The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-03-26
% Arrested for Sedition

% Arrested for Sedition
PITTSBURGH, Pa, March 25.--
Workers of Pennsylvania are appealed
to by the International Labor Defense
to come to the aid of % of their fell
lows, all either convicted of sedition
or arrested within the last few weeks
on charges of sedition. They are all
in danger of either being railroaded
to the penitentiary, or deported.
Judges Go Slow.
The Horack case is before the
courts, on appeal. He was arrested
with nine others in 1928, tried three
years later by hand picked jury and
convicted in defiance of the evidence.
The Papcun case is similar; Papcun
was arrested while organizing a local
of the miners union in the coke re-
gion. In both of these cases the judge
is taking his time.
On November II, last year, the
Woodlawn workers interested in or
ganizing militant union and co-opera-
tive forces were arrested and charged
with sedition. They had been fight
ing the Jones & Laughlin local gov
eminent, and were most Of them ar
rested at picnic in the previous July.
They sued for false arrest, and the
prejudiced court turned them down.
1t was during this trial that the post
master admitted he had been censor
ing The DAILY WORKER.
The Department of Justice sent
men to the mining town of Harmar-
vile and while the company was pay
ing off its workers, they stood at the
pay window and questioned them as
to whether they subscribed to Com
munism and if they read The DAILY
WORKER or other papers which have
radical tendencies.
Then they arrested 2 workers, an
Italian, and a Slovak, and are now
holding them for deportation, though
these workers do not belong to any
radical organization. Five days later,
on Feb. Is, Lithuanian, who was to
speak at meeting of the Lithuanian
Literary Society, was arrested and
put under $4,000 bail, for merely hav-
ing in his possession some pamphlets.
Attack Communists.
The last arrest so far, on March 16,
is that of a Hungarian worker who
was getting subscriptions for vi
'Elore, the Hungarian paper. AT the
time of this writing, he is still in Jail
with the court demand $4,000 bail. 1t
seems that the main attack is conferred
on the Communists, both by the gov
eminent and the steel and coal barons
who expect a strike of the coal miners
on April LIST.
The last convention of the Pennsyl-
vania State Federation of Labor con-
demned the Flynn Sedition Law and
passed a resolution which instructed
the Executive Council to take organ
national steps in preparing a cam
paign against the law.
Fight Decisions.
The workers must understand that
this law is not only against the Com
munists, but it is against any and all
militant workers who are willing to
fight for their rights. The workers
must make up their minds to fight
against this law and mobilize the rank
and file to force the labor officials to
fight against this law. 1t must be re-
membered that with the tremendous
expense involved in these cases and
with the exorbitant bail which the
group Of militant workers (there are
only few and who are burdened) =,
have been standing, they are
financially becoming exhausted and
it is the duty of all workers to come
to the defense Of these workers who
are fighting in the blacklist and most
reactionary spot in Pennsylvania or
the United States against the steel,
oil and railroad barons and coal oper-
ators backed by the government and
the labor officials. The backing must
come not only financially but by huge
mass protests to the local and state
government and also donate to the
international Labor Defense, S07 Nc
Geagh Bldg, Pittsburgh, Pa.