Newark leader. ([Newark, Ohio]) 1917-1946, 1921-08-12
MEXICO FAvORs UNION LABOR

"Were it possible Tor our people "
fully comprehend what is going on In
Mexico they would be astounded. The
government there is attempting what
| honestly believe to be the most pro-
gressive, the most enlightened and
withal the sanest policy that has ever
been attempted by any people. l am
convinced that it is going to succeed" ."
That is the opinion of c. E. Davl-
son, secretary treasurer of the Inter
national Association of Machinists,
after a stay of several weeks in the
southern republic While there he
interviewed the highest officials OF
the government, studied the work of
reconstruction, inspected the manu-
featuring plants and talked with
workers, business men and politicians.
81 didn't realize fully what the gov
ernment was attempting to do until
| had several conferences with Gen.
Plutarcho Gales, secretary of the in
terror" continued Mr.. Dawson. "Then
everything was made plain to me.
This official, the most important mem
Der of President Obregon's cabinet,
assured me that the governments S
primary interest was in the workers.
Gen. Gales, it should be stated, is not
provincial or insular in his views. He
[1n4 L. MoUiaoo TlAnn1Q
not be lifted by their own bootstraps.
They go up or remain down as the
workers of other nations go up or
down. If the workers of the United
States are happy and contented, a
healthy influence will be reflected up
on the workers of our southern neigh
bor." a.s..
Mexico secures the bulk of it's sup
plies from the United States. 1t eX-
poets to spend hundreds of millions
of dollars here in the next few years.
1t intends to spend this money in
such manner that it shall help and
not injure American workers. There
fore, it has adopted as settled gov
ernment policy that it will have no
dealings with any American firm that
does not maintain decent working
conditions. They are ready to pay
gold for materials and supplies, and
they assume the right to conduct
their internal affairs in their own
way. They claim the right to buy
from whom they please, of such terms
as are mutually satisfactory to buyer
and seller. If American open shop
pers' and labor baiters don't like their
methods, they are, of course, free to
sell their goods elsewhere. They
won't distribute them in Mexico, that
is certain.
Mr.. Dawson explained to Mexican
officials what the "open shop" really
means. He made short work of the
so-called American Plan," pointing
out that it wasn't American at all,
but the reverse of it. 81 think it is
pretty generally understood that those
who represent the open shop in
America are the real enemies of
Mexico" said Mr.. Dawson. "They
are believed to be the same interests
that have financed revolutions to the
great injury of the people, the same
crowd that is today clamoring for in
tervention, not in the interest of the
Mexican people, but in the interests
of those who have been exploiting
them"
The Mexican government, Mr.. Davi-
son declares, feels that American
public opinion will support a move
ment that directly helps the American
people and only indirectly benefits
Mexicans. Organized labor has
agreed to protect Mexico's interest
by exercising supervision over goods
being manufactured for it, thus eli
minating all species of graft and COM
mission. That will be definite gain.
"But the real, the underlying
thought back of the whole PROPOSE
tion," he adds, "is a conviction on the
part of the Mexican authorities that
they can raise the standard of their
own workers by assisting in main
tanning the standards of workers of a
nation that will, by reason of its close
proximity, continue to exercise a
great influence upon the lives and
methods of those who reside across
the border"