The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-01-04
By VERN SMITH.

miners strike This is a strike iol
hours, wages and conditions, a re-
volt against starvation and unem-
ployment-and the I.W.W. scabbed,
More than that, the National
Miners Union, leader Of the strike,
reports that the mine owners drew
in both United Mine Worker and
G.W.W. local leaders, and that under
the protection of the company and
the sheriff, these leaders cooperated
in terrorising the miners, and in
keeping the road to the struck mine
clear of pickets.
There are rumors strong enough
to arouse all class conscious work
ers who hear them, that the IW.W.
also scabs in the pulp camps at
Shabaqua, rumors that will hardly
be squelched by the report of an
I.W.W. committee which visited the
camps. and asked the scabs, so they
say, whether any Of them were mem
bers of the IWW after which the
I.W.W. committee whitewashed the
LW,W.
A Strange Defense.
Let's drop the Shabaqua matter,
for lack Of evidence. There is plenty
of evidence on the Collinsville
scsbbing. Some of it has just been
supplied by a hysterical article,
headed expose Rotten Communist
Lies written in Industrial Solida-
rity, official organ of the IW.W.,
issue of December %, by Forrest
Edwards, I.W.W. organizer in
Southern Illinois.
In this article, attempting to an
swer the charge of scabbing, For
rest Edwards states:
"On Friday, December Is levi
IDENTIFY meant for 13-V.S.) some 40
or so men who had arrived earlier
in the morning blocked the narrow
roadway leading to a mine at Col
linsville. The miners were thus pre-
vented from entering and going to
work.
con the same day at p. m. the
miners held meeting at the Miners
Temple for the purpose of deciding
whether they would strike or work.
The vote to return to work the next
morning, Saturday, was 1874. Those
Tho voted to respond to the Nation
Il Miners Union strike call num-
,erod II. The miners also called
foS volunteers to clear the way if
a,sf distractions were present.
~'rhe so-called pickets never re-
armed thereafter and all of the
,sn have been working since except
80 or three who were fired"
'Oh, It's Organized"
Here we have something new in
I.W.W. philosophy, something that
ought to make every old time Wob-
bly,, of the days of Lawrence, Eve
rett, Mesaba Range, and Centralia,
cut loose from such an organization
and get into a real class union.
Here we have the theory that scab-
bling is all right, if it is organized
scabbing, if you hold a meeting, and
vote to scab on your fellow workers
out on strike against the boss.
Even the capitalist press admits
that there were 10000 miners fight
ing for their lives when this meet
ing at Collinsville was held, appar-
entity a joint UNIV. and I.W.W
meeting, or at least a UNIV. meet
+ ing in which the I.W.W. members
participated, for there are not 16e
Wobblies in the coal fields. There
big mass conference at Collinsville
on the 18th mustered only 35-
though perhaps some who had been
in the mine at work Friday and Sat
Observation-Disclosures to show
up at the conference.
But whether the 40 Wobblies at
tended this meeting or not, they
agreed to the program of Collins
Vile mine working when 10000
men, at least, were striking against
long hours and low wages and dan
gerous conditions. They went tt
work under the protection of the
gunner volunteers" sent by thu
UNIV. to chase away the pickets
There is a direct charge by the N
M.U. that the I.W.W. cooperated il
driving away the pickets.
Edwards does not anywhere say
he I.W.W. did not work in the mine
lie could't say that, for everybody
knows they did. His defense is tina
"there was no strike"-which i:
ridiculous. Even the Industrial
Worker reports from various Illinois
cities show some men on strike
though all I.W.W. articles take |
strong strikebreaking stand, BELT
Ting the movement far more thai
even the operators papers, thai
even the UNIV. papers.
"Starve the Strikers"
In addition, the Industrial Soil
darity carries editorials and arti
cles appealing to workers to starry
these striking miners into suDmis
sion to their bosses, to help driv
them back to slavery in the mines
by refusing to donate strike relief
"Don't give anything to the Work
ers International Relief" is the
WV. slogan, accompanied by base
less. proofless Islander of the W.1.R
This is the easier to understan
when we read the main headlines II
the Industrial Worker, of Decembe
21, also an official organ of tn
Z xrr w ~ MOffinial Wnctnrn Or