The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-09-24
The A. T. Of l. OGcaldom in the Last War and The Next

On April s, 1917 President Wilson declared war
on Germany and her allies
On March IL, 1917, a month before a special
enlarged meeting of the executive council of the
American Federation of Labor was convened at
"hlch We're present 148 representatives of 70 affi
aCed national and international unions railway
brotherhoods and the five departments of the A
F. of L.
ms conference, which it has since been learned
was organized under instructions of President VIII
son, adopted declaration setting forth "Iabor's'
attitude toward the bloody conflict raging in the
eastern hemisphere in the event of American mar
tcipation. The concluding paragraph of this dac
aration, which officially committed the labor move
ment to the war program of the House of Morgan.
reads follows:
But despite our endeavors and hopes should
our country be drawn into the maestrem of the
European conflict, we with these ideals of lib
erty and justice herein declare as the ind;s
pensabe basis for national policies, offer our
services to our country in every field of actiy-
lty to defend, safeguard, and preserve the re-
public of the United States of America against
its enemies whomsoever they may be- and we
can upon our fellow workers and fellow citizens
IN the holy name of Labor Justice Freedom
and Humanity, to devotedly and periodically
give like service"
in the name of Labor labor offcadom sent out
the call for labor to die for labor's enemies
In the name of Justice labor officaldom sold the
American working class to the class justice of the
war mongers.
In the name of Freedom labor offciaIdon, l1a
1of support OF a government which suppressed labor
ana fllied the prisons, state and federal with the
lower OF working class manhood and womanbood
IN the name OF Humanity labor offcialdom called
ior support OF the most inhuman war ever ,vaood
a war which ended in q peace more borribIo a..
Inc oattef1elds, war fought to determine which
Dahd OF robbers should get the biggest share of
Inc 1907 sWeated from the workers in cantaIiet and
colonial countries anu
oaifuel Gompers himself was appointed one Of
the seven members of the Council of National no
tense. Under it's auspices were orpanized +ho ~
Ious subcommittee, including the Committee On
Labor with Gompers as chairman
among the names of the members of this
TABOR committee appointed by Gompers were
nalpn W. Easiey, now secretary of the National
security League as secretary; Gertrude Beeks,
tnen assistant to the secretary of the Nat;onaI
Civic Federation; Elisha Lee then general NO.,
ager OF the Pennsylvania Railroad: Franka1
one OF the vice-presidents of the MetronoI;tan
.ie insurance Company; c. E. Michael. Ma
nonai ASSOCIATION of Manufacturers August
belmont, Daniel Guggenheim Cornelius Var
derbilt, John d. Rockefeller and Caorga D.
president of the National Association of Mann,
facturers ""u-
WITH Gompers on the Council of National Defense
was Daniel Willard president of the RaItin,ore
" ;, iio sallroad. here we have the real beginning
OF that famous friendship which later resulted in
Gompers endorsing efficiency unionism as tvnified
by the "B. and 0. plan" ''fleu
Other members of the Council of National De-
tense were, in addition to the secretaries of tbe do
par .hlenes OF war, navy, interior, commerce and
agriculture, Howard E. Coffin, automobile canitaI-
ISL Bernard Baruch capitalist and Wall Street on
orator. julius Rosenwald, head of Sears, Roebuck
ana Company, Godfrey of the Drexel Institute and
rrankin Martin representing the medical profas
sion. pioiee-
The Council of National Defense with ;ts norio,s
ub-commlttees became. the actual government of
he United States. "
with practically absolute power it ruled the
masses IN industry with regard only for the eco
lonc anu poltlea interests of the capitalists and
helr agents who dominated these committees
Scott Nearing in his pamphlet ''The Great Mad
less" furnishes some enlghtening facts Nearing
avs; s
Mr.. WIZARDS subcommittee on Express"
of vico H. /