The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-09-16
Continued from page u

the present silk workers organization
in Paterson is an off-shoot of the 1.
w. W., and that the leaders of the
strike had been expelled from the A.
F. of L. Immediately one of the dele
gates from Perth Amboy was on his
feet denouncing the statement of
Young. There was a general clamor
| from the floor.
Both supporters and opponents of
the silk strike endeavored to secure
recognition of the chair At this
point, Henry F. Hilfers, of Newark,
secretary of the federation, arose on
point of order to the affect that the
constitution of the state federation of
labor prohibited any recognition of
seeding or dual organizations.
Entire Matter Is Dropped.
The president, Arthur A. Quinn, of
Perth Amboy, declared the point Of
order well taken and proceeded to the
next order of business which was the
election of officers. This election
proved to be a farce. The machine
simply reelected the former officers,
including Quinn and Hilfers.
This action by the New Jersey Fed
Grafton of Labor officialdom proves
conclusively that like all other reac-
tionary labor takers they have no in.
tention of waging serious struggle
against the capitalist exploiters for
even the elementary demands Of the
working class. Two days before this
same convention had made a gesture
against injunctions in labor disputes.
In the report from the United Tex
tile Workers, the delegates were told
of the effects of an injunction secured
by the Henry M. Dougherty company
against the Wrappers of the United
Textile Workers that resulted in the
business agent of that organization
being sent to Jail for Is days for con-
tempt of court on a charge of violating
the injunction. After hearing this re-
port, the convention declared it would
fight to the limit against any injunc-
tions in labor disputes. The very next
day after this resolution was adopted,
four Of the mills of Paterson secured a
sweeping injunction against the silk
strikers. II the federation leaders had
been sincere in their opposition to the
use of the injunction, they would have
Immediately offered their cooperation
with the Associated Silk Workers or
ganization which is conducting the
present strike, instead of presenting
the degraded spectacle Of the official
machine lining up with the employers
against the striking silk workers.
The United Textile Workers, the
largest union in the textile industry
generally, has tried on many occasions
to gain the support Of the workers in
the silk industry. But just so often
as they have gained any influence, so
often have the leaders betrayed the
workers to the employers. The result
has been that the silk workers have
refused to join 1t. Then when another
organization comes into existence and
does organize the silk workers, the
United Textile Workers raise the cry
of secessionism and dual unionism.
AS matter of fact, the organization
conducting the present strike is Meth.
err dual or secessionist organization,
having come into the field when there
was practically no organization in the
industry and built their organization
from the ground up because Of it's
fight for the workers and has sue
ceeded in organizing them to their
present strength which has enabled
them to conduct the most effective
strike ever called in the history Of