davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The labor world., 1922-08-05
BY JOHN III. WALKER.

During the time, that zIgwas or
ganizer in West Virginia in the New
River field, I had a good deal of
opposition from John Lang, who was
then general manager for his COM
pany, with mines at Rushrun and
Red Ash, and two other places, I
don't just recall their names now,
His home was in Red. Ash, and he
made extraordinary efforts to keep
the organization from being estab-
lished there.
I had held two or three meetings
in that vicinity, most of them very
scant1ly attended, and some Of them
rather stormy as result of contro-
versy between myself.an nd Lang. 7
was determined to organize the place
if it was possible for me to, accord
insly, kept on trying to get up meet
lngs for that purpose.
1 billed meeting one evening to
be held in Sort of hollow at the
foot of the mountains close to the
railroad where. in the laying of the
railroad, the construction company
had taken out a large amount Of dirt
to fill in another portion of the rail-
road where they were building a
trestle.' This hollow formed a. sort
of natural amphitheater and was
just at the outskirts of Red Ash.
On the day previous to the. meet
ing Lang's emissaries had notified
every man there that if they at
tended the meeting they would be
discharged. On that account when I
got there, along about 1880 that eve
ming, there was no one there except
the four boys who came over with
me from Berry which was just
across the river from Red Ash.
When we got to the amohitheater
we saw there was no one there, but
having noticed that at practically
every house We passed, there was
The labor world., 1922-08-05

them to get "back on their feet, -
which means to pay dividends and in
terest on their capitalization.
That capitalization is, in round
numbers, $2o,oOo,ooo. Included in it
are $7,ooo,o0o,ooo Of capitalized earn
ings, capitalized power-real, poten'
tial and imaginary, benefits, gifts and
stock dividends, not one cent Of which
has any right to be there.
At 5% per cent-the return fixed
by the interstate commerce commits
sion-the annual interest >on this frau.
dulent addition is $4o2, 100000 a year.
If it were, removed, the railroads
would have income enough to pay all
the present wage scales, make a re-
duction in. rates to the public, and
still be able to get 'back on their
feet.' 49,.
! We hear of no suggestion that the
,UCIlC11C1dI1cS u GucSc lIduuS StlOu1u
make any move to put the carriers
back upon their feet. Until there is
somthing of that kind, to preach to
the workers the patriotic duty Of ac'
cepting starvation wages, is intolera'
BILE hypocrisy and bunk.
The railroads were thrust into their
present predicament by expoliters, adj
venturers, andF general officers that
listened to and obeyed these. By those
in control the structure was loaded
with fictitious and iHegitimate cap
italization until it began to sink. The
railroad workers had nothing to d.
with these operations, but the pre-
posal Of the railroads now is~that thu
railroad workers alone shall bear thu
consequences and foot the bills.
If it is matter Of such vital i'm
portance that the carriers should b
put "back on their feet,' why no
20 to the gentlemen that took tn
carriers off their feet and let them be
gin the precious jobs
The labor world., 1922-08-05
READ Them AND weep E:

> Senator Smith: It is >rather an
indictment yof intelligence, not alone
OF the cotton producers of America
but Of the business men. bankers,
merchants and commercial interests
over this country, that>Liverpool die
tates and fixes the :, price of the
worlds cotton crop, American in
cluded.- ed.-Congressional Record.
Miss Robertson, Representative:
I think am within the truth when
I say there is nothing in a woman's
wife quite like shopping: Men do not
know how. fascinating it is. Market
ing may be a drudge, but shopping
is a NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Record.
+ Senator Smo6t: It has been stated
several times on the floor of the
senate that the cloth made into the
poor mans suit carries a higher rate
of duty than the cloth made into the
rich mans suit. That can not be-
Congressional Record. i
Senator Gooding: If the senator
will permit me, with 45-cent duty
on this imported wool today, suit
Of clothes will cost the poor man
$1.6S more. That includes the cost
of the wool. the duty, and everything
that goes with it.
Senator Fletcher: While the chair
man of the Shipping Board is going
about the country campaigning, urg-
ing the passing Of this bill, broad
casting literature, statements, and
speeches in support of it, exercising
his advertising powers and resources
perhaps he will take time to explain
the details of the enormous expen-
| ditures in his bureau. OF course, he
| will dilate upon the "mismanage-
| ment" and the awful condition of the
| records and books, but the people
may ask what has become of the
great economies promised a year age
| and why it is after congress appro-
| priated $250,000 Ito enable you to
employ expert accountants" for the
| purpose~of examination and investi-
cation in order to sum up a balance
sheet and put the accounts in such
shape that monthly profit and loss
statements could be prepared, which
it was thought could be done in q
few months, and was, in fact, &C.
complished, substantially. last NO.
| vemberj that work is still uncom-
pleted ?-Congressional Record.
The labor world., 1922-08-05
WHO0p 'EM UP HOOPER
By j. M. BAER,
The CONGRESSMAN Cartoonist.

