Evening star., 1940-01-06
Board Critic Charqes
Partially 10 {. !. o.;
Quiz zResumesM Monday
Former Exominer Says
Indianapolis Office
Antogonistic to A. F. l.
BY CARTER BROOKE JONES.

The special House committee in
vestigating the National Labor
Relations Board, in weekend recess
today until Monday, had before it
two new lines of evidence developed
yesterday-both critical of the
boards methods and the attitude
of certain of its employees.
Just before adjournment late yes
terday Theodore H. Freter, formerly
a field examiner for the board, now
a guard at Occoquan Workhouse,
testified that the Indianapolis
regional Office always favored the
C. l. o. and opposed the A. F. of l..
Whenever union affiliated with
the Congress of Industrial Organiza-
tions won a case, he said, there was
something in the nature OF cele-
bration" in the Indianapolis Office.
and the staff would exclaim, I'VE
Won" If the American Federation
of Labor won union election in
plant, he added, the N. L. R. B. en-
ployes would say, I'VE lost"
Sometimes" he explained. they'd
say, we beat them to l., always
referring to the c. I. O."
Investigation Blamed.
Mr.. Freter said that in a couple
of cases where his findings of facts
did not sustain union charges, the
regional director, Robert Cowdrill,
had said it was the fault of his in
vestigation, not of the facts. Be
cause" he said, "the union would
not have filed charges against the
company unless there was basis for
them
He mentioned the Roy S. Bailey
Co. of Peru, Ind, and the George
H. Rudy Coal Co. cases as two
that probably came in this category
In reply to a question by Repre-
sentative Healey, Democrat, of Mas
sachusetts the witness said he did
not know that complaints ever were
issued in these cases. Mr.. Healey
said he had information that none
ever was.
Il don't know what became of
them," Mr.. Freter said.
He testified that Mr.. Cowdrill
usually referred to charges filed by
an A. F. Of L. union as "one of
those damned A. F. of L. cases"
He added that most of the Indiana
regional staff spoke of the organiza-
ton as "the damned A. F. of L."
j. Thomas Watson, trial examiner
at Indianapolis, had an attitude
similar to that Of Mr.. Cowdrill, the
witness said.
I'm some cases." Mr.. Freter said,
where did try to get the parties
together, was criticised for it.
Charges Kept From Firms.
Indiana employers never were al
lowed to see a copy of charges
which employees filed against them,
Mr. Freter said.
I'm some instances" he added,
I'VE were told not to contact en-
ployers at all and sometimes to use
precautions to keep them from
knowing that we were investigating
them"
Mr.. Freter, who said he had prac-
ticed law in Chicago, been an
auditor for the General Accounting
Office and an agent for the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, denied, in
response to question from Repre-
sentative Murdock, Democrat, of
Utah that he had any prejudice
against the N. L. r. B. because he
had been let out.
In Indianapolis Mr.. Cowdrill said
last night that there was not a
word of truth" in Mr.. Freter's tes-
timony concerning alleged favor
itism for the C. I. o. Mr.. Cowdrill
asserted that Mr.. Freter was dis
charged for inefaciency," the Asso-
ciated Press reported.
Meanwhile, Chairman Madden Of
the Labor Board said in a review
of the boards activities during the
last fiscal year that it had dealt in
even-handed fashion with the af-
fairs of the A. F. L. and c. I. o.
In terms of percentages" he said,
the record disclosed mo essential
variation" in the manner of dis
posing OF the two labor organiza-
tions' cases.
Committee Counsel Edmund M.
Toland introduced in the record
yesterday letters from board officials
praising Mr.. Freter's service and an
other from the Indianapolis Office
asking for some bright, labor
minded" additions to the staff.
Earlier in the afternoon Mrs.
Gilmore M. Herrick, New York re-
gional director, who was on
the stand most Of the day, was
asked to identify some personal