The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1941-10-23
Rv Staff Writer)

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Following the invasion of nus
STA by Germany it was believed
here that strikes in defense IN
dustries, many Of which were IN
spired by Communist groups,
would come to a quick end. Inc
fall-off in strikes Immediately fol-
lowing the invasion bore out that
belief-but recently new strikes
have flared up in so many places
that they are imperiling defense
production perhaps more than at
any time since our emergency
program began.
Government officials h er e,
whose job it is to keep an accu-
rate record of the pulse OF pubic
opinion, are plainly worried over
the reaction to these strikes which
have been headlined in the daily
newspapers and on the radio as
stopping defense production.
These include such strikes as the
one in the Spicer plant at. Tole-
do, Ohio, which makes 70 per
cent of transmissions for army
tanks; the month-long strike at
the Calico Chemical Co., in New
Jersey, which would have halted
operations in the entire rubber
industry if the men hadn't finally
agreed to 60 back to work pend
ing a settlement; and the Robins
Dry Dock strike which stopped
work on II ships urgently needed
by the navy.
Officials in the Office of Pro-
duction Management, who are re-
sponsible for keeping the defense
program going at top speed, fear
that each strike of this kind weak
ems public morale.
There are many in Washington,
including members of the Presi-
dents cabinet, who favor an i'm
mediate declaration of war against
Germany as the only sure way to
get our defense program into high
gear. If we were actually at war
the government would undoubt-
edly take action to prevent
strikes, but it is difficult for most
people to understand why such
action cannot be taken without
being in a state of war. It is clear
that many labor groups are TAX
ing the attitude that they will
"get while the getting is good"
which means they will probably
continue to impede defense pro-
duction if necessary, to serve their
own ends, until the government
puts a stop to it. But when the
public has clearly expressed its
approval of stopping all strikes
by law if necessary, it is hard to
understand why the President
and congress hold back so against
taking such action.
The President has urged labor
groups to use all of the media
ton machinery Of the government
before resorting to strikes and
even William Green, A. F. of L.
president, has called upon every
member of the federation to ''stay
on the job and keep defense pro-
duction going at full blast until
the enemies of America are sound
ly defeated" But these pleas for
voluntary cooperation seem to
fall on deaf ears.
Even the Daily Worker, Com
munist newspaper which had
heretofore favored strikes backed
by Communists, has urged labor
to stay on the job. In an editorial
that newspaper said: ''Anything
that interferes with production of
needed war supplies can only
help Hitler and weaken the de-
Tense of the United States
Many congressman feel that
freezing of wages, coupled with
freezing of prices, is the logical
answer to the situation, but most
of them are unwilling to take the
lead in pushing such measures.
More and more in informed quar-
tiers here we hear the view that
a declaration of war will be
sought, rather than remedial leg
islation, as the only satisfactory
method of getting immediate ac-
ton to remove the monkey
wrenches from our defense ma
chinery.
Congress continues to show no
hesitation in voting unlimited ap-
preparations for defense produc-
ton, its pussyfoot attitude being
confined to legislation which
would antagonize groups of vot
ers, such as the large labor vote.
The house passed the second
lease-lend bill, amounting to
about $6,000,000, by an over
whelming vote of 1913 to g..
This, incidentally, is the first
major bill passed by the house
since the beginning of the emer-
gency, in which the vote has brok-
en- through party lines. For the
first time, the Republicans lined