The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1944-01-18
By WEsTBROOK PEGLER-

BY WESTBROOK PEGLER- :.
NEW YORK.-My old sparring partner, Jo-
seph Curran, the vicarious commando, was
done in by the ordeal of having a child. also
vicariously and could not attend recent
meeting of the National Maritime Union OF
the communist front. l congratulate com.
rade Curran on the happy event and hope
the little boy will have no more contact with
war in his generation than his pappy who
got Presidential deferment to carry him
past his 18th birthday on the ground Of in
dispensabilty.
The meeting was very interesting as my
colleague Mrs. Roosevelt would say, although
it was decided henceforth to eliminate GER
tain intimaces from the minutes lest they
fall into alien hands, such as these, and be
disclosed to the public Such matters as the
use Of loaded dice by merchant sailors in
crap games with soldiers going overseas and
the sale of food from the galleys to the troops
at high prices are thought to be embarrass-
ing; although l must say that if the present
generation of soldiers are worthy sons of
their fathers they will be able to take care
of themselves in crap games in any COM
pany and might even pick up some Of those
fat wages of which the maritime union boasts
in private but denies in public.
The discussion this time in contrast to
a press handout released in September by
Marshall Dmmock, director of the recruiting
and manning division of the war shipping
administration in which he gave the union
share OF the credit for fine record in
the manning of the cargo vessels. Mr.. Dim.
mock, who has cordial relations with the un-
ion, did not fail to shower himself with COM
pliments, either, remarking, THE New York
office Of the recruiting and manning division
COT which, as l said he is directory has done
a remarkably good job in drawing men back
to the sea-"
The discrepancy between Mr.. Dimmock's
statement and the realities revealed in
the debate in the meeting over some changes
in the shipping rules to compel union mer-
chant sailors to ship in their turns and not
lie on the beach The union had been seri-
ously embarrassed because, Notwithstanding
it's boastful slogan I'VE keep 'em sailing"
the sad figures, as one Of the union officials
called them, showed that our men have not
been shipping at ALL They showed that with
plenty of men listed as available on the union
records it had been necessary to call Mr
Dinmock's office for sailors to take the ships
out
To be quite fair, as I always strive to be,
the union officials safe ashore take very
coura geous attitude and would like to man
bSSoSSN '-S1 $500 W.
control the American merchant navy. Many
of their subjects feel otherwise, however, such
as enc who had been on eight ships in seven
months, all in port, and explained to his
messnnate on one vessel that by this system
he snoraged to draw the pay OF sailor
without going to sea. The union turned him
over to his draft board and he was CLASH
fled la Other men would accept shipping
slips in the union hall, change their minds
and 60 back to the pinochle game. Others
would go to ships knowing they were going
into drydock, stay aboard until sailing time
and then step Off 1t seemed that some Of
the brothers were making a racket Of dry
dock seafaring, and the officials were de.
termined to put through a rule strictly limit
ing time ashore between voyages and com.
polling the seafaring brothers, not the Off
Gals, to register and account for Themselves
and accept jobs involving actual duty at sea,
in rotation. In some cases it was found that
the sailors had been i'll ashore but others,
unfortunately constituted draft dodglng-a
| sensitive topic to the maritime union-and
problem whose very existence is denied ex-
cept in the privacy of its family discussions
where the bold SALTS Of the microphone give
their subjects hell
1t seems that the new young sailors OF
the merchant service are a worry to the
union as they learn quickly and are not all
enthusiastic over unionism with Its private
court-martials and party discipline. Ihelr pay
and conditions being fixed by the government
some of them can't see what the union could
do for them.
Please regard all this as confidential as
comrade Curran would be terribly upset if
anyone should amend his slogan Keep 'em
sailing to read Keep EN- sailing until sail
ing time
Polish statesmen seem to have in mind the
historically retrospective picture of the de-
funct Polish Empire, embracing the Baltic
countries, the Ukraine and even the great
Duchy of Moscow. It is this complex that
is responsible for the death Of modern Poland.
DIR. Tewik Rustu Aras. former Turkish for
eign minister.