of
Commerce has an annual income
of hundreds of thousands Of dol
lars. Did the Attorney-General of
the United States before he inves-
tigated the Peoples Reconstruction
League investigate the joint funds
of the big five packers all of whom
are in the Institute of the Amer
lean Meat Packers, knowing that
the Federal Trade Commission had
reported that these joint funds were
used
"To employ lobbyists and pay
| their unaudited expenses:
To influence legislative bodies;
To elect candidates who would
wink at violations of law, and de-
feat those pledged to fair enforce
ment;
To control tax officials and there
by evade just taxation;
To secure modification of govern
ment rules and regulations by de-
vious and improper methods
To bias public opinion by the
control of editorial policy through
advertising, loans, and subsidies,
and by the publication and distribu-
ton at large expense of false and
misleading statements"
Did the Attorney-Gener take
time to investigate the use of joint
funds of the Big Five Packers be-
fore he investigated the Peoples
Reconstruction League which has
monthly budget of only about
100000 but growing as the people
understand what it is doing, and
it asks minimum budget of $685.
900. Is he going to?
The Railway Executive can use
unlimited funds which serve to in
fluence public opinion. Did the
Attorney General of the United
States investigate the ten million
dollar slush fund of the railway
interests to be said to influence
in nff 70 nj
across the Cummins-Esch law?
The National Coal Association has
big offices and plenty of money.
Some of it's members are conspic-
uous profiteers. 1t has gotten GER
tain publicity agencies to use it's
propaganda as news. Has the At
torney- General of the United States
investigated the activities of the
| National Coal Association and is he
going to?
We ask these questions and it is
| very pertinent that we ask them of
the AttorneyGeneral. The Peoples
| Reconstruction League does not
| object to having an agent of the
| Department of Justice swoop down
upon it and ask where it gets its
money and who it spends it for
provided the other lobbies at the
national capital are investigated in
the same way. We shall be glad
to let anybody know where we get
our money and what we do with
it, but we have well grounded
suspicion that the Attorney Gen
eral hasn't yet gotten around to
investigate the lobbies which are
spending millions of dollars in
Washington. We believe that the
American people who are paying
the taxes to support the Depart
ment of Justice will charge the
| Attorney General of the United
States with wilful waste of public
funds in investigating the Peoples
Reconstruction League which has
nothing to conceal. The League is
fighting the corporate interests
which have been profiteering for
years upon the American public.
The Attorney General is asking for
enormous appropriations of Con-
gress to enable him to investigate
and prosecute the profiteers.
The Leagues program which is
the only effective way to stop
profiteering includes: Prompt res
| toration of the railroads to unified
government control; legislation to
taxation of privilege instead of
control the meat packing industry:
poverty making our banking and
credit system serve the people,
control of natural resources; and
opposition to universal compulsory
military training Why does the
Attorney General consciously or
unconseiously lend himself to the
sinister purposes of the profiteers