The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-02-16
The Trend IN
COlOrudOLQbOy
By A. s.

own political interests than in econo-
mic and political interests Of the
workers of the state. Their policy,
Of course, has been orthodox-help-
ing their friends" and Furnishing
their enemies. Really, their political
activities have taken up SO much Of
their time that they haven't been able
to any more than notice that the
cab drivers of Denver should have
been supported positively in the or
ganizational effort they made some
time ago.
They didn't have time to organize
the miners throughout the state, let
alone effectively oppose the wage-
cuts that were imposed upon them
in 1925. The packing house work
ers, the shopmen, the tramway men,
all of them, not only suffered defeat
under the leadership of Mr.. Gross
and Mr.. Hoag and Mr.. Howard and
Company, but also no genuine effort
was made to organize them again.
Too Busy With Bosses.
The bureaucrats were just too busy
to take any part in the workers
economic struggles! They did take
part in their political struggles, or
rather, in the political struggles OF
the republican and democrat parties,
which is as much as to say that the
workers we're not in on the political
STRUGGLES at all!
Officials Workers Lose.
The federation officials probably
benefited. but the rank and file work
ers did not. There were wage-cuts
in the mining industry, wage-cuts In
the steel industry, wage-cuts and
speed-up for motormen and tramway
conductors, unions were smashed right
and left, strikers were treated brutal
ly, their strikes being put down by the
use of steel and lead.
Mr.. Howard of the Colorado Fed
Grafton represents also the farmers,
or at least, pretends to! In Weld
county especially, agricultura)ists
once effectively making-a-go-of-i
have had to abandon the farms they
used to own. All they have faced
recently have been debts, duns, mort
cages, bankruptcy, depression and
disappointment. One used to read a
good deal about the farmers cooper
atives of Colorado; but these, for the
most part, are just mere names at
present, the cooperatives as actual,
existant economic forces In the
hands Of farmers, belonging to the
past.
Both Murderous Toward Labor.
Now, it was democrat who was
governor when the United Mine
Workers Of America led the struggle
which eliminated with the Ludlow
massacre in 1914 (the strike did not
stop the day of the massacre, but
Governor Ammons is just as guilty of
numbering Colorado coal miners as
Governor Adams IS, and both Of them
bear the mark Of Cain for the same
reason-so that the miners might be
further enslaved.
OF course 1t would have been
gross error for the federation Off
cials to have supported the republican
candidates in preference to the demo-
crat; for they are fully as murder
GUS when dealing with labor.
Shoup, a republican, was governor
in 1920 when tramway strikers were
murdered in the city of Denver. Wat
erman, republican, was "tickled to
death" the day the Columbine mas
sacre took place, because 1.-THE reason
was in the back of his head) he fore
saw this coming fall republican
victory.
What Is Future Policy?
Will the organized labor Of Colo
RADIO elect republican and democrat
candidates this coming fall? After
having concentrated their efforts
more on the democrats than on the
republicans and being considerably
responsible for the election of Sweet
as governor, Stapelton as mayor, and
Adams as governor Git must be borne
in mind that the wages Of the miners
were cut while Sweet was governor
and Stapelton has worked hand In
glove with Adams while the present
strike has been going on), will the
officials Of the Colorado Federation
endorse again republican or a demo-
crat capitalist politician?
A Gain In knowledge.
The workers and farmers in Colo
RADIO know what the two old parties
mean to them, if they ask for bet
ter living conditions. They know
that the agents Of either Of those
parties will shoot them down. Col
umbine massacre is fresh In their
minds. The prejudiced opinion as to
the legality of the strike, the opinion
Of Attorney General Boatright, Is not
forgotten. The hostile attitude TO-
ward the strikers Of the state indus
trial commission Is wildly rernem-
bered. Farmers know their enemies
by now. Capitalist class politicians,
capitalist class parties are their sns-