The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-10-25
BY SINCLAIR LEWIS
copyright. 1929. by The Timesl.

1I14CQ W4V1A OIA1IA VO44SuC eNAA0 6AOSfSN
lumber. They are painted, inside
and out, in drab colors. They are
not altogether appetizing. But
when the worker leaves his cottage
for his long, careless hours Of lei
sure, he has the privilege of seeing
the other features of the East Mar
ion mill village, provided practically
free by the Baldwin company.
The roads, built by the Marion
mill company, resemble-well, take
a sheet of paper and crumple 1t in
your hand, then crumple it again,
and you will have a very accurate
picture of the contours of those
roads.
But this is doubtless a quibbling
objection to the state of the East
Marion roads, for the reason that
almost none of these workers owns
even Second-han flivver.
Preachers Are Subsidized
Passing down the somewhat lava
like roads, the worker comes to the
free public features of the town.
They are a really well-built public
school, in which no teacher ever is
likely to criticise the company's
policy; several churches, in which
the preachers have one-half of their
salaries paid by the mill company,
so that, by a curious coincidence,
they have nothing whatever to say
about the little incident Of killing
six men and wounding twenty.
do not think that if I were a
minister of God that I would care
to have half of my salary paid by
the Marion Manufacturing Com
pany.
There are two other public places
to which the mill worker may go in
Marion. One is the company store,
which, I would judge, is about C'1c-
quarter as large as the country { e
serving the village of about 100
people two miles from my home in
Vermont.
But that is probably conscious
and thoughtful act of the Marion
Manufacturing Company because
when the average of all workers in
the mill, including "overseers," as
they call foremen in the south, is
less than $13 week, they do not
need very large store to take care
of their trade, even though the peo-
pie use flour good enough for Sher-
if Adkins himself.
The final public feature of the
East Marion mill village is the
building variously known as the Y.
M. G. A. and the community house.
It touches me more than little
to tiaink that when Mr.. Baldwin had
this built he must have felt that
he was being automatically generous.
Building Is Handsome
It is a very handsome building, of
brick, with a classic facade. 1t con-
tains as good swimming pool as
you can find. If the whole of East
Marion were as admirable as that
swimming pool, then you would have
the paradise which God must have
intended when He constructed the
glorious hills-and then left the rest
of the job to the Marion Manufac-
turing Company.
But aside from the swimming pool,
there is nothing whatever in the
community house to comfort people
after they have worked from ten
to twelve hours in the noise and
stencil and linty air of the Marion
Manufacturing Company.
No, I am wrong. There Is IL
brary. I have examined its books
with some care. I do not know who
assembled that collection, but I
think that he was somewhat unwise
in presenting these books as the
final Solace for people doomed to
the hell of that life.
I noted a book about life among
the Brahmins. I noted the
"Everynan's Pepys." I noted par
ticularly a book about LinguisticS
by Professor William Whitney of
Yale, published in 1857.
IA 0lC6b AONnOAdbAUh
1t must be a consolation for a
woman like Mrs. Roberts, whose IT.
year-old son was shot down by the
deputies Of Sheriff Adkins, a widow
with several young children TO sup
port, to be able to go to the COM
pany Y. M. 9. A. and read, per-
fectly free, book on Linguistics by
Professor William Whitney, pub
lished in 1857. Because II she does
not find that a consolation, she will
have no other When left Marion
she told me that she had no money
whatever with which to carry on.
7 suggested that this company Y.
M. 9. A. is the one final public glory
to entertain the mill workers at
Marion. But I want to be fair. So
In fairness, let me say that since
the first Marion strike in July, this
building has been the headquarters
of the state militia. SO that I am
afraid that Mrs. Roberts must find
consolation for the death of her
17-year-old son elsewhere.
The Government Did Nothing
OH And there is one other pub
lie place, but it is only partly pro-
vided by the company. That Is the
United States government postofflce,
at the rear of the company store.