The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-07-03


Der reinstated after being discharged
for union activity and another has
been the most aggressively militAns
union advocate among the street car
workers.
There followed more speech-maS~
ing with no time limit from Pads
way. His time was mainly taken
up with a rather painfully vulgar
eulogy of the various union mis-
leaders and National Labor Board
representatives who sat on the plat
form-not forgetting to pay special
compliments to his poker playing
capitalist crony, julius Hell. His
appreciation of what the workers
themselves had accomplished in
bringing the company TO its heeai
was brief. The militancy OF strike
ers and sympathizers was passed
over with hardly any mention-uns
less the studied disclaimer for the
disorder" which had occurred may
be so regarded. And in this con-
nection the best that Padway could
offer was to deny responsibility for
the mass militancy which had 50
unexpectedly developed and without
which the strike would have been
a complete flop.
Praises Boss Way
Then orator Padway proceeded to
his most amazing performance OF
the evening He began to dwell on
the good qualities of Way, famous
in the city as a union-labor hating
die-hard. Mr. Way, after ALL had
very difficult job - he has the
Electric Company to manage. so
much harder than q motorman's
job of operating street car. He
was responsible to his stockholders
as well as to the workers. Besides
Mr.. Way was generous at heart.
And then Psdway launched into an
irr6sevant account Of how Way had
agreed to a settlement for $4,000 for
a pedestrian who was killed by a
street car - much more, Padwsy
claimed, than was necessary.
AT this point, one remembered
something. 1t is that one Of the
most lucrative sources of Pathways
large income is the settlement of
accident cases and that much Of
this involves intimate negotiations
with the Electric Company
Mass Action Won Strike
Not a word was said that it would
do no harm to keep a close watch
on Ways maneuyers and that the
company might see fit, under the
benevolent approval of impartial
open-shopper capitalist He'll, ably
assisted by the two Labor Board
men, to bring back collective bar
gaining" on the pattern of the dis Z
credited E.MBA.
Not that Way or his fellow cspi-
taliSts in Milwaukee have been
serene all the time during the past
few days. Far from it. They be-
came obviously frightened What
they called the mob" was "out Of
hand" The Milwaukee Sentinel on
the morning following the strike,
editorializes: THAT our city, one Of
the great cities of America, was in
state of virtual revolution can
now be said" That is not strictly
correct, but it indicates the state
of filters which had permeated the
ruling class.
Significantly, this same emotional
state characterized the oficialdom
of the A. F. of L. They were just as
scared as their capitalist partners.
They had entered strike with alb
solutely no preparation. Evidently
they had thought to indulge in suf-
f1cient Of a make-believe strike to
provide the basis for one of those
long drawn out arbitrations under
NR.A.
And then the unexpected: the
working class Of the city, especially
the youth, jumped in and proceeded
to win the strike-the public utility
had the public against it, and MILF
family So Hence. the feverish effort
to get quick settlement; and hence
the kind of settlement and for the
reasons indicated above.
AT the moment Way and his fell
low executives" may have reason
to be serene But it is more than
possible that factor may operate
that they have not appraised SUI
f1ciently. The rank and file about
whom Brown and Padway were so
uneasy last night may decide that
this collective bargaining they are
supposed to have obtained shall
mean something and quickly. SYM
bolic of what is still latent among
the workers is happening which
took place during the mass meeting.
Brown was called to the telephone
and soon he hurriedly returned, say
ing: Il want three volunteers to
go out to West Allis and tell the
crowd of 5000 around the sub-sta-
ton that the strike is over and that
they are to go home" This was
four hours after it had been radioed
over the city that the strike was off.
West AlliS workers, for reasons of
their own, may have sensed that all
was not well.
Mediator Moore has been quoted
about the new light which pene-
trated Mr.. Ways soul" In more
candid moment when reporter
asked him what we're the deter
mining factors in the sudden end |
of the strike which was not even
in prospect 10 hours before
His answer: THE clectrocution
of Eugene Domagalski at the
Lakeside power plant Thursday
night, and the temporary inter-
ruption to power Friday after
noon. :. Here we doubtless have
the true explanation Of how the
soul of capitalist sees new
/ 1irht -