Montana labor news., 1937-09-30
PRESIDENT SIMMONS
OF The UNIVERSITY
Offers POOR excuse
CONTINUED From Page D

kCOQLlnueu from rage ~
a local union of the American Fed
Grafton of Teachers on the campus.
But that brief, filed in behalf not
only of DR.. Simmons, but in behalf
of Governor Ayers, the Superin-
tendent of Public instruction and the
state Board of Education, makes not
one single charge against Professor
Keeney.
This is indeed the story of the
year in the field of persecution of
university professors by political
appointees:
The Booth brief does not question
Professor Keeney's high academic
attainments; it does not question his
competency, his organizational abil-
ity, his grasp of the functions of
librarian, or his character.
The only contention made is that
DR.. Simmons had the right to fire
Professor Keeney without publicly
giving any reasons and that Gov
ernor Ayers and the State Board of
Education had the right to uphold
him in this arbitrary action.
But here DR.. Simmons, the gov
ernor and his appointees on the State
Board of Education run into a num-
Der of other snags:
Attorney General Freebourn and
Miss Ruth Reardon, the only two
members of the State Board not ap-
pointed by Governor Ayers, are
firmly of the opinion, and have been
from the beginning, that Professor
Keeney was fired like coolie labor
er mainly because he took the lead
in organizing a Teachers Union
securing "a signatures of faculty
members for a union charter on
March 81.
He received his notice of dismissal
on April 7-One week later.
Attorney General Freebourn feels
so strongly that Professor Keeney
was uniustly discharged, he is so
certain that the Keeney case is clear
ly one of persecution for labor union
activity and liberal literary and edu-
cational views, that, while he is
technically, because of his official
position, in the same boat with Gov
ernor Ayers and DR.. Simmons, his
own brief in the mandamus proceed
ings upholds the contentious made
in the Rankin brief for Keeney.
Attorney General Freebourn was
called as a witness for Professor
Keeney He testified tina. at the
closed meeting of the State Board Of
Education late last spring-the min
utes of which have been expunged
from the record-and with them the
childish complaints of DIR. Simmons
he had recommended that Profess
sor Keeney's contract be renewed.
He testified further that the only
complaints made about Professor
Keeney by Dr. Simmons at this
meeting were that DR.. Simmons was
made unhappy" by meeting Keeney
on the campus and that Professor
Keeney 'reads the New York Times
mornings"
Apparently shocked by the pueril-
ity Of DR.. Simmons complaints and
unable to believe his own ears, At
torney Rankin had the Attorney
General repeat this part Of his testi-
mony.
Called to the stand by Attorney
Rankin, President Graham of the
State Federation of Labor, testified
that he had been aware of the anti
labor attitude of DR.. Simmons for a
year previous to the discharge Of
Professor Keeney. He stated under
oath, although Attorney Eddie
Booth objected to it as hearsay, that
the Organization Committee of the
State Federation had reported to
him that Dr. Simmons was opposed
to the formation of a Teachers I'm
ion. He also testified that at the
meeting of the State Board of Edu-
cation he had been denied the right
to testify in behalf of Keeney.
Professor Keeney testified in a
quiet, scholarly manner in regard
to his activity in getting charter
signatures for the local union, his
qualifications and experience as a
librarian-four years as an assistant
in the library at the University of
Michigan and six years at the Uni
versity of Montana.
At the request of Eddie Booth the
final hearing on the case was post
poned until Oct. 4.
Wellington d. Rankin gave the
following statement to your cores
pondent: "It sounds incredible and
| would not expect to be believed
if the court records were not avail
able, but it is a fact that President
Simmons of the U. of M. in his reply
to our allegations that Professor
Keeney was discharged illegally and
without charges or a hearing gives
not one single reason for the failure
to renew Keeney's contract other
than his belief that he had a right
to do so.
THE discharge of highly quail
fled university professor or associate
professor, after six years of service
| when. according TO the replllations