Evening star., 1934-06-26
n. R. A. SAYS MILL
FORCED CLOSING
Divisional Chief Contends
Executives Rejected 15-
Point Program.
(Continued From First Page.)

CContnued from fIrSC fage.J
company was convinced he intended
to wreck it through boycotting and
every other means at your disposal" !"
I'VE would like to know" the letter
further said, "if the Blue Eagle is the
property of the law-abiding citizen of
the United States or if it is a play
thing to be held over the heads of
honorable and decent employers as a
cudgel to browbeat and bulldoze
them into surrendering their consti-
tutional rights for the benefit OF out
side agitators whose only purpose is
to exploit labor for their own personal
gain"
653 Lose Jobs.
Closing of the plant by the COM
pany yesterday threw 653 persons out
of work. Mayor j. D. DArmond said
he supposed the Government will
have to put the 653 workers who lost
their jobs on relief"
Wright said copy of the letter was
being sent to President Roosevelt.
N. r. A. withheld comment in
Washington until Gen. johnson re-
turns to his desk from Walter Reed
Hospital He was expected back to-
day.
The company's Blue Eagle was
taken away by the N. R. A. in April.
1t was alleged that the company had
violated the hosiery code in refusing
to bargain collectively with its en-
ployes.
When the Blue Eagle was recalled.
50 merchants of Hartman turned in
their Blue Eagles, to leave them in
the Governments care until the fac
tory returned to the good graces OF
N. r. A. Since then, some Of these
Blue Eagles have been restored.
Divided on N. r. A.
The 72-year-old mayor said: I'VE
are opposed to the mill closing down.
Some of the people here are opposed
to the N R. A: others are not" He
said the Government has been feed
ing the strikers.
In his letter. Wright said johnson
had been advised by the Department
of Justice that its investigation
showed the company was not guilty
of violating the law or the code.
The text of Wright's letter to john
son follows:
Dear sir:
"On April 20 by your order as ad-
ministrator of N. r. A, the Hartman
Hosiery Mills was deprived of the use
of the Blue Eagle. Your action was
based upon the recommendation OF
the National Labor Board. which was
dominated and controlled by the
American Federation of Labor. Out
of the six members who sat at our
hearing. three-William Green. John
L. Lewis and George Berry-being
presidents of national labor unions,
Rev. Father Francis Haas. avowed la
Dor union supporter; Leo Wolman
consumer member, and only one
Pierre du Pont, representing industry
Speculate on Intentions.
"The only conjecture Of guilt that
this prejudiced board could assume
was that the company entered nego-
tiations in bad faith with the definite
intention not to make any agreements
with the representatives of its en-
ployes. This board could not find
where we had done anything wrong
but their accusation of bad faith in
dicates they suspect us Of thinking
wrong This is purely mind reading
on the part of the National Labor
Board, but is being used to destroy a
concern of more than 20 years OF IAN
and successful operation and the saw
mgs of two generations OF loyal and
true American citizens,
1.-The above conjecture was based
solely on a disorderly mess OF un-
sworn, illegal, incompetent testimony
and passed upon by prejudiceo
board which has shamefully abused
the confidence reposed In its mem
bership, and which has made OF itsel1
an agency for the unionization OF in
dustry. Such conjecture Is not
worthy of any consideration. You
condemned Clarence 4DarroW for re-
porting on such testimoney, yet you
acted upon that type.
Trickery Suggested.
In our opinion the National Labor
Board is not qualified to Judge bad
faith Their general counsel in a
meeting with mill officials suggested
that trickery be utilized to deceive
the strikers in settling the strike
This scheme was also suggested by
the director of compliance.
I'VE we're advised by those two
gentlemen to make the strikers be-
lieve we were going to take them back
and then take few. and that this
sort of cheap trickery would satisfy
those two branches Of the new deal.
Even your own secretary, in dis
cussing ways and means of settling
the strike, advised us to take back Sc
strikers, work them for a week OF
10 days and then let them out.
you personally told us to dis
charge present loyal employees and
employ strikers in their places
Your personal representative "a. r
Clancy, who left here today. would
not restore the Blue Eagle unless we
signed a written instrument requiring
us to discharge present loyal employees
and replace them with strikers.
Cite Legal Ruling.
I'VE would like to know if the Blue
Eagle is the property of the law
abiding citizen of the United States
or If it is plaything to be held over
the heads of honorable and decent
employers as cudgel to browbeat
and bulldoze them into surrendering
their constitutional rights for the
benefit of outside agitators whose
only purpose is to exploit labor for
their own personal gain.
you ,haye been advised in writing
by the Department of Justice that