Montana labor news., 1936-07-23

Fort Peck, Montana
The police prohibited yesterday a
peaceful protest picketing of one Of
the messhalls. The Federal Union or
ganizer and his wife were arrested
when they tried to start picketing in
defiance Of police orders. The organ
izer was also arrested Tuesday when
he tried to change the place OF meet
ing to the shade OF a building. (The
administration has refused to rent a
hall on the project for these meetings.)
Notices posted on the outside of the
messhalls where lots Of other noti-
ces are posted, including some by the
government - have been torn down by
order Of the chief OF police. Now the
rule IS that no notices are to be posted
in this way, but that the mass meet
ing notices may be placed on bulletin
boards r if approved. Nothing that is
untrue or unseemly will be approved, it
was stated. When asked to approve an
announcement of the investigation Of
Fort Peck which has been brought
about by the mass meetings Captain
Plank said he would have to sleep on
it" He said some parts of it were not
true. He was apparently referring to
the statement in the notice that, Men
who are receiving 50-65 cents an ohur
for doing semi-skilled or skilled work
will have a chance to testify. Some
carpenters helpers are using carpen-
tiers tools and doing the work OF car
penters. Lots of carpentering is done
by SO cent men. 'Drillers" in the tun-
nels are doing the work of miners and
should get $l,20, but they get 90 cents.
And SO on, Testimony will be taken
on cases like this" Captain Plank
apparently questions the union state
ment OF the 1arts.
These barracks mass meetings have
been held to secure the right to move
out. AT present a man has to live
there to hold his job. The govern
ment is apparently afraid to face the
test Of having to sell its services on an
open competitive basis. Protests fin
ally reached the President himself - if
they had not done SO before when
Joe Monaghan wired him that Con
ditions in barracks at Fort Peck dis
graceful. Men suffering terribly. Have
taken up with war department but re-
ceiyed no satisfaction. Please institute
immediate action" Senator Murray
forwarded to the President affidavit
from George Tryon, president of the
machinists' union, who was fired for
the report on Fort Peck which he made
at the convention of the State Fedora
ton of Labor. Even after the facts
reached the president presumably or
at least his office no action was visi-
Bile. Hence the decision to picket a
mess hall by way of further protest.
Some time ago the mass meeting
sent letters to the candidates request
ing them to help in gaining publicity
for barracks conditions, especially in
the daily press. J. F. O'Connor and
]. l.. Maury did something about it.
A week later kilograms were sent to
the candidates, most of them replied
with elaborate promises and state
ments OF past performances in protest
ing the conditions. 1t was pointed out
to them in return that protests had
been made for months, and that real
publicity would make protests effec-
tive. A statement to the press was
again requested. O'Connell, Sparkling,
and Mike Holland seem to have done
their best. Monaghan is mentioning
Fort Peck in speeches but has made no
reply to our request for a statement
to the daily press. Holt flatly refuses
to make such a statement. Murray
and Ayers have logged it. It was the
sentiment of a mass meeting that Holt,
Ayers, Monaghan or Murray at least
are prominent enough to get a state
ment in the daily papers, and hat that
would do more than anything else to
get the conditions remedied.
So far the only result Of three mon
this Of protest has been to get a COM
mittee appointed to investigate at some
future date. Federal Union 20l92,
which has been sponsoring the mass
meetings, posted a notice which read
in part, "The investigation is likely to
be a whitewash unless we keep bring
ing pressure to bear. If the meetings
continue to be we'll attended and con-
tinue to take action we can prevent
the investigation from being a white