Hooper is the chairman of the
railroad labor board. He is the best
propagandist the railroads ever had
because he makes their fake stat
istics "official." - r.
/ Hooper fails. to- tell the fact that,
by the latest decision Of the inter-
state commerce commission, the
railroads are authorized to collect
5A per cent on 1S,90O,00O.000-in-
Guiding seven billion Of .water-or
$1,0s6, $50, 900 a year. p r
Hooper fails to tell the fact that
he receives the neat little sum Of
10000 per-" 81 d.
Hooper, however, tells the under
paid section hand, whose wages he
cut to 563.04, to BE Good Sport"
+. The duty and responsibility Of the
railroad labor board, according to
the law, is to establish "just and
reasonable wages schedules. When
Hooper and his board set workers
wages at $563.04 a year. they defied
the law. When he says BE a Good
Sport he adds insult to injury.
A hooper, commonly known as a
cooper, is one who bends strips of
wood or steel around casks or tubs.
When the railroads chose Hooper,
they got just the man they wanted,
The railroad tubs were full OF
water" They were leaky! They
wanted a craftsmano who would
make thm. eight" i. IT,
b. Whoop r up, Hooper! You are
the best profit propagandis. the rail-
roads ever had! When you lose your
present job you should get another
from the railroads.
The labor world., 1922-08-05

osophy and fighting the same battles
he has fought for 50 years. It is only
the perspective that has changed.
There is little street in New York
where sit a dozen men who hold the
destiny Of the nation in their hands.
They control the public credit. They
have corralled the peoples money.
They dominate business and industry
and determine their policies. They
issue orders to their industrial man.
ayers who must obey or quit. In many
respects these men are less free than
the workers they employ.
The modern industrial manager, no
matter how disposed he may be to
make service his keynote, is restrained
because of the claims of "trofit
first' from his masters.
The immediate thing to do is to get
what Mr.. Gompers terms "a public
ownership of facts,'' so that the peo-
pie may know the truth, and ,''the
truth will make them free," at least
knowledge of it will point the way to
freedom.
If the American people can know
the truth about the railroads and
about coal, which is carefully con-
cealed in Wall street, that would be
the beginning Of the end of the pres
ent order of industrial misrule.
What may come after is another
matter. The first thing is to get the
truth. We can then safely "cross
every bridge' as we come to it. That
is the Gompers way. It is simple, but
it is not naive, and it should be the
way of the Minnesota Star if il
would do team work with the con-
structive labor movement of America
The labor world., 1922-08-05
LIKE KINGS OF OLD.

Governor Preus is good traveller.
His experiences gained from his frc-
quent journeys through and out Of the
state have given him many new and
novel impressions. If anything hap
pens to arouse his sensitive ire and he
feels that the blame is on the other
fellow he loses no time in either get
ting even or proposing law to pre-
vent its repetition.
That is how kings handled situa-
tions more than century ago. If a
bridge was washed away and the at
tendant was not on the job when the
king approached, with his fast and
fleeting steeds, to warn him Of the
danger the man lost his job on a pre-
emptory order of ellis Majesty"
There was no investigation of the
facts. The king was the sole judge:
The experience was his. There could
be no extenuating circumstances. It
was his convenience that was dis
turbed. What cared he about the
bridge tender or his family?
If an unpolite peasant with a bur-
depsome load Of hay took up more
than what the king regarded as his
share Of the road that was lese-maj-
esty, and the culprit was severely
dealt with, usually on the spot. :
Governor Preus is not unlike Louis
Of France, in some respects at least.
While motoring towards Grand Marais
with his family on a pleasure trip last
Friday night the governors car near
ly plunged into a deep ravine. A
bridge had been washed away and the
road patrolman, c. o. johnson of
Grand Marais, failed to provide a red
lantern near the approach as dan
ger signal. The governor believed that
was criminal negligence; and he i'm
mediately ordered the patrolman s dis
charge. The man was out Of q Job
Monday. E..a
That is the way presidents Of rail
roads got rid Of employees years ago,
but they do not do it in such pre-
- Is ~ =
The labor world., 1922-08-05
MINE WORKERS ORGANIZER EMPLOYED
MOUNTAIN ECHO TO FOOL MINE BOSS

some one looking and watching, we
knew that all the men were inter-,
ested and wanted to come to the
meeting, and that if some ething could
be done to get them started, the
chances were they would come and
we would be able to organize a
local. So I said to those boys from
Berry, 'in the hollow between the
mountains, lit carries a human voice
a long way and the echoes keep re-
verberating. know that if we can
make those folks believe we have a
good meeting here, they will come
out, SOL am going to start and speak
as loud as I can an. want you to
applaud as Justify as you can, to
create the impressiona that there is
a large meeting out here" They
agreed and I started speaking in a
loud voice that carried tc some of
the homes in Red Ash. The four
clapped their hands, laughed loud
ly, etc. I asked the men to stand up
on the outside and give the women
their seats to make it appear that
there were women there as we'll as
men.
john Lang, who was waiting close
by, soon had some en- issaries tell
him that we had a meeting on. John
hurried down on his rubber-tired
| gasoline abroad motor car to break
up the meeting I suppose by threat.
ening to discharge the men if they
did not leave immediately and a
large rowd of the men followed
him to watch what took place.
When Joh1. got there and saw
that there was nobody at the meet
ing at all but five of us the humor
of it struck him SO forcibly that he
started to laugh himself and went
away and left us. Nearly every man
in the camp came out to chat meet
ing and we organized a local union
| before we left.
The labor world., 1922-08-05
coLD-BLooDED 1NsoLENcE.

The bluntness with which the rail:
road executives rejected President
Harding's proposal to end the shop
mems strike is excelled only by their
insolence. They are a mighty chesty
bunch when the government wants
them to do thing they don't like to
do, but they are as meek. as kittens
when supplicants for subsidy at Wash
,ington. III s.. s...... ..s.,.. !. !. {
The insolence Of the railroads in
this strike goes beyond anything we
have known in America. They want
their shopmen to be patriotic and take
! wage cut of $135, ,ooo, 900, to- enable
The labor world., 1922-08-05

Overhauled- that a new girl
saw you with last night?"
Nope, just the old one painted
over"
The labor world., 1922-08-05

emptory manner any more. They
learned by experience that there was
sometimes another side to a case.
When the men organized and sent
committees to the management, bring
ing with them witnesses, the side Of
the accused employe was fairly, ably
and intelligently presented, with the
result that the dismissing official was
frequently required to re-instate the
man whom he had discharged on the
spur Of the moment. Now the rule is
not to discharge, but to suspend pend
ing Investigations
It evidently did not occur to Gov
ernor Preus that the Grand Marais
road patrolman had anything to say in
his own behalf. The governor did not
even stop to inquire as to whether or
not the state had provided him with
red lanterns to hang at danger places.
The probability is that it did not, in
which event the governor himself
would be as criminally negligent'
as the patrolman he has accused of
such a crime.
The governors desire to make
travel safe does him credit, but his
haste in making a poor road patrol
man the "goat,' without making an
investigation as to the facts, indicates
that he is acquiring the habit of the
kings Of old, a habit that had much
to do with their undoing. E
The governor had another peevc
when ''road hog" shot by him TAX
ing up more than half the highway
and going at full speed. Who has not
shared his anger and wished he could
shoot the "road hog" rear tire full
Of holes or give him good trounc-
ing? Mr.. Preus, according to the
morning paper, "is pondering just
how to end this menace to motorists
who wish to drive carefully and are
more that willing to give more than
their share of space when driving past
other Motorists
When the governor gets through
"pondering,' if he runs true to form
he will use the "road hogs case as
a reason for constabulary. It will be
just another" argument for state po
lice, and an additional excuse fo,
boosting taxes. /.
Any town constable has the powe,
to arrest reckless drivers Any cit;
zen has the right to swear to a. com
plant against abroad hog,' and ths
governor would have set better. ex
ample had he taken the numbers Of
the cars driven passed him by reckless
drivers and sworn out warrants fol
their arrest, than by discharging ar
alleged negligent road patrolman with
out hearing. The "road hog" would
at least have his day in court.
The story made good reading, but
at the expense Of poor fellow who
has not had chance to tell his side
Of it. It would, be worth while 20,
some one to 60 to Grand Marais' ii
the: interest. Of Justice and get th'
facts about the case of johnson ant
publish them. / >...>,.
The labor world., 1922-08-05
IS aoMPERs CHANGING?

This number of The Labor World
contains an article by Mr.: Gompers in
which he holds that the present in
dustrial conflict is an expression of
a fundamental dispute between in
dustry and finance. "It is a conflict
between service and profit,' he de-
clares.
Papers like the Minnesota Star that
are in sympathy with most of the
fads and fancies advocated by the
so-called progressives in the labor
movement think they see in this latest
declaration of Mr.. Gompers "re-
versal Of the stand he has maintained
on the industrial question for gen
eration.'
elf followed to its logical conclu.
sion,' asserts the Star, "this new po-
sition would place him definitely
among the progressives in the labor
movement However, it seems very
much disappointed in him because
"Mr.~ Gompers does not intend to
carry to it's logical conclusion a prin-
ciple which would make progressive
of him and make the American labor
movement progressive.
Why is it that Gompers is not per-
mitted to wear the label of progress
sive as measured by the Star? Why?
He has fallen, the Star believes, into
the popular fallacy in America of see
ing a conflict with Wall street or the
financial magnates on one side, and
the people led by the industrial mag
mates on the other side. He makes the
egregrious blunder of seeing finance
as the representative Of profits, and
industry as the representative Of serv-
ice.'
It would be we'll for us all if more
people made like "egregrious blum
ders' and recognized the fact that fl
nance and profits are twin brothers,
and industry and service ought to be,
which they are not.
The Star entirely misses the thought
Mr.. Gompers would convey to the
American people. It makes its 'own
man Of straw and floors it with its
own blows, a fact of which the fol-
lowing is illustrative:
"He (Gompers) would lead labor
into the trap Of following the cap
tains of industry in an assault against
Wall street. The idea that the finan.
cial magnates represent greed for pri-
vate profits any more than the in
dustrial magnates, is, to say tho least,
simple and naive. Remove Wall street
and we would still have the inhuman
and merciless combinations of indus
triakowners clothed with the supreme
power now welded by finance. Labor
would be as badly off as ever" Then
it concludes: "We can change indus
try from basis Of profits to a basis
of service only by removing the power
Of both the financial and industrial
magnates."
Is the Star any more definite OF
less naive than it charges Mr.. Comp
ers with beings How would it remove
"the power of the financial and in
dustrial magnates7" Has it the cour
age to say' Russia removed the pow
er of both and what mess was made
). Of it. Would the Star have us do like
} wisef - "
Now the fact is Mr.. Gompers7 i
dealing with q concrete proposition
He hasn't changed. He is the same
old Gompers, teaching the same phil
The labor world., 1922-08-05
WORSE THAN WAR;

"OINSE IHt1N WAN.
I'm the future we will have no
such thing as war;
NO." agreed the grim scientist
IF my present experiments in lethal
devices meet my hopes, We'll have
something very much worse
The labor world., 1922-08-05
A FINE SMELLER.

"A colored lady got on the train
at the same station L did few days
ago." said Voll, with a little pick
ininy in her arms. a.
"she sat right in front of me and
that pickininy cried all the way up
to GAINESVILLE. g.,
+. when. I was: getting off, I asked
her if the child wasn't spoiled.
"Sha said. oh no sub, no sub.
They all smell like dat" .>r
The labor world., 1922-08-05
MUCH TO REGRET.

"You must have kept Great many
people out of the penitentiary dur
ing your professional career"
"Oh, yes," said the eminent GRIM
inal lawyer.
did you ever regret defeating the
ends of justice?''
"Only once. got pickpocket ac-
quilted, and discovered later that he
was distant relative of mine.''
The labor world., 1922-08-05
] LITTLE II SYMPATHY. U 4

You say you served in France?"
asked the restaurant proprietor, as
he sampled the new cooks first
soup: "Yes, sir. officers cook for two
years and wounded twice. I Z Gsss I.
s$s You're q lucky man. It's = won
der they didl,, Hill you. Z, s.s'ss.4
McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1922-06-09
DISCOURAGED
AND MISERABLE
Virginia Lady 50 Weak She. Could
Hardly eGet, Around Says ~
Cardui Helped Relieve al
Serious Condition. w ~

Ringgold, va.-Mrs. d. I. Barker.
. Of well-known Pittsylyania County
family, residing on Route 2; here, says
that upon reaching a critical period
of her life she was Tin p very serious
condition" N''S
IT was so weakened until couldn't
get around;sG Mfs.''Barker relates. 81
couldn't sleep. II was so blue and out
of heart. had no appetite. il.
II would try medicines, and
grew weaker and weaker, more out OF
heart every day. would get up and
try to drag around, and feel so miser-
able. and creep back to bed
my husband bought me Cafdui.
thought the first bottle helped me,
and when began the second, knew
It did. kept It up--each day grow
Ing little stronger, little more like
my former self. and began to eat
and sleep.
ut sure wasn't long until was
up and around like another woman.
No more dragging; no more weak and
blue feeling. 1t cured me. used
seven bottles In ALL"
Thousands of women have suf-
fered as Mrs. Barker describes, until
they found relief from the use of
Cardui. Since II has helped so many,
you should not hesitate to try Cardui,
If troubled with womanly ailments.
Take Cardui, the woman's tonic.
For sale by all good druggists.
McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1922-06-09
WILL AUCTION MODEL
AUTOMOBILE PLANT
Will Sell $4,000, 900 WHY'S Factory
To Satisfy Creditors.-6ids
Opened June 10.

Trenton, N. 1.-THE modern automo
bile plant built at Elizabeth, N. j.,
by John N. WHY'S at an estimated cost
Of more than $15,000,000, is to be sold
at public auction, receivers for the
WHY'S corporation have announced fol
lowing an order issued by Federal
Judge Bodine. The receivers said the
auction was necessary to satisfy the
demands of creditors.
Auction conditions laid down by
Judge Bodine in his order provide for
the disposal of the property in four
parcels, the first consisting of the land,
buildings, appurtenances and fixtures,
comprising the main plant; the sec
ond, the baseball park, with all appur-
tenances and fixtures; the third, the
garages, its fixtures, and the fourth
all tools and machinery. The tools
and machines. are to be sold in sepa.
rate lots.
All bids will be opened at hear.
In Judge Bodine's court June 10.
The WHY'S plant, said to have been
constructed, for the purpose of revolu.
tionizing the automobile industry In
light cars and displacing the Ford in
selling quantity, caused many of the
leading automobile engineers of the
country, it is said, to join the corpora
ton at reduced salaries and stock con-
siderations. 1t was planned to create
at the plant 6-iylinderscar to sell at a
low figure. WV
A number of the country's leading
automobile manufacturers are said to
be interested in the purchase Of the
plant.
McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1922-06-09
SOCOAL COMPANIES
PROPOSE MERGER
CONSOLIDATION WOULD BRING
UNDER ONE CORPORATION 5o,-
600 ACRES OF COAL LAND.
CAPITAL OF sa5,oOo.OoO
Merger Only In Infancy and Announce
nent of Companies Involved Not
Vet Made-Announce
May Came In Month.

Pittsburgh. - Contemplated merger
of 30 independent coal companies in
the region from Pittsburgh to Wheel
ing, w. Va, along the line of the Pan
handle division Of the Pennsylvania
railroad, became known here through
John A. Bell. Pittsburgh banker, and
chairman of the board of directors Of
the Carnegie Coal company. The mer-
ger may take place in "a month or
two Mr. Bell said.
The consolidation would bring under
one corporation approximately $4,000
acres of coal land most of which is
under development, he stated.
The company would have a capitali-
cation of about s35,OOO,OOO. Mr.. Bell
stated that the deal had been under
consideration for about six months,
but that the time was not yet suitable
dor announcement of the names of the
companies involved. J. HI. Sanford,
president of the Carnegie Coal CON-
pany, and VIM. N. Henderson, presi-
dent of the Henderson Coal company,
are also mentioned in connection with
the proposed consolidation.