The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1941-01-02
LABOR NEWS
FROM BRITAIN
. so MOBILE CANTEENS
. BOUGHT BY WORKERS
.
. PEACE TOURS
The King and the Trade Unions

ed to the King.
The occasion was his inspection of
the so n so mobile canteens which
have been built with money subscribed
by the Trade Union movement which
will be administered by the Y. M. c.
A.
The cost of these canteens totals
about &12,250. The T. U. G. General
Council paid for four itself.
There are trade %unionists in the
overseas Dominions and in the United
States who possess the II. U. G. Gold
Badge, given to them when they at
tended the British Trades Union Con-
gress as fraternal delegates from
overseas. The badge which His Ma
jesty has accepted is an exact replica
in gold of the badge which delegates
wear at our Annual Congress. It's
presentation on such an occasion SYM
bolishes in a rather exceptional way
the conjunction of strong social forces
in the organization of the nation for
war service.
Unions Aid the Y. Nj. c. A.
The r. U. C. General Council under
took to assist the Y. M. c. A. to re-
place it's equipment of mobile can
teens when the British Expeditionary
Force was withdrawn from the con
tinent after the collapse Of France.
Practically all the Y. M. C. A. equip
ment of vehicles and huts with the
Forces in France was destroyed. With
the help of the Trade Unions it has
now been restored.
There are about $50 mobile a n
teens now operating under Y. M. G.
A. control in the vicinity of the Ser
vice camps and in the civilian areas
devastated by air raids-to say moth
ing of the 70 or more mobile can
teens maintained by the Church,
Army, and the 40 or more in service
under the auspices of the Salvation
Army. They are doing a wonderful
work.
When Coventry suffered its all
night raid recently 40 Y. M. c. A.
mobile canteens were in the area by
dawn and provided much needed
meals and hot drinks for the people
rendered homeless. This is the kind
of service that the Trade Unions have
displayed their readiness to support.
AS write announcement reaches
me that the Executive Council of the
South Wales Miners Federation have
Just voted $4,000 to provide four mo-
bile canteens, costing about a thous-
and pounds; and the remainder OF the
Welsh miners contribution is to be
spent in providing Y. M. c. A. huts
for the troops concentrated in Wales,
Huts they are called; but in fact they
are centres of recreation and re-
freshmen of considerable size and
effectively organized Service Clubs.
1t is a significant thing that the
work has gained the support of the
Trade Unions. All over the country
on Salisbury Plain, in the Welsh val
leys, and wherever the Service camps
are located, mobile canteens bearing
the anne of Trade Unions will now
be circulating in increasing numbers
By the end Of the year the Y. M
C. A. authorities expect to have III
full commission at least 500 mobile
canteens. They have been coming in
to commission, a Y. M. C. A. friend
tells me, at the rate of two a day
There could hardly be a better IL
lustration of the way in which the
war effort of the nation is being car
ried on than is afforded by Trade
Union support Of these Y. M. c. A
activities.
Empire Tours for British Works
Mr.. George Gibson, this years
chairman Of the T. u. c. General
Council, has been talking to me about
a broadcast address he is planning to
make to the overseas Dominions. He
is a keen advocate of closer inter,
Dominion relations. For a number OF
years he has served on the Overseas
Settlement Board. Until a few weeks
ago he was giving full-time service
in the Children's Overseas Reception
Board.
He was tremendously impressed, he
told me, in doing this work by the
enormous number of people who have
ties Of blood with the Dominions.
SO he proposes in this broadcast ne
is presently to make, to expound his
personal scheme, what he calls his pet
idea, his obsession if you like, for or
ganizing cheap and plentiful trave.
facilities within the British Common
wealth Of Nations, SO that when the
war is over the doors of Britain ano
the Dominions will be open to vastly
greater numbers of our people. He
wants to see an Imperial Travel Trust
established, which would have assist
ance in the way Of capital from the
British and Dominion Governments
and would thereafter be administered
on a non-proft-making basis, and adj
m%inistered by representatives OF the
participating governments and organ
lied bodies interested in the promo
ton of closer inter-Dominion re-
lationS.
Holidays in the DOmini0ns
One of Mr.. Gibson's ideas is that a
Travel Trust of this description would