The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-02-15
CURRENT EVENTS
By T. J. o'FLAHERTY

MTALTER S. WARD, scion of the
w bread trust, can sniffle the balmy
breezes Of Havana, even as Mayor
Jimmy Walker, while suit against
him for $4,000 for killing Clarence
Peters, sailor, over four years ago
is dragging it's way through a New
York court room. Ward was tried
once and managed to escaped. The
case caused ,ational sensation, but
Ward had t. .oney and has since
been enjoying himself in gay cabarets
and on the race tracks. Contrast the
freedom enjoyed by wealthy muir
dered with the punishment meted out
to Sacco and Vanzetti, two labor or
ganizers who sit in the shadow of the
gallows-in Massachusetts, convicted
o. crime they never committed.
Capitalist justice is not blind. 1t is
one-eyed and that eye only sees the
interests Of capitalism.
THE Legion of Honor, highly priced
L French decoration is said to be
now worn by everybody except those
whose clothing is so unsubstantial as
to be unable to bear the strain of a
buttonhole. This coveted honor is
now peddled out for cash even as
stiles are in England and oil fields
in the United States. Strange it never
occurred to the canny French to send
q ship-load Of the decorations to the
United States accompanied by q
snappy salesman. The proceeds would
pay the French war debt and leave a
balance that would enable the govern
ment to build one thousand subma-
rines.
THE recent revolt in Portugal
4 seems to be an echo of the rivalry
between France and England. Portu-
gal is usually a puppet of Great
Pritain, but since puppets are always
Cor sale there is no certainty that
they will stay put. A Portuguese COM
mission succeeded in negotiating with
he British government for a large
reduction in the Portuguese debt to
chat country. AS an exhibition Of
gratitude a British banking syndicate
was offered the tobacco monopoly as
security for q loan. This monopoly
had formerly been in the hands of a
Paris financial group as security for
2 S50O0O,000 loan. The Paris bankers
did not like the change, so London
and Paris supplied the bullets and
they found Portuguese generals, Of
ficers and soldiers willing to fire them
for price.
WE are informed that "atheistic
w gibes cause murders in Russian
homes" If that is the case we would
like to know what evil spirit urges
our American evangelists to commit
murder, rape, and other crimes not ad-
vocated by the gospels according to
any of the saints. Recently we read
of holy man who murdered his wife
and then sliced her into ribbons.
Surely an atheist could not have done
worse.
THE resources of all the labor banks
i in the country are now almost
S127,O00,000, according to a compila-
ton of December 81 statements COM
pleted by a reseach bureau. This is
about 1 1-2 per cent of the total re-
sources of the entire banking system
in the United States. Those who claim
that the banking system can be gradu-
ally taken over by the labor unions
must admit that there is still long
way to go. And what kind of labor
unions would we have by the time
they moved into Wall Street with q
republican or democrat president still
in Washington? Simply this; Jiggs
would have stopped eating corned beef
and cabbage and taken to ostrich glib
let's. The average workers would be
still struggling to make ends meet
while the Hillmans, Sigmans, Ryans
and Bradys would have driven the
Vanderbilts from Fifth Avenue.
COOLIDGE'S proposal for a con-
~ ference having for its aim a re-
duction in naval building is said to
meet with considerable favor in
Switzerland, Luxembourg, Siam and
the Sahara Desert. Those powers are
perfectly willing to reduce their beer
Continued on Page T1oo)
Health Commissioner