The Wilmington morning star., 1944-10-17

responsibility for the personal views Of Mr. Pesler
~. rs.ds,. ID. article. ssrvs th. soaa =,
making people think.
By WESTBROOK PEGLER
Copyright, 1914, King Features Syndicate, Inc
NEW YORK-As I may have told you, ]
am, by happy social and temperamental
qiirk, an admiring friend Of Jimmy Petrillo,
the president of the American Federation OF
Musicians, a racket licensed as labor union,
VINO has told the War Labor Board where to
go and supplied a road-map for it's guidance
and given President Roosevelt top priority for
the same trip. We meet now and again in the
lobby or the mems bar of the Waldorf-Astoria
where Petrillo maintains pied-a-terre and
on recent night, good fortune threw us to-
gether for a pleasant evening on the Century
devoted to that which, in the language of Mrs
Roosevelt, is called interesting discussion and
in our quaint, underworld patois, kicking the
gong around.
That night, as often before, I congra calated
my friend on his excessive conduct as union
racketeer and again urged him to take every
advantage of the law as given him by Presi-
dent Roosevelt to the end that, in time his
patron would be publicly embarrassed and the
people so outraged that Congress would be
forced to revise the laws affecting unions It
is gratifying to me to read that Jimmy has
done this in refusing a personal request from
Mr.. Roosevelt to yield fraction of the pow
ers so recklessly conferred on him by the
new deal. I feel that, by this oblique ap-
proach, have achieved a more startling eff
feet than might have resulted from a large
measure of argument, citation and emotion
OF course, credit must be given to old Joe
Padway, the hoodluna's mouthpiece, who has
been serving Jimmy's racket as counsel these
last two years or SO, for Padway knows the
law better than any professional unioneer with
the possible exception of John L. Lewis. But
think brother Joe would have assured Jimmy
that his course was just and consistent with
the interests of Labor with upper case L
whereas I have always taken the more truth
full position that Petrillo's conduct was so
atrocious and arrogant that, in time, he might,
unwittingly, become the great reformer Of his
time. -
Brother Padway is general counsel for the
American Federation of Labor and for Uncle
Dan Tobin's teamsters and the movie and
theatrical employees union, or racket, who's
late, revered, leaders, Bioff and Browne, al
last reports were rusticating in a pleasant
federal JAIL awaiting release under that auto
matte amnesty which the new deal extends
to murderers and thieves Of the