Evening star., 1937-06-21
The Easiest Way.

Governor Earle of PENNSYLVANIA has
established precedent. He has shut
down the Cambria plant of the Beth
Iehem Steel Company in order to prevent
flotlng and disorder and possible blood
shed. The plant was, it is reported, in
1ul operation, giving employment to
14,ooo workers. The company officials
objected vigorously to the action of
me GoVernor-and yielded under pro-
test to the Governor of the State, who
declared modified martial law in
dohnstown.
The suggestion was made by the COM
pany officials that Governor Earle
should, If he desired to prevent riot and
bloodshed, use the military power of the
State to prevent an invasion of C, 10,
strikers and sympathizers, and let the
men who desired to work continue on
the job. The Governor, however, decided
otherwise. The easiest way was to COM
pei the plant to shut down. holding the
ofnclals OF the company responsible if
they did not accede to his order.
So, by order of the Governor of a great
State, strike, engineered by the c. 10.
and John L. Lewis to close this steel
plant, has been made effective. This is
something new in government. 1t is a
precedent which, if followed in the
future by Governor Earle and by the
Governors of other States, will place the
strong arm Of government on the side
OF strikers in every demand which they
make on their employers.
n Governor Earle believed he could
not maintain law and order in Pennsyl-
vania, he was at liberty to call upon the
President of the United States for Fed
eral aid. Recent history, however, has
demonstrated that Governor Earle and
the administration in Washington are
favoring the c. I. o. unions. John L.
Lewis, 1t is true, agreed to call off the
march OF 10000 strikers and their SYM
pathizers on Johnstown for a mass meet
ing and to overawe the workers and the
people In JohnstoWn-and did call it off.
Presumably, however, the order calling
OIL the march was issued when Lewis
knew that the steel plant was to be
closed by mandate of the Governor.
Lawlessness has been the order OF the
day. And along with it has gone tempo
rlzlng by State and Federal officials. 1t
began with the sit-down strikes, which
were permitted to go unchecked in Mich
igan and elsewhere. Firm action in sev-
eral other States by their Governors pre-
vented spread of these sit-down strikes.
The administration in Washington, how
ever, which might have set an example
by denouncing this form of lawlessness,
did nothing, uttered no word Of dis
approval.
And now State government In the
name of law and order, has compelled
an industrial plant to shut down. Is
government by C. I. O. at hand?
The controversy between the inde-
pendent steel companies and the c. I. o.
hinges on a demand of the c. I. O,
for written contracts with the COM
panies The Wagner labor relations
act calls for collective bargaining. There
Is no mention in the act of written con-
tracts. There is nothing in the act that
compels a company or a group of
workers to accept the demands of one
or the other. 1t merely requires, by law,
that q company shall deal with its
employees collectively. Yet government
appears to be determined to write into
the lAW by coereive methods, what the
c. I. o. is demanding. 1t is far cry
from Calvin Coolidge and the Boston
police strike to George Earle and the
steel strike at Johnstown.