Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-07-09
The HdSkin Letter
OBJECT LESSONS
By E
J. X

lzers. The attorney general of Yves
Virginia, MIR. England, told the com
mittee that these deputies very ofte,
beat up men in the fields, beat up mel
that are engaged there actively il
order to defeat their ticket at tn
general election; they take charge O
elections, they run voters away from
the polls."
To dafe it has not been charged tina
the sheriff or his deputies in William
son county, Illinois, are paid thei
salaries ~ the miners union. In tina
respect ct least the miners have no
gone as FIR in Illinois as the operator.
have gone in West Virginia.
Senator's and representatives who
are seeking a solution of the strike
problem see little but evil in both sit,
u%ations. Indeed, from the public view.
point it is intolerable that either cap.
ital or labor should control the poll.
tics of a county or a state and use
that power in relentless warfare or
the other. Both sides are entitled te
protection IF 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 domino
ton OF the nation itself either by the
labor group or by the employing group
and it may be said that this is a pos.
sibillty that causes grave concern il
Washington. 1t is by no means regard,
ed as a probability. but that such a
thing could come to pass is nothing
short of a stop, look and listen warning
to those who believe in the institutions
of free government and who are OBJ
posed to autocracy, whether it be ar
autocracy of labor or an autocracy OF
capital.
At a critical time during the war,
when it was vital that munitiop produc-
ton should go forward without inter
ruption, it happened that the author
lty OF the government was flouted by
a group Of workers and by a great
corporation almost simultaneously.
Some 5000 or 5000 striking machin-
lists at Bridgeport declined to accept
an award of 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 discon-
time its practice of discharging EN-
ployes who had the temerity to join a
union.
1t was a splendid opportunity to
teach both sides a lesson and it was
not overlooked. The president of the
United States served notice on the
Bridgeport men that they would return
to work or they would not be permit
ted to work anywhere in the United
States on war production work and
their exemptions from military service
would be withdrawn. At the same
time the president directed the secre-
tary of war to take over the Massa-
chusetts plant and operate it for the
period of the war. After that there
was no defiance of the government
either by workers or by employers.
Thus il may come about that the
assumption of political power by cap
ital in West Virginia and by labor
in Illinois will result in the assertion
of the authority of me public as a
whole in q manner that will end class
rule for all time.
Bloody Williamson and Bloody
Logan and Bloody Mingo" are object
lessons that are not to be forgotten.