The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1932-08-12

Duluth, owned by Paul Block of
New York, chain newspaper own
er, made capital out IF the beat
ing of the workers. Communists
Routed" were the headlines and
in an eight-colume headline on the
front page, one of the newspapers
beloved "Arraign Court House
Rioter Today" Before the trial,
the Duluth Herald ran a sinister
editorial to lend courage to the
fascist Judge before whom the
case was TO be tried.
"Hard times must not be made
an excuse for crime nor for its
friend, Communism" declared the
Herald editorial. "Our govern
ment, our system of laws, our
ways of business, our protection of
individual rights, our care for the
hampered, are not excelled any,
where. Who assail them is but
pointing with glee the way back
to the Jungle" But what the Her.
aid forgot to mention is that in
Duluth as well as in every other
city in the United States, workers
are already back in the jungles.
In Duluth, single workers lived on
rat infested garbage heaps in the
rear of an incinerator plant. They
live in holes built into the earth
along the lake front or in shacks
made out of wood and tin.
Destroy JObless' Shacks In Duluth
Last winter, some of the men
living along the water front In
the jungle or "Hooverville" as it
is better known managed to build
fairly comfortable huts. But these
were destroyed with fire by police
on orders of Safety Commissioner
Moore, who recently modified the
entire police force to meet the
men, women and children who took
part in the st. Louis County Farm
ers Hunger march on June 81.
The trial of Davis showed plain
ly to the workers who were
not aware of it already that Gus
tice" can not be obtained in cap
italist courts. One of the most
striking examples of that was al
so shown by this same Judge Nc
Dewitt in the trial of Maurice H
Powers about three years ago, on
September IA, 1929.
McDevitt Badgering Powers
Here, are the exact words of
Judge McDevitt, colonel of the
national guard, to Powers at the
time fthe sentence:
Judge McDevitt: "There is one
thing don't like about you, Pow
ers, and that is that you don't tell
the truth; not here on the witness
stand but at your meetings. You
said the other night at Cancels
hall that it is no use going to this
court for justice because the Judge
is the commander Of the National
Guard, the biggest strike breaking
organization in the country"
Powers: '"That is correct"
Judge McDevitt: "Now Powers
you are liar. That is a lie and
challenge you to prove it."
At this juncture, Powers offer
ed to take the stand and do so, but
the Judge prevented it. In SEN
fencing Powers, this fascist Judge
who gave Davis the limit, had this
to say:
Gave Powers IS Days
"Now / shall find you guilty or
the dsOrderly conduct charge fol
Sunday night. And you are going
to get 90 days in the county Jail
Powers. You are martyr and
am going to help you to be a mar
tyr. And am going 10 set you
Iup as a wonderful leader to your
people"
This is the same Judge McDevitt
Iwho three years later, is still tn,
Judge of municipal court. The In
Iternational Labor Defense of which
! Davis is the organizer, is arrang
ing to appeal this case to the dis
trict (state) court. But the higl
er court is in no respect any fair
er than the lower court, and onl,
with the help of protests and mas
pressure can this frameup Of Dav
Is be exposed and the verdict o.
the court reversed. In the cas-,
OF Powers, the higher court, which
now has practically the same mem
bers on the bench, as it did then
had little to say regarding the
Iasclsts methods used by Judg,
McDevitt in rendering "justice.
All they had to say in their de
c1slon on the appeal of Powers
was "The preliminary examination