The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-10-24

SVaFo vi Cpe threatened strike, the
Admiralty was forced to make con-
cessionS, although. these did not fully
satisfy the sailors.
The Admiralty now turned their
attention to breaking the powerful
influence of the Lower Deck So
cieties. ,ast arr
Although called friendly" societies,
and actually carrying out work of a
mutual aid character, they more and
more tended TO take upon themselves
the character of trade unions. and
were actually regarded as such by the
sailors, who joined in large numbers
In the 1919 movement, they had
taken the lead. They had been given
an increasingly revolutionary orien-
tatlon by the sailors,wlao had Joined
the navy for the duration of the war
only many of whom had long rec
oros OF service in trade union and
workshop activity nsIt. is ON record
That in 1919 seyerare.of these So
cleOieS mad passed resolutions calling
lor their amalgamation, into a single
1raoe union affiliated. with the Brit
Ism Trade Union Congress. It is
nlghiy regrettable- that at this time
when the trade union movement was
IN a highly militant mood, it did not
support this proposal, and that the
sailors did not fight generally
Admiralty Adopts Repressiye
Measures.
mus, while the Admiralty now NJ.
ficially recognized the Lower Deck
societies, they demanded that thew
drop any tendency to take up trade
union activities. "A scheme of "wel-
fare conferences was introduced.
similar to the state-controlled Police
Federation, which the government
had introduced after breaking the
police strike. ,a=isss Il
The Admiralty, followed up this at
tack by prohibiting the men to write
to the press by curtailing their cleo
toral rights and denying them the
right to take part in political activ-
ity. Everything possible was done
from this date EDWARDS to weed out
revolutionary elements amongst the
sailors and to prevent the remainder
from coming int ocontact with revo-
lutionary working class ideas.
The Admiralty did everything pos
sible to prevent a repetition of the
1919 outbreak. Political agents were
introduced on the ships under the
guise of Instructor Officers" who
organized lectures, etc. The Admir-
atty sent out to all ships a weekly
bulletin of Empire Study to be used
by the naval schoolinasters and in
struction officers 1S A political test
was cunningly introduced upon all
new recruits under the gliise of an
examination of general knowledge.
How anxious theyaane to keep out
even boy entrants who have the
slightest theological, connection with
the class struggle iiss clearly shown by
the following questions in a recent
examination. 4r. r. e-e - ft
What do YOU know OF Sir Aus
tin Chamberlain, the geld standard
and the Third Internaticnal?'
what do you know of the fol-
lowing: ChicetitI, Stresen1an. A j.
Cook and Neville 'chanlbarlein?2
Pay Cuts Enforced.
Later. in 1925, the Admiralty was
DESTROYS of introducing an all-round
cut in pay. The protest OF the men,
however, was of such threatening
nature that the Admiralty was forced
to make retreat and instead intro
duced the scheme whereby men join
ing after 1925 would receive a new
scale of pay, eight or nine shillings
week less. The created unrest in
both sections. The post-1925 entrants
protested at having to do equal work
for unequal pay, and the pre-1o25
men regarded it as a preliminary
step towords bad conditions.
The Road of Glass Struggle.
The present outbreak among the
sailors Shows that the men were
sailors show that the men were
forced by the actual situation to taks
the road of the class struggle in their
efforts to find a remedy. Their cour-
ageous action destroys: at one blow
all the hopes Of loyal "class collab-
GRAFTON" that the Admiralty have
been ceaselessly trying to build up for
the last IL years, AT the same time,
it will act as a, tremendous spur and
example to the, soldiers. airmen and
police, who are also, due to suffer ex-
actly similar pay reductions from
October l, to say nothing of the great
impetus it will giYsr to the already
rapidly developing mass movement in
the industrial cepterss.c
The English revolutionary move
ment is mobilizingothes widest possible
support for the sailors and assisting
them to take advantage of the pres
ent moment to. extend the aims of
the struggle By putting forward addi-
tional demands. for. full political
rights, marriage allowances to be
paid to all ratings against the com