The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1941-06-26

unions with which they are affiliated
the Communists who have been run
ming them, hal a "phony look" In
particular the name of Mr.. Philip Muir
ray, head of the CLIO and a member
of the Presidents Mediation Board,
was mentioned.
#*#
At the time Mr.. Roosevelt, using the
army, took over the North American
Aviation plant Mr.. Murray, pafioti-
cally beating his breast, announced
that the Communists must go and
strongly supported Mr.. Richard Fran
kensteen, of the CIO Automobile
Workers Union, who had attacked his
own Communist subordinates. 1t all
seemed very noble indeed Praise from
what Mr.. Pegler calls the BLEEDING
heart type" of journalism was heaped
upon these broad-minded leaders and
q great campaign to cleanse organized
labor of the Communistic faint was
proclaimed The suggestion here made
that, in view of certain known facts
these protestations were not to be
taken too seriously brought the Gus
tomary number Of denunciatory letters
from the professional champions Of
the downtrodden and oppressed midi
sating the suggestion as inspired by
malice, spleen and politics.
But within four days Mr. Murray
himself furnished evidence of the es-
sential phoniness of this attitude while
his friend, Mr.. Frankensteen put him
self in position Of outright hostility
to the Government for which he SO
recently had professed devotion. AS a
result, those ardent and bellicose sup
porters who had insisted upon the
Murray-Frankensteen nobility found
themselves in an exceedingly uncom-
Portable position, forced to backtrack
from a stand prematurely taken and
unjustified by the facts. The cause of
their suffering was the extraordinary
letter which, with no warning and no
effort to harmonic it with his pre-
vious utterances, Mr.. Murrey sent out
to his whole organization.
With an established Communist
reputation, months ago Mr.. Murray
called upon all patriotic men to wage
relentless war on Communists, Nazis
and Fascists until they had been
"driven from our shores" This, cou-
pied with more recent statements,
made his letter somewhat sensational,
because, as some of his distressed
friends now write, it seemed from it
that he not only did not want to drive
the Communists from our shores but
he did not even want to drive them
out of the CIO. Instead, he spoke dis
paragingly of "Red batting; insisted
that he had no idea of lending himself
to any form of house cleaning and as
serted that notions of the sort came
from those who wanted to "divide la
boris ranks" He deplored talk about
purges, splits and cleanups and as
sured the CLIO that there would be no
change in fundamental policies"
So clearly was the effect Of the Muir
ray letter to entrench the Communists
whom he had formerly denounced that
the BLEEDING hearts" who had rushed
to pin medals on him last week now
rushed to yank them off his shrunken
chest. 1t was declared that he had
turned a complete somersault"; that
he had "let down" the Administration;
that his letter had created a most
painful impression; that he was a
"tight-rope walker, etc. And before
they got calm over Mr.. Murray's turn
about the statement was printed that
the noble Mr.. Frankensteen had forced
himself into the trial of Mr.. Harry
Bridges, the California radical accused
by the Government Of Communist
membership. Upon the witness stand it
was declared that Mr. Frankensteen
had vigorously defended Mr.. Bridges
and roundly berated the Government
for trying to deport him. To this must
be added the fact that Mr.. Murray is
openly sympathetic with Mr.. Bridges
and was raising money to defray the
expenses of Mr.. Bridges trial at the
very time he was being entertained at
lunch in the Senate restaurant by Vice
President Henry Wallace, who, if any
thing should happen to Mr.. Roosevelt
(Which God forbid), would become
President Of the United States.
###
These things are not presented as
arguments. They are merely a recital
of facts which, once grasped, the aver
age American will not relish in the
least. The lesson seems to be that this
talk about labor cleansing itself is I'M
adulterated bunk. Mr. Hillman, the
latest cleanser suggested, will do no
more than Mr. Hillman. If Communist
control is to be broken, it has got to
be by strong-willed Government
which itself will cut loose from labor
policies, stop coddling radical agita-
tors and professional labor leaders and
grapple firmly with what is very
real national danpnr instead of irwin o.