Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-07-10

literally as we'll as figuratively, and
it is to check this that measures are
being considered at the Capitol.
Not the least significant phase of
the Illinois tragedy is the evidence
that the union miners and their SYM
pathizers are largely IT not COM
pletely in control of the official ma
chinery of Williamson county. This
is especially interesting in view of
of the situation that has obtained in
Mingo county inc Logan county,
West Virginia. In the West Virginia
counties the anti-union Goa opera
tors are in the saddle politically and
officially, and there has been album
dant evidence that they ride just
as hard and just as ruthlessly as
the union miners in Illinois.
The farcical coroner's jury inves-
tigation and verdict in the Herrin
affair has been condemned general
ly. There has been much criticism
of the apparent failure of the sher-
if and other officials there to make
n effort to prevent bloodshed, and
the impotence of the forces of law
and order has been attributed to
political domination by the union
miners.
There is no disposition on the part
of official Washington to withhold
condemnation of what has trans
| pired in Illinois. There is, however,
! insistence that the record of what
has happened in West Virginia must
not be forgotten in considering more
recent events. For example. the
| Kenyon Committee investigation OF
the West Virginia controversy show
ed that the anti-union coal operators
80 @-1,y 1A~frn1 n0on nnJIntV NO.
litically, but that they actually pay
the salaries of the deputy sheriffs
who are supposed to enforce the
laws of the county. h operators
themselves testified that they ex-
pended over $4,000 for this purpose
in 1920 and over $4,000 during the
first 10 months of 1921, and they
| also asserted that they believed they
have a right to prevent union meet
ings in Logan county, or even 10
bar from the county union orSanlz-
| ers and sympathiZers. The attorney
general of West Virginia, Mr.. Eng
land told the committee that these
| deputies very often beat up men
in the fields, beat up men that are
| engaged there actively in order to
defeat their ticket at the general
| election; they take charge OF cleo
lions, they run voters away o
the polls"
To date it has not been charged
that the sheriff or his deputies in
Williamson county, Illinois, are paid
their salaries by the miners union.
In that respect at least the miners
| have not gone as far in Illinois as
| the operators have gone IN west
Virginia.
Evil in Both Situations
ftynG UhO
are seeking a solution of the strike
nroblem see little but evil in both
situations. Indeed, from h pubic
viewpoint it is intolerable that either
capital or labor should control the
notifies of a county or a state n
| use that power in relentless war
fare on the other. Both sides are
entitled to the protection OF the law
but neither side should be the law
in even the smallest political unit
in the country.
Carried to its logical conclusion
this sort of thing would mean dom-
ination of the nation itself either py
the labor group or by the employing
J group, and it may be aid tnat this
is a possibility that causes grave con-
Germ in Washington. 1t is by no
means regarded as a probability, but
that such a thing could come TO
pass is nothing short of a o
look and listen warning to those
who believe in the institution OF free
government and who are opposed
to autocracy, whether it be an au-
tocracy of labor or an autocracy oil
| capital.
At a critical time during the war
when it was vital that munition pro-
duction should go forward without
interruption it happened hat the
authority of the government was
flouted by a group of workers and
by a great corporation almost SIM
ultaneously. Some five or six thou
sand striking machinists at Bridge
port declined to accept an award oil
the National War Labor Board and
return to work under the conditions
laid down by the board, while the
owners of. a small arms plant In
| Massachusetts also refused to abide
by a decision Of the board and dis
continue its practice of dischargins
employees who had the temerity tc
| Join a union.
1t was a splendid opportunity tc
teach both sides a lesson. and 1t was
not overlooked. The President OF
the United States served notice or
| the Bridgeport men that they would
return to work On the terms pre-