The Washington times., 1937-09-04
LEWIS SPEECH
PAVES THE Way
FOR Third PARTY
clio. Head Hints Labor
Will Quit New Deal
By GEORGE R. HOLMES

QN.S.) John l.. Lewis, gen.
eralissimo Of the Committee for
Industrial Organization, opened
the door today for formation of a
third party in the presidential
campaign of 1940-a party com
posed of militant labor and dlscon-
tented agriculturists.
There are few in washington
who believe that any appreciate
number of partisans, either labor
or farmer, will walk through the
door which Lewis threw open so
invitingly in his speech to the
country last night. But the fact
remains the invitation was eX-
tended-and left open.
LAsHES AT FOES
Lewis speech was a remarkable
and enlightening exposition of his
economic and social philosophy.
Silent all these months while he
has been aSsailed as a Communist
and as an enemy of the Amer
lean system" the c. I. o. leader
struck back at his criticS-includ-
ing President RooSevelt-in slash
ing fashion, and in so doing man
aged to leave a doubt as to
whether the New Deal in its 1910
habiliments can expect to receive
the support of the several millions
who follow his leadership.
He did not mention President
Roosevelt by name. But he did
show, and Enthusiastically, that he
remembered the Presidents biting
criticism Of the c. I. o. and the
independent steel barons during
their clash this summer. Mr..
Roosevelt, when asked to comment
upon the impaSSe between the
steel strikers and the steel masters,
fell back on a ShakeSpearian
quotation:
"A plague on both your
houses"
REPLIES TO THRUST
Newspaper reporters beSieged
Lewis to answer that criticism at
the time. He always refused.
But last night, speaking to the
country over a national radio
hookup, Lewis did reply. His
words were these:
ut i'll behooveS one who has
Supped at labor'S table and who
has been sheltered in labor'S
house to curse with equal fer
vor and fine impartiality both
labor and its adversaries when
they become locked in deadly
embrace"
There was no mistaking the ap-
plication. It was John L. Lewis
speaking to Franklin D. Roosevelt.
It was made all the more pointed
by Lewis frequent use of Roose-
veltian phrases of the last cam
paign, as he diScoursed upon = Ia
boris struggle to obtain a greater
share of the national income.
Phrases such as these: 1.-The greed
and select of the few; industrial
democracy; labor as a partner
in production; distributed en-
ployment"; "better homes for the
under-privileged"; social security
for the aged; unequal distribu-
ton of the national income; the
mutually of interests" between
labor and capital.
ASSAILS CONGRESS
Lewis made it crystal clear that
that part of labor for which he
Speaks-3,718,000 now in the C. I.
O.-iS not satisfied with the Demo
cratic party'S performance in the
Congress just ended. He spoke
Scornfully of it's record, especially
its failure to enact the wages-and-
hour legislation.
Labor next year." he warned,
cannot avoid the necessity of
a political assay of the work
and deeds Of its so-called friends
and its political beneficiaries."
That means, if it means any,
thing, that Lewis far-flung organ
ization is out to punish labor's
enemies and reward it's friends in
the 1888 Congressional elections.
In that respect, it is significant
that the American Federation of
Labor and the C. I. o. are one,
even though they disagree VIC
lently among themselves.
Few seasoned politicians believe
it is possible for Lewis-or any
one elSe-to form a third Farmer
Labor party by 1910. There is too
much groundwork to be done. But
most of them thought today that
Lewis, in his speech last night,
sounded the warning drum-may.