The labor world., 1922-12-16

o60AAA0e SAAS lag LASeAoOxy AOOSs
Against 2O-Ycar Contract.
President Harding is intent upon
eliminating the Madden amendment
which was fastened on in the house
and which provides for annual ap-
preparations for ship subsidy. The
administration measure permitted
the subsidies, their subsidiaries, and
beneficiaries to feed indefinitely at
the U. S. treasury trough without
future supervision by congress. The
proponents of the bill know that
congress would repudiate the scheme
after years trial; and they want
nobody to interfere with their little
game.
The fight against the ship sub
sidy is concentrating in the senate
Labor is turning all it's guns against
the measure. Protests are coming
into Washington from heads Of
trades unions and they were this
week presented :. to the senate.
- U. S. Against Subsidy.
j. L. Coulter, secretary of the In
ternatfonal Association of Oil Field,
Gas Well and Refinery Workers of
America sent in the following:
"President Harding and his COL
leagues plainly see from the reflec-
tion in the mirror Of our last gen.
eral election that the people of the
United States do not want such a
law enacted. Therefore the reason
for calling a special session Of con-
gress to arbitrarily force this bill
through, If possible. before the Wall
Street puppets must relinquish their
seats to their progressive successors.
not want Individual, group or class
legislation, and every effort should
be put forth to prevent such being
arbitrarily forced upon them.
.,.. The American tpepple, team eStant
are losing confidence in, sconstitu-
tional government as .maneuvered as
it has been by Big Business. and
such legislation as proposed by our
president in the ship subsidy bill
only adds fuel to the revolutionary
propaganda that is already falling
on attentive ears,
A Cost-Plus Plan.
G. w. Perkins, president IF the
Intern national. Cigarmakers' union,
declares the proposal cost plus
plan and is uneconomic and un-
sound. He protested as follows:
IF we subsidize the so-called ship
marine for the purpose as stated, Of
enabling our ships to compete with
the ships of foreign nations, the for
eign nations would Immediately sub
sidize their ship owners, reduce
wages or otherwise cheaper the cost
Of shipping by water. We, in that
event, being bound by a twenty-year
contract on the cost plus plan,
would have to increase our subsidy
to the American ships. Such a sys-
tenn leads nowhere, except to piling
up taxes on the innocent, burden
bearing masses.
Some are bold enough to say
that the question Of subsidizing our
ships originated in foreign countries.
The idea is that if America suhsi-
dies its ships it would give these
foreign ship owners an excuse to go
to their own government and de-
mand an equal subsidy for their
ships.
The whole system of subsidizing
or anything else is economically and
financially unsound and pernicious-
w vicious and should under no cir
tumstances be tolerated. :.
Repeal Impossible.
1T is a steal and should be beat
en-" says J. J. Hanley, secretary of
the Wisconsin State Federation of
!. Labor He put in this protest:
! The ship subsidy ''steal," known
as a bill now before congress, is a
most brazen attempt to fleece the
American people. 1t means selling
the government-own ships to a
monopoly at 10 per cent on the dol
lar and then pay a subsidy of $75,-
100000 year to operate them.
\ Their attempt to hooGwink the peo-
hple of the Northwest by attaching
ah amendment purporting to favor
the deep water-power interest, pur-
porting to favor thu deep waterway
plan from the Great Lakes to the
Gulf should not. be tolerated. Labor
would not feel so keen about this
legislation were it possible to repeal
the law after this session, when the
people would have realized what had
happened, but because Of the con-
tracts it carries, its repeal will abe
Impossible for many years.
Organized. labor OF Wisconsin is
opposed to the ship subsidy and
warns against any scheme in putting
~ across, be. it the deep waterway
Of anything else, because 1t ipractic-
/ ally. gives to a private shipping mo-
nopoly our governments ships, and
then requires our government (the
people, to pay an enormous sum
to this private ship monopoly for op-
Grating Oem.s 4 .%>.- :. ~. T.. -. T.,
,,sssss Public Must Pay. H. ..
4 4 T III The transfer OF ships and ship
ping from government to private in
terests will .not remove the burden
/. b ( Ncont,nasd 4 g g ons paee . :. D U
Il sissa.' n s}'s* ~ II J. 80 ...s + :