The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-03-22
Gon1pers Remains Calm


The Daugherty investigation, like the Tea
pot Dome exposures. leaves Brother Gompers
cold.
A great calm prevails at American Fedora
ton of Labor headquarters; 1t IS the one quiet
spot in the capital.
The department of justice under Daugherty
and its bureau of investigation Ia euphemlsm
for brazen blackmaiD under William j. Burns
have been the most dangerous enemies OF labor.
Department of Justice operatives have been
active in every strike of any magnitude; they
have PLAYED the same role that spies and de-
tectives always play-that is to say they nave
been doing their level best to aid the employ
ers in their war on unions and union men.
During the railway strike of 1922 the de-
partment of justice came out openly as strike
breaking agency; thousands of its sleuths were
detailed to spying upon the unions and framing
evidence against their members. The strike
breaking activities of Daugherty and Burns
eliminated in a nationwide injunction against
the strikers wholly illegal proceeding OBJ
tanned by fraud and misrep presentation, 1t was
a clear instance of the brazen disregard by
American capitalism of elementary rights
guaranteed citizens by the constitution OF the
republic.
In every frame-up of workers engineered by
the employers Burns agents have figured ;
they are the bloodhounds of American CAPT.
talisrn and one would think that even con-
servative labor leader like Brother Gompers
would welcome an opportunity to tell what he
knows concerning this anti-labor gang and its
bosses, Daugherty and Burns, representing
justice in our domain.
Not so. Vociferously garrulous and inslstent
that he be allowed to appear and denounce
Soviet Russia before the senate investigating
committee headed by Borah, he has INDUCED
in no similar outburst relative to the Daugh-
erty-Burns matter.
1t may be argued that Brother Gompers
knows nothing detrimental to these assiduous
agents of the employers, but to admit this is to
admit that he is the most monumental dumb
bell that ever carried a union card. Brother
Gompers is not dumbbell and in the years
that he has held Office as the head of the
American labor movement, he must have &C
cumulated an instructive dossier concerning
the activities-legal and otherwise-of Daugh-
erty, Burns and their predecessors.
This is the appointed time, if Brother Com
pers so desires, to put considerable of a kibosh
on the injunction activities of employers and
their governmental tools. Always a great be-
lever in the force of public opinion and the
author of several theses upon that interesting
subject, Brother Gompers should know that
the American public has turned its thumbs
down on oil gladiators like Daugherty and
Burns. This is the time to step to them, insert
the harpoon into their quivering fesh give it
a few painful twists and call upon the dear
public to watch their agonized antics.
Much good would accrue to labor from such
action The timid tribe of politicians would
begin to think twice before clarifying injunc-
ton processes and in the future the vision of
squirming encouragement and his gumshoe
aids would be always before their eyes,
We fear that Brother Gompers is not made
of such stern stuff. He is lifted to great heights
of denunciatory eloquence only when a work.
ingclass of whole nation like Russia win to
victory by other means than the use of the
union label and ''rewarding friends and pun
ishing enemies 1t must also be remembered
that Brother Gompers entered into united
front with the department of justice against
the Communists and it may be that this unity
Of action extends even farther into the labor
movement
Perhaps the astute Mr.. Burns also has been
busy compiling a dossier on the activities of
labor leaders