The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-02-02

Nevertheless, their report recon-
mended that district officers should
order men to return TO work at
once" in order that the dispute
might be yaken UP according to con-
tract. The contract stated, "No
strike or stoppage of work shall oc-
cur at any strip mine until the ques-
ton in dispute shall have been con-
sidered and finally disposed of by
the joint board Of operators and
miners"
Lewis Upholds Operators.
The recommendation Of Steele and
Dalrymple was in effect repeated by
the Administration in the September
1921 international Convention, where
the matter was discussed. In this
discussion Howat endeavored to Sc
cure a definite statement from
Lewis on second important phase
OF this dispute. If the men were
to be ordered to return to work, the
question was, under what conditions
Howat asked Lewis, whether the
Recommendation should be under
stood to "mean that the Executive
Board Of District IA is to advise the
men to return to work under the
new conditions laid down by the
operators"
Lewis stated in reply, "The ma
tional organization will oppose any
new conditions being enforced upon
them" (mcaning the men,
-, Al moo
stated that in accord with these in
structions, he instructed, thru
board member, the men to return to
work under the old conditions, and
that the company refused to resume
operations on these terms. Howat
left the convention in order to re-
port to Jail for the commencement
of his sentence, received because Of
the Michmash strike.
Miners Strike for Rights.
The day that Howat went to Jail,
the strike against the Industrial
Court Law began, and twelve days
later, Lewis revoked the charter of
District IA, and appointed provis-
ional district officers to administer
the affairs. His telegram revoking
the charter said in part, II am com
PEELED to take official cognizance of
the present extraordinary situation
existing in District Fourteen. The
laws of the United Mine Workers
are being fiagrantly disregarded and
the ruling of an International Con-
vention is sbeing deliberately fiaunt-
ed.' Later, Lewis claimed that the
strike was not in reality against
the Industrial Court but in reality
to support what Lewis claimed was
defiance on the part Of Howat of
the instructions of the Convention to
order that the men return to work.
When the Kansas miners did not
abandon their strike against the
Industrial Court, the charters of
most of the locals were later re-
voked, and Howat and his fellow
officers were expelled for life. Dis
trict Ia was "reorganized" under
the direction of international Or
ganizer Van Bitner. Some five thou
sand members of that district did
not get back in time to vote in
the 1922 District elections, where
officers were elected to take charge
of the District which received back
its autonomy Jan. 1, 1923.
After Howat's final release from
jail early in 1923, he went on
speaking trip in the Pittsburgh coal
district, the anthracite region, and
the mining sections Of northern
West Virginia and eastern Ohio. A
~rs~s4 -
stopped by action Of the Canadian
authorities who refused to allow
Howat to enter Canada on the
grounds that he was a dangerous
agitator. Several meetings in va
rious sections were broken up either
by the Lewis machine, or by the au-
thorities or by both in conjunction.
On the whole, however, the trip was
highly successful, and thousands of
miners heard Howat speak, receiving
him with great interest and enthu-
siasm.
The progressive element in the
Labor movement give Howat and his
fellow-officers and the Kansas min
ers credit for killing the Kansas
Industrial Court Law, and for pre-
venting the introduction Of similar
laws in other states. Lewis attack
on Howat while he was being perse-
cuted by Governor Allen of the in
famous Industrial Court Law fame is
one of the blacklist marks ever placed
on the name of labor organization.
The progressive element maintain
that in the controversy with Lewis,
Howat was right, and that there
was no excuse whatever for the ac-
ton Of Lewis under the circum-
stances.