The Washington times., 1937-06-18
JohnstoWn Strike
Eight to Finish"
By JAMES L. KILGALLEN


JOHNSTOWN, Pa, June 10
0NSD.-With violence falling off
but community feeling still tense,
the strike in the Bethlehem Steel
plants settled down today to "a
fight to the finish"
The agitated state Of the public
mind was meanwhile sharply dis.
closed by two rousing public meet
ings. One, held in a high-school
auditorium, was under auspices Of
the citizens committee" The
other was an outdoor union rally.
At the citizens meeting, Mayor
Daniel j. Shields and other
speakers aSsailed the activities Of
Outsiders" and "red Communist"
for trying to take over Johns
town."
At the union rally, David Wat
kinS, strike leader, bitterly at
tackled Mayor Shields for his
activities in behalf of laborers who
wanted to return to work and
appealed to union men Ito stay
out of the plants until the COM
pany is brought to terms"
Two hundred State police con-
tinued to preserve law and order.
Company officials declared the
number of men returning to their
jobs in the mills was increasing
steadily while, on the other hand,
union leaders insisted Bethlehem
Steel "iS practically shut down."
Representative Hoffman Speaker
Representative Clare Hoffman
Of Michigan lauded Mayor Shields,
saying his activities here paralleled
the fine work" of Mayor Daniel
Knaggs of Monroe, Mich, during
the recent rioting in Monroe. He
sharply criticized Governor Frank
Murphy for the manner in which
he handled the labor situation in
Michigan and he made sarcastic
references to President Roosevelt
and Secretary Of Labor Perkins.
He declared:
"The whole country is watch
ing JOhnstOwn. How many will
be killed in JOhnstOwn unless
law and authority asserts itself?
Now is the time for action.
"The time has come when the
people must protect themselves.
If they crack one head, two of
their heads must be cracked.
Not by you but by the authOri-
ties you support. God grant the
day may never come when the
citizens themselves are made
deputies and John L. Lewis
gangsters get the same sort of
beating they have meted out to
Others"
Hoffman said he wished we had
a man in the White House Of the
caliber Of Mayor Shields"
Stool Pigeons Warned
The union rally was held in a
picnic grove on the outskirts of
the city. 1t was presided over by
Murphy KoSh, organizer for the
United Mine Workers, who warned
company stool pigeons"-if any
Of them were present-not to
create any disturbance because
this is union meeting, not a
yellow dog meeting"
Watkins, the strike leader, was
introduced. He declared Bethle-
hem Steel was practically shut
down and he said you men know
it, regardless of what the company
says. He declared:
"They can't fool you. Beth
lehem Steel needs you. But
stay away from the plant until
we have won our fight and
forced the company to sign that
contract. Let us show the
Bethlehem Steel that we mean
business
URGES PICKET DUTY
He told the strikers Mayor
Shields and the business men of
Johnstown should be with them
instead of against them.
Watkins urged the men to re-
main on the picket line, to stay
on strike and warned them not
to do anything that will give the
authorities the right to place
them under arrest.
1t was reported that Charles
M. Schwab, chairman of Bethle-
hem Steel, who has just returned
from a trip to Europe, will come
to JohnStoWn and discuss the
steel strike with company Off
Gals.