The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-07-17
BY T. ). o'FLAHERTY.

THERE was little unorganized vio-
4 lence during the general strike.
There was none on the side OF the
trade union forces. And the govern
ment was leary about getting too
provocative, tho Messrs. Churchill and
"Galloping Smith," now Lord Birken-
head, issued Fee Fl Fo Fun" declara-
tons Of war, but their Nominations
and threats were received with sar-
donic grins by those who knew that
both gentlemen will never head the
list Of contributors to an anti-saloon
league fund.
The gallant black shirts who had
amused themselves occasionally dur
ing the previous year by committing
depredations on the headquarters of
Communist and other working-class
organizations, drew in their horns per-
ceptibly. The wise heads in the cabi-
net evidently gave the anaemic imi-
tators of the Italian cutthroats hint
to be seen and heard as little as pos
sible-unless the situation developed
more dangerous symptoms.
The British worker has been show
cred with more contumely than any
decent working man could stand for.
Fortunately for his peace of mind, he
does not read much foreign news or
comment. Synthetically speaking, the
chief libel uttered against him is to
the effect that he is a congenital and
hopeless pacifist. The contrary is
true. AS matter of fact, he is vora-
ciously hungry for fight, and it takes
a big army of labor privy councillors,
labor Qand)lor of the admiralty, la
Dor custodians of his majesty's out
r house, labor protectors of the sacred
sepulchre of the virgin queen (who
lived almost as complete a life as
King Benjamin of the House of David
not to speak of such comparatively
untitled plebians as Ramsay MacDon-
aid, who took the biscuit from Sir
Alexander Grant (you remember the
tale), Philip Snowden and his wife,
Ethel, or vice versa, whose knees have
developed pads from making obei-
sances before royalty-it requires sew
eral army corps of those horny-handed
sons of Belial to prevent their follow
ers from staging a picnic in the cute
little spot where the tourists are
shown the inscribed stone where the
swan-like neck of Ann Boleyn rested
on the block while a sharp axe was
separating her from this life and from
her loving and Christian husband,
Henry, who chopped off her head for
no other reason than that her presence
no longer excited him sufficiently. Di-
vorce was then frowned on by the
church, so Henry had to use direct
action.
The British worker is not blood
thirsty, but it is no wonder that the
male members of the present reigning
family are constantly in their cups, so
to speak, if there is any liquor in the
British Isles sufficiently potent to shut
out from their mental vision the ever
present fear that some day the pent-up
anger of those British slaves will burst
the wall of patience that many factors
have built up centuries ago between
the downtrodden British proletariat
and their arrogant taxmasters.
CoMEWHERE it is written that "still.
~ waters run Deep And one only
had to wander around the working
class quarters in London during the
strike to notice that air of being
"ready for anything that might hap
pen" on the faces of British trade
unionists.
There was little violence, It is true,
but