The Connecticut labor news., 1921-02-25

The movement Is said to have started
 when a certain Republican lawyer over
 New London way got ambitious for
 Commissioner Donahue's job and began to push his claim on the ground that
 Commissioner Donallue Is not a lawyer
 to which profession 1t was claimed the commissioner should be affiliated be- cause of the great legal matters likely to come before him. This. was going along alright until 1t was pointed out that Commissioner George B. Chandler, one of the Republican members, Is no lawyer either and that both he and Dr. Donahue during their terms of oftlce have taken care of the duties and requirements of the law so well that their decisions have been generally up- held by the courts whenever appealed from, indicating they were perfectly capable of interpreting the law.
 That sort of upset the plans for a time until 1t was learned that Comnis- sioner E. T. Buckingham retired next and another anxious lawyer of Repub- hcan faith from Fairfield county was dug up to aspire to that place Then the matter was pushed along to the gover- nor who now IS up against 1t in what to do III the matter. If he drops the present commissioners to make politi- cal rewards for Republicans there is bound to be such howl go up that the present protests will seem mild in com parison. Although in office six years and on one or two occasions besought to replace the democratic members with republicans, Governor Holcomb consis- tently refused to interfere with the board, declaring that 1t was an execu- tive body and should not be tramme1led with politics in any way. The commits sioners individually and as a board had performed their duties exceptionally well and therefore Holcomb properly re- fused to interfere.
 While the commissioners naturally are loath to discuss the matter in any way. the board is aware of the situation and as whole, democrats and republicans alike object to politics being injected into the appointments. At a meeting in Hartford last week, where they gath cred to discuss pending compensation law amendments, the board informally discussed the attempt to retire two of the members but naturally had nothing to say about the situation to the public
 Chairman Williams Was called by telephone at his office Ill Waterbury to- day and asked by The Labor News to express an opinion on the matter Aside from admitting that he knew of the move to replace Commissioners Dona- hue and Buckingham he declined to comment on the subject. Asked what he thought of injecting politics into the commission by making political appoint ments out of the places, MT. Williams bluntly stated that politics should be kept out of the commission entirely If the state expected 1t to function as 1t was now doing and as.it properly should.
 Commissioner Chandler was talked-to at Hartford and expressed similar views and was especially emphatic in declar- ing that the office should not be banded about as political rewards no matter who sought them or what claims they might have for preferment by the state administration.
 In addition to the general protest of lawyers who are well satisfied with the performances of the present body of commissioners, organized labor Tn the districts which would be particularly affected by the removals of Commits sioners Buckingham and Donahue also are rising up in protest. Organized la bor Is perhaps mainly responsible for getting the laws on the statute books and mainly interested in their fair operation. Everywhere Labor is satisfied with the way III which, 1t has been administered by the present commissioners Therefor local unions in the districts covered by the commissioners are preparing, or have sent, letters to Governor Lake pro- testing against any political interference. with the commissioners or the law.