Evening star., 1943-07-09
Mine Leaders Believe
Politics Is Sailing
Re entry Into AFL
Earlier Story on Page ALL

Earlier Story ON Page ALL
BY tho Associated Press.
Les ders of the United Mine Work
ers are reported to be convinced
that political interference Is stalling
their application TO rejoin the Amer
jcan Federation OF Labor, though
Daniel j. Tobin, member OF the AFL
committee to con&ider the applica-
ton, has denied any political ma
neuyering" is involved.
John l.. Lewis. UNIV chief, is
maintaining silence, but there were
murmurs among his friends yester-
day about political conniving"'. and
political company unions"
Prominent federation officers say
Mr.. Lewis return cannot be stopped.
However, the distinct possibility has
arisen that Mr.. Lewis may not make
a fight to get in, but instead may
withdraw his application rather
than submit to what he might con-
slider humiliating delay or terms.
Tobin Pledges Unity Fight.
Mr.. Tobin, president of the Team.
sters Union, writing In the current
issue of his unions ofIicial organ,
the International Teamster, said:
las one OF the members appointed
by the executive council Of the
American Federation Of Labor to
negotiate a return OF the United
Mine Workers to the federation. /
am strongly in favor of. unifying
the labor movement, and TO that
end / will do all that I can to bring
the miners back into the fedora
ton"
However, Mr.. Tobin's editor In
another article, virtually named the
terms of resdmittance-dism
ment of the UMWs District so
which includes chemical industry
and other workers who are not
miners. And, the miners say, in the
two months since his appointment
as chairman of the committee Mr..
Tobin has made no move to begin
negotiations with the miners.
Hedge In Statement.
The next AFL Executive Council
meeting at which Mr.. Tobin is to
report, is only a month away. His
declaration that he would do all
possible to readmit the miners was
followed by this statement:
1T must be understood. however,
that there are laws and rules in the
AFL that protect other unions, and
these laws cannot be set aside even
il the Executive Council desired to
do So Only the convention OF the
AFL can change the constitution OF
that organization.
In boldface. centered on the same
page, Mr.. Tobin's journal reprinted
an article from the Progressive
Miner, newspaper Of the Progress
sive Mine Workers of America. an
AFL affiliate whose membership Is
principally in Illinois
Captioned. Fight Lewis Return. "
the reprint said in part: For the
AFL Executive Council) to rechar-
ter the United Mine Workers while
the Progressive Miners still held its
charter would be a violation of the
AFL constitution as well as Sc
rious breach OF faith and principle. "
Hutcheson Active In COP.
Mr.. Tobin, q New Dealer, was
chairman OF the labor division OF
the Democratic National Commit
tee in the Roosevelt campaigns
William L. Hutcheson, carpenters
president. who sponsored Mr.. Lewis
application last May. is active in the
Republican party. He was not ap-
pointed to the committee to neeo-
tlate Mr.. Lewis return.
Mr.. Tobin. apparently snticipat-
ing political issue, said in his
article. ANY one who insinuates
that there is any political maneuv-
ering on either side of this question
doesn't understand the case
If political ofnceholders interfered
in any way in the cementing Of the
labor movement. l know that the
men of labor would rebuke that DO
lticsl party or political officeholder. -
In an article Immediately follow
ing Mr.. Tobin's. Editor Lester M
Hunt wrote under the title, Lewis
Can't Defeat Roosevelt. He tried it
twice but Tobin stopped him" Mr.
Hunt said newspaper stories fore
cast a move by Mr.. Lewis and Mr.
Hutcheson to swing the AFL against
Mr.. Roosevelt, and scoffed at the
idea.