The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1937-07-16
NO AUTHORITY


tant Postmaster General Donaldson
in explaining the refusal of the pos
tai authorities to deliver food thru
picket lines to certain points in the
Ohio strike areas. This is SOUND
doctrine, in the judgment of most
observers. But, they ask, why Gid
the postal officials violate, at the in
stance of c.. l. o. representatives,
the proudest tradition of the De-
partment-that the mails must go
through? In effect, was not the
failure of the Post Office Department
to maintain this tradition in the
strike areas an act favorable to the
C. l. o. side of the controversy, and
one which would tend to force
settlement? On the other hand, had
the Department maintained its ira
dition and exercised it's duty to see
that the mails Ego through" could
any valid criticism have been raised
against it by anyone, even though its
acts might have contributed to a
settlement of the strike in favor of
the steel companies? AS it appears
now to many, the postal officials went
out of their way to aid the c. l. o. in
settlement of the strike.
Another explanation of the Post
Office Department in it's refusal to
deliver food and clothing in the
strike centers is that the delivery
points were not on regular mail
route, and that local postmasters
have no authority to establish new
routes.
In this connection, it is claimed by
the Department that its services to
the offices of the companies involved
| in the strike have been regularly
carried out, and any packages OF
food or any other mailable matter
addressed to the offices will be de-
livered, but mail delivery service of
any kind may not be had to the
plants until routes to them have been
requested and established in the
regular routine manner at Wash
ington.
1t is believed by many that the De-
partment raised a technical point to
save its own face; that the plants OF
the companies are situated along reg
ular routes and deliveries of food or
anything else could have been and
should have been made without first
sending graphs and plans to Wash
ington for approval.
Yet another explanation of the
Post Office Department was that an
attempt to deliver food and clothing
to the plants by mail would have re-
suited in violence to the postal en-
ployees. 1t is easy to understand
that such results might have taken
place had the postal authorities &C.
tually made the effort, but the
| mails must go through" And the
Federal Government has abundant
power to prevent such violence.
Even mobs can be appealed to to
desist from unlawful acts in this age
of loud speakers by those charged
with enforcement of the law. And
it is not likely that picket, intelli-
gent enough to fight for his union,
would be so rash as to run counter
to any expressed purpose of a duly
constituted federal officer to enforce
the tradition of the Post Office De-
partment that the mails must go
through" A little commonsense
reasoning, vibrant with determine
ton to act in upholding the law, has
salutary effect on even the most
resolute groups when they are acting
outside the pale of the federal law.
This, much less moral suasion, was
not resorted to by the officials. On
the contrary, it would appear that
only the most passive efforts were
made to deliver parcel post mail to
addresses in the Ohio strike areas.
Mail carriers in at least two in
stances were turned back and threat
ened by c. /. o. strikers when it was
learned that they were delivering
clothing to steel plants.
Attorney General Cummings de-
clared some days after the above
acts of the C. 1. o. that the mails
must 90 through" and that warrants
had been issued for the arrest of six
pickets who were charged, without
regard to the question of whether the
mail obstructed was regular or sir
regular. Then. when asked if there
were any limitation on what kind of
mail must so through, he said: