The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-09-29
[ HEARD THEIR VOICES
The Son

NINETEEN years old and already
~ he's been pinched so many times
for strike activity that he can't re-
member. The last long stretch he
did was in New Bedford during the
big strike in 1899, six months on a
"vag" charge. Nobody at home
knew; thsy thought he was out see
ing the country. A police car drives
past as we walk toward the Central
Falls depot. They been looking for
me-" he says, but they amt caught
up With me yet" Boy, are the COPS
dumb, he says. Last week they
pinched him while he was selling
Daily Workers, so the two dumb
cops stood around arguing who
should make the pinch, so he walks
out on them. When the fiatfoots
up in Boston, he says, get to be $50
years old, they send them down to
Central Falls to die.
After the fighting in Saylesville
the governor had issued orders to
pick up every known Communis: in
Providence. They went from house
to house" he says, knocking on
the doors. was down in the cellar
hard up against the wall not even
breathing. I could see their search
lights moving around outside and
the kids yelling, He went this way,
he went this way and I thought,
why the hell don't they shut up. but
after while they went away"
It remained for this young Com
munist to tell his own thrilling
story of how, on Sunday after
noon, while most of his comrades
were in Jail facing trumped-up
charges, being grilled by the police,
he led a tremendous funeral march
of thousands of workers through
The streets of Pawtucket behind the
coffin Of Charley Gorcynski the
smash piecer shot by the Guards
men in Saylesville. The police we're
securing cellars and homes, hunt
ing up and down Westminster
Street for the Communists who
we're leading special 'revolu ion"
in Rhode Island while in Paw
tucket leading a mass funeral Of
thousands OF textile workers from
the U. T. w. and the independent
unions, marched nineteen year old
Communist directing the traffic,
giving orders to the police!
When the funeral halted at the
Mntro not,,a nan, ta1-vy Cvl1yio tho
U. T. w. organizer drove up in mis-
new Plymouth. The U. T. W. sent
a wreath. HE says to me, What?
amt you in Jail YETI That amt
your fault says, and says to him,
sitting in the car What's a matter,
scared of getting callouses on your
feet? I asked him if he wan.ed to
speak along with me and the in
dependent president, but not him,
he says, he don't want to excite the
people"
We walk to the mills. At the
Lebanon, heavy pickets have kept
1t shut in spite of the threat to re-
open. This young Communist has
grown up here in Central Falls and
Pawtucket worked n the mills,
flshed. danced. We walk along the
streets. Dicks, flatfeet, are after
him. He is going up to distribute
the Daily Workers, We walk along,
Everybody knows him. He knows
everybody. All the workers
"Hya Happy?"
"Hya Tom?"
"Hyaw
VI.
1T is outside strike headquarters,
l U. r. w. win" the young work.
err says, I'VE gotta win. It's now or
never. It's like holding lions tail,
we gotta hold on"
He points across the street. There
is a sign announcing the races at
Narragansett Park. He doesn't
mean this. He is pointing to the
weekly sermon on the wall of st.
AIMS Church.
TO BE DEFEATED is
NOT WRONG
TO GIVE UP is
A TRAGEDY
that's the idea" he says.
But what is it, think, to be
| betraVed?