Evening star., 1923-04-05
AVOIDS 0PtNsHOP
AScAMPA|GNISSUE
President Seen Too Clever a
Politician to Take Sides
on That Question.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.


issue of the 1924 presidential cam
elusive reason that President Harding
will not be drawn into the contro-
versy.
Samuel Gompers, president of the
American Federation OF Labor, who
summoned the Washington corre-
spondents to his Office to take a fiing
at dispatches sent from the scene OF
the presidential vacation. made it
clear that so far as he is given to
understand, MIR. Harding has not ex-
pressed himself on the subject. Mr..
Gompers heard not only through the
newspapers, but through other
sources. however. that a good deal of
argument in favor of the open shop"
side of Industrial warfare was being
poured into the ears of Mr.. Harding
in the hope that he would slant his
campaign toward the employers and
thus assure himself of the solid sup
port of big business in his next CAM
paign
The President has. ever since his
administration began. been the re-
cipient of letters and oral arguments
relating to controversies between la
bor and capital. but except for the
comments made in connection with
last summers rail strike. he has
carefully balanced every utterance 50
that neither side could take offense.
Mr.. Harding did lose some of the
support OF the extremists on the en-
ployer side when he favored accept
ance by the railroad executives of the
proposal that strikers be taken back
without loss of seniority rights and
this TO some extent accounts for the
movement on the part of those friends
of the President who think he can
recover lost ground by making some
positive statements on his western
trip. which will express displeasure
over the attitude of labor in recent
strikes affecting the public welfare.
Labor Strength Uncertain.
Mr. Harding is not newcomer in
politics. having spent many years on
the practical side OF campaigns, ard
he knows the delicacy of the labor
question as It affects votes. No
President in the last generation has
made an open campaign against labor.
although the latter has on more than
one occasion indorsed one or the
other of the candidates. There is
much uncertainty, however. even
among politicians as TO the power OF
the labor vote, for in those campaigns
where IL is said to have been welded
as a unit for a presidential candidate
the latter has not always been the
winner. In the last campaign. not
withstanding the friendliness of the
labor, and the presence in the cabinet
Of a former vice president OF the
American Federation Of Labor as
Secretary of the Department Of Labor.
the great body of laboring men are
believed to have cast their votes for
the republican nominee
Whether Mr.. Harding can retain
this support in the next campai gn is
not yet determined. but IT is d fact
that ever since the American Fedora
ton Of Labor failed to persuade Mr..
Harding TO put into his cabinet one of
the list they suggested there has been
intermittent hostility. and Mr.. Com
perS is not as frequent a visitor at
the White House under this admins
tration as he was under the last
Mr.. GOmpers took occasion during
his interview to criticize the course
Of President Harding during the last
rail strike. One of the reporters
asked him this question.
The administration came pretty
close TO declaring in favor OF the
open shop last summer
Shifted His AIM.
Well. during that strike" replied
Mr.. Gompers, the President secured
the promise of the railway shopmen
to accept his proposal and said 10
them at the time that If they accept
ed he would use the big stick-the
club-upon the railroad executives.
and compel them 10 accept it. The
men accepted the Presidents proposal
and the railroad executives rejected
it. and then the big stick and club
was used on the workmen."
Mr.. Gon1pers in reply TO a question
said ne was given TO understand that
'tir business, bankers. railroad ex-
ecutives" were urging President
Harding to make a declaration in
favor of the open shop but that
the only name he had seen mentioned
m the press was that Of Gen.
Charles G. Dawes. former director of
the budget, and q member of Presi-
dent Harding's vacation party in
Florida.
immediately after Dawes made
the .recommendation to the Presi-
dent" said Mr.. Gompers, ''organized
! labor in Chicago held a mass meet
ing and declared its support for
Dever democrat. for mayor and the
vote Tuesday indicated that they had
been very important contributors to
the defeat. not only OF Lueder. but
1t was reply in a measure TO the
open shop candidacy"
Gen. Dawes Silent.
In this connection it should be
stated that Gen. Dawes did not make
any announcement Of the subject OF
his talks with Mr.. Harding in Florida
and that the entire basis for the
newspaper phase of the controversy
is a dispatch purporting to give Mr.
Dawes views as expressed to Mr.
Harding. but there has been no denial
from the former director OF the bud
get that he did bring these matters
to Mr.. Hardings attention and no de-
niai from the presidential party, the
only statement made being to the eff
feet that the President had not taken
sides in the dispute. Since Mr.. Dawes
left the presidential party announce
ment has been made Of the appoint
ment Of his brother to be controller
of the currency and a member Of the
Federal Reserve Board, and while it
is known that the President has
high regard for the views OF Gen.
Dawes he is too experienced in polit-
ical matters, according to those who
know him best, TO make any state
ment OF what he thinks about the
open shop" either now or during his
campaign.
Copyright, 10c3D