Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1941-06-09
| Mrs. Roosevelt Calls
Plane Strike Work
|0f a Labor Faction
Believes One Group
Jeopordizes PubIie's
Good Opinion

Only a few minutes after the
President had ordered soldiers to
the strike bound North American
Aviation Corp. plant, Mrs. Roose-
welt reaffirmed today her belief in
labor's right to strike but pointed
out that the West Coast strike was
called not by labor as a whole but
by a faction.
IT think it's too bad" she COM
mented at her press conference, ito
see one group jeopardlzing the ami
cable feeling of the country toward
the whole dabor)."
While she said she always
"grieved" when anything of this
kind was needed, she believed that
sending soldiers to the plant was
something that had to be done
in this instance. She added that
she understood the soldiers were
sent in only to see that there was
no disturbance.
longtime advocate of labors
rights and member of the c. I. o.
herself through her membership in
the American Newspaper Guild,
Mrs. Roosevelt pointed out that the
c. I. o. leaders themselves had
tried to prevent the strike.
Queried About Communists.
She also commended that labor was
probably handling the strike in the
only way it could and that it would
work itself out"
Asked if she suspected Commu-
mist domination in the West Coast
strike, she replied with smile that
she imagined Philip Murray, C. I.
o. president, would know about it.
While she was not specific about
any pending legislation, she said
she hoped no strike legislation
would be necessary.
She indicated that she believed
that If Communists were to be
cleaned out of labor organizations
and also If steep initiation fees were
to be reduced, the moves would
have to be made within the labor
groups themselves. When it was
pointed out that she was a member
OF the c. I. o., she said she would
try to contribute within her own
group what she could do for good
leadership.
Mrs. Roosevelt also reiterated her
belief that communities should set
up groups of disinterested citizens
to get at the facts behind strikes.
Asked if she believed major strikes
could be settled by these fact-find-
ing citizen groups, she replied that
she didn't know but it was at least
worth community study.
Favors Lower Draft Ages.
Asked to comment on the farmers
request for a 1-cent increase in
the price of milk, Mrs. Roosevelt
responded that the farmers were
probably entitled to their increase
but suggested that 1t would be
worth while to find out how much
money was taken in between the
farmers and the ultimate consumer
She said she considered the drought
a iustifiable reason for requesting
the increase. e.
Mrs. Roosevelt also came out today
in favor of lowering the top limit
of the selective service age. She
gave as reasons the fact that a
considerably lower age would
lessen the chance of selectees hav-
ing real responsibilities when they
were called to service and would
also make trained man more
valuable over longer period Of
years.
Commenting on the proposal to
save cheese for Britain" she said
that Secretary of Agriculture Wick
ard was afraid the usual cheese
surplus would be cut down by the
drought. On the other hand, she
said. the Wisconsin farmers were
afraid they would lose the public
which they had sold on domestic
cheese. She said she believed Sec
rotary Wickard should emphasize
that cheese should be conserved only
because of the drought.