The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-02-22


 kicked out the MIRA and A
 It is the Federal Governments criminal prosecution of the Har- Ian County, Kentucky, coal oper- ators, and its importance lies in the fact that the defendants are being charged with conspiracy to violate the National Labor Re- lations (Wagner) act.
 So far the National Labor Relations Board has been about as tOOthiess as an old hag when it comes to enforcing decisions. Big companies, at times, have ignored it's decrees and the board has had only cumbersome and ineffective means of retalia- ton.
 But now the Justice Depart ment has gone back to a law of 1870 which imposes ten years in1- prisonment and fines of $5,000 when two or more persons con- Spire to injure, oppress, threaten or intimidate any citizen in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution or laws of the United States.
 The Wagner Act being a law of the United States, the Justice Department has now obtained indictments against % Harlan County coal companies, "A coal executives and g deputy sheriffs for conspiring to violate the law in the campaign of terrorism previously aired by the LaFOl- lette civil liberties investigation.
 If the government is successful in this case it means that the Tom Girdlers, the Henry Fords and the Mayor Hagues will risk crim- inal prosecution if they prevent workers from organizing.
 It also means the strengthen ing of the Wagner Act just at a time when it is under senatorial fire and when any attempt to strengthen it in Congress prob ably would mean its complete pulling apart.
 In short, virtual new laws may be written as result of the Har- Ian County prosecution.
 Lonesome Pine
 The final trial (although un- doubtedly it will go to the Su- preme CourD begins May Is in London, Kentucky, little town in the Lonesome Pine and feud country, and the Justice Depart ment is mobilizing its best brains for the big event.
 Brien McMahOn, Assistant At- torney General in charge of the criminal division, one of the shrewdest minds in the Depart ment, will head the legal staff. Defending the coal operators will be Judge Charles Dawson, appointed by Coolidge as district judge in western Kentucky. He resigned in order to lead the an- ti-New Deal attack against the Guffey Coal Act, having been the first judge to hand down a decision against the AAA.
 NOTE-So far the government has won in all preliminary legal skirmiShing, Judge Hiram Church Ford having recently thrown out a demurrer filed on behalf of the coal operators attacking the val idity of the indictments.
 Cuff-Links Club
 After Franklin Roosevelt fin- ished running against Calvin Coolidge in his unsuccessful cam paign for the presidency in 1920, he gave a pair of cuff-links to the men who had been his close advisers.
 These included Steve Early, who acted as advance publicity man for Roosevelt, and Marvin Mo- Intyre, also a public relations man.
 Both men, now White House secretaries, recently received ad- QlClOnal presents or cuff-IlnkS. Thy came from Joe Davies, Am bassador to Belgium and husband of Marjorie Post Hutton, the breakfast food heiress.
 This time the gifts included shirt studs and were much more pretentiOus than those from Roosevelt.
 Friends of McIntyre's are josh ing him that Davies now will have difficulty seeing the President. Harding Scandals
 An echo of the old Harding scandals came up in the Interior Department some time ago when a eco camp in Nevada was trans ferred from the Forest Service to the National Park Service.
 On the payroll at the time of the transfer was listed the name OFF THE RECORD