The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-08-07

! ms AEblClG WIS HTittSn DSICE6 bnG E6Cenb
seIl-out of the Weybosset strike by Chris
Donsereau. The chairman of the strike
mittee, Walter Plante has written statement
showing up the betrayal of Characterization >
BY NAT KAPLAN.,
IMPORTANT experiences on strike strategy
and tactics are now being secured in the
New England textile strikes. will deal with
two lessons in this article.
ID On Strike Preparations.
International experiences In strike struggles
show the need for thorough preparations before
the fight breaks out This is especially true in
the present period, when the prerequisites for
strike struggles against wage-cuts and speed-up
are maturing daily and when the full forces OIL
the capitalists are quickly mobilized against the
strikers. In all the New England textile strikes
there has been insufficient organizational and
agitational work carried on in the pre-strike
period. In trying to rectify this we must guard
against two wrong extremes: %. Calling the
strike under the influence Of a passing mood, or
ca, being at the tail end of the strike move
ment; retarding the forward move of the masses
The preparatory work for the New England
textile strikes had the following shortcomings:
Cd Insufficient activity to build the iron core"
of the future strike committee d e., the mill
committee with elected representatives from
each Department. The decisive question here
Is to win over and train these leading elements
in the various departments and language group
ingS and to weed out reforrnist and facilitating
elements from the leadership before the strike
starts These leading workers must be gotten
into the union and the more advanced into the
Party.
co The strike demands were not formu-
10 In io11t fo o11O Fnry rF
discussion and agitation in the mill before thu
strike In the Salzberg mill in Putnam, Conn.
the strike demands were formulated after the
strike had been called. In the Weybosset mill
In Olneyville, R, l., there was little discussion
on the demands before the strike and during
the strike the strike committee resisted the put
ting forward Of the most important department
demands besides the demands for the return Of
the 1919 per cent wage-cut affecting the entire
mill. To large extent this enabled the COM
pany to play the unskilled against the skilled
during the strike. OF the workers who flocked
back Immediately after the fake vote conducted
by the company about l00-l5o out Of 600 work.
ers) the majority are women and young work.
ers Although this has not broken the strike
it could have been avoided with the proper tao
tics quitting forward department demands
special women and youth work, etc..
(3) The inter- connection between the various
silk strikes Central Falls, Pawtucket and Put
nam, etc. could have been strengthened by the
calling of silk conference before the strikes
broke out The calling of wooden conference
before the Weybosset strike was even moye i'm
portant. We are dealing basically with string
OF mills of one company (the American Wooden
Company and the securing of simultaneous
strike action in number Of mills is a double
surety Of victory In the struggle (the Lawrance