The daily worker., 1934-05-10
Cops Try to
Seamen
Off USSR Ship
Protest to B altim ore
Editor Makes Him
Take Back Lies
BY MARGUERITE YOUNG
Especial to the Daily Worker)

NSpeclal 10 Ine Dally WOrker)
BALTIMORE, May 9-Protests by
the Western Maryland Railroad,
which shipped scabs in to break the
Norfolk Longshoremen's strike last
week, brought out the Baltimore
police from the inspector down to-
day to keep the unemployed seamen
from crossing the roads Private
Property to board the Soviet ship
Consomol.
The seamen marched en- mssse to
the dock after the Baltimore Sun
improved upon the slander tech
nique of the capitalist press in the
Soviet ship KIM" incident,
Following today's event, they
marched to the newspaper office,
sent a committee in to see the City
Editor to protest while the ranks
remained outside singing and boo
ing the newspapers lies, and won
the editors promise to print their
statement tomorrow. Their resolu-
ton, adopted unanimously in mass
meeting, declared: 1--WE seamen pro-
test against these vicious lies and
are prepared at any and all times
to sacrifice our lives for the work
ing class in the interests of the
Workers Fatherland and for the
! defense of the Soviet Union"
The second mate Of the Kom-
somol told the seamen today, THE
railroad is protesting against a
large crowd coming across its
docks"
Captain Robert Cepurit, skipper
of the ship, earlier had wired An
ton Becker, secretary Of the Balti-
more Branch of the Marine Work
ers' Union: Replying to your tele-
gram, there are no restrictions Wis
iting my ship except for the danger
to visitors while the ship is dis
charging
An Outright Lie
Becker had telegraphed the cap
tain inquiring about visiting regu-
lations after the Sun reported today
headlined Unemployed Seamen
Not Wanted On Soviet Ship" This
was an outright lie, cooked up from
the fact that a few seamen yester-
day we're chased off the dock by
the police. 1t was another step in
the campaign the entire capitalist
press of this city is conducting to
smash the unemployed seamen's or
ganization and worker controlled
employment agency.
These seamen, whose heroic mill
fancy won them self-determination
of Federal unemployment relief to
seamen, remain organized although
the government cut off their sup
plies in response to acknowledged
protests by shipowners, American
Federation of Labor officials, the U.
S. Shipping Board and others. Re-
naming solid, they have succeeded
/ in gaining the relief officials prom
ise to again finance the seamen's
project on the waterfront, with rec
ognition of seamen's Advisory
committees. The relief officials,
however, are discriminating against
militant marine workers and are
shipping men from their own tran
sient bureau in an effort to break
up the seamen's centralized ship
| ping bureau. The men remain solid
in heroic revolutionary spirit and
discipline.
Inspector Thomas Mooney of the
Baltimore police met the seamen on
the railroad dock where the Kom-
somol is tied up, and said, wait a
minute, this is private property
They don't want you crossing here.
The captain of the ship doesn't
want you"
Who Says So?
who says so, about the captain?'
the seamen asked, naming COM
mittee to see the captain. Nine
uniformed and about Is plain
clothes police and private company
dicks stood around. The inspector
agreed to get a representative from
the ship. The second mate came
Walter Stack, of the union, pro-
tested: I'VE know the captain will
be subject to pressure this company
puts on him. and that the company
will try to use Soviet-Arnerican re-
lations as a weapon to prevent any
show of international working class
solidarity"
The mate spoke in Russian. A
storekeeper, standing nearby, agreed
to interpret. He said he didn't heal
the mate say the company was pro-
testing-he only heard, I'VE don't
want any demonstrations-can you
come back while this ship is not
being worked?" But one of the
marine workers also understood
Russian, having sailed on Soviet
ships, and he supplied the full
translation. When the committee
reported to the men, they turned in
1 perfect order and marched away
singing and cheering the Soviet
ship. Then they walked the several