The Washington times., 1922-07-26
CLAIMS
RICH SEEKING To
. WRECK LABOR
Ayers Destruction Of Unions
Deliberately Planned at
Close Of War.
BY j. BART CAMPBELL.
Copyright. 1s22. by international News
Seryicel

Copyright. is22. by international News
Service.)
Destruction OF union labor. delib-
erately planned by capital upon the
termination of the world war, was
declared by Senator william u.
Borah, chairman of the Senate Labor
Committee. today to be the funda'
mental, underlying cause of the ex-
isting coal and railroad situation.
Senator Borah recalled that he had
charged when he fought the last
army appropriations bill that the
real danger of a big military estab-
lishment" was that capital hoped and
expected to employ 1t against union
labor.
Recent developments certainly
seem to justify the view took OF Q
large army then, and which i still
hold now" Borah added. zone rea-
son certain big interests supported
and encouraged the Presidential as
pirations OF Gen. Leonard Wood In
1920 was that they were Confident
II he were elected to the White House
he would place a battalion Of soldiers
at the doorway Of union. labor whsr.
ever and whenever those interests
deemed the use of armed force neces'
sary to crush union labor
Concerned Over Problems.
Borah said he was deeply con.
cerned about the incalculable hard
ships" the continued deadlock be-
tween the coal operators and miners
and the railroad executives and
shopmen was bound to impose upon
the great masses of the people who
were not directly involved by the
war OF capital against union labor.
I'm its determination to crush
union labor, capital started out. as
soon as the world war was finished,
to deflate wages, to slash them
irrespective OF whether they were
reduced below the level of the living
wage or not" Borsh continued.
And yet no deflation Of wages can
be justified as long as living condi-
tions remain as they are. and living
conditions are certain to continue as
they are unless there is a reduction
in living costs all along the line, and
| there can be no reduction In living
costs until there 10 a corresponding
reduction in present extravagant ex-
penditures and taxation. The evil
of the Industrial situation confront
ing us in an economic one, and its
only solution is economy from the
top down and the bottom up"
Sees u. 8. Control Inevitable.
Borah said II was his belief that
naturalization" or governmental
control OF the coal industry was
inevitable, which led him to intro
duce his bill for the creation Of a
/ commission to delve deep into the
coal situation as II has existed for
the last ten years.
The production Of coal In Just as
| vital to the welfare of the people as
is transportation, and. to my mind,
II is as imperative that there should
be Government regulation Of the coal
industry as 1t is to have the Govern.
ment regulate other public utilities
like the railroads." Borah explained.
He hoped to have his committee
act promptly on his bill and report
It favorably to the Senate, 30 Il
might be passed at this session OF
Congress. Aside from inviting Sec.
| retary Of Commerce Hoover and Sec.
retary Of the Interior Fall to appear
before the committee, he did not con-
template extended hearings on the
bill.
Could Have Been Avoided.
Whatever hearings may be deemed
necessary would be conducted by the
proposed commission itself, with a
view Of recommending to Congress
the enactment of legislation to pre-
vent a recurrence of present condi.
tions in the coal industry by placing
1t under the regulation and super.
vision Of the Government, which, in
my judgment, should have been done
before now" Borah said.
Il am Of the opinion that the
present strike could have been
avoided II the Government had
stepped in at the outset and com.
PEELED the operators to live up 10
their contract with the miners to
consider the wage question within
thirty days of the expiration Of the
former scale. The operators con-
| tended that there was no use Of their
| sitting down with the miners repre-.
sentatives and discussing a new
wage scale, because there was nu
possibility Of an agreement. With
Government control of the coal In.
dustry such a state OF affairs, lead
ing as it did to the present crisis,
| would not have been possible"