Montana labor news., 1939-09-14

$500 %AANAA1N - 1920
today, and you will agree, I am sure,
that despite our present difficulties
we are infinitely better off than are
the to~talitarian states.
Nothing is perfect, nothing ever
will be perfect; but as long as nan
lives he will continue to strive for
perfection. It is the goal toward
which all our energies are directed
and through a process of education
and cooperation we will keep work
ing toward that end.
In this fight for perfection we
have used the mechanism of organ
izing labor for the purpose of accom-
plishing the greatest good for the
greatest number. We are going to
succeed in our efforts but only
through evolutionary methods and
not through revolutionary ones. We
must examine our own house-the
house of labor-and keep it, IS far
as possible, in good working order.
How does that house look today?
If we look closely we will find four
groups living in it, all of varying
degrees Of Importance. There is the
craftsman in the AFL, the indus
trial worker in the CLIO, the COM
pany unionist, and the un~organized.
In other words we find groups
thinking in different thought chan
nels and, in many instances, work
ing at cross purposes.
What is the reason for this di-
vergence? In days Of old despotic
kings used the principle of divide
and rule" to maintain themselves in
power and to keep their privileges
and prerogatives. This method was
successful for a time but, like all
dishonest things, it could not last.
Why? Because the people - the
masses - gradually awoke to the
significance of the situation through
the teachings of the philosophers and
with this education and understand
ing the policy dwindled and finally
died. Today our industrial kings
are pursuing the very same policy
of divide and rule" and to date
they have been fairly successful.
We see two great unions, the AFL
and the CLIO comprising some 8,000,-
900 members, fighting each other in
many sections of our country. What
has been the result? Organized
labor is being torn asunder and, in
some sections, is losing many of the
rights achieved in fifty or more
years of effort. 1 am not an alarm
list but l would like to call to your
attention the elections of last No
vember in Oregon wherein the
voters of that state approved a law
muzzling labor, and in Washington
and California where similar at
tempts were made though not sue
cessfully.
The significance of this lies in our
geographical proximity to the Pa
cific coast states mentioned. What
has been tried there may be attempt
ed here. We must be on our guard
to repel efforts of that kind, and
the best way to assure success is to
achieve unity in the labor move
ment. Every possible means must
be used to reunite labor. Talk alone
will not do it, but talk and action
will. It is up to us, the rank and
file of organized labor, to e that
this is done and to work for the
greatest good for the greatest num-
Der.
Let's take another look at the
house of labor and see if we've
overlooked anything. We find that
there is another group to be con-
sidered in the labor movement, and
that is the farmer. He is a worker
just as much as we are, and he is
seeking the very same ends also;
namely, a decent livelihood and a
fair amount of security. We find
that he also has organized and for
the same purposes. Why isn't he
in with us? Because the policy of
divide and rule" is applied here
also.
Many farmers r not opposed to
organized labor for we find some
of them organizing themselves on
union lines. Let's try to understand
the farmer and his problems and
get him to understand ours. It's not
an impossible task but it will be a
slow one. Education and cooperation
are necessary for a better under
standing of each other.
Organized labor in western Mon
tana is embarking on a policy in
this respect which we hope will be
of tremendous benefit to the people
of this state. Too often do we find
the worker and the farmer pitted
against one another and too often
has this antagonism been created
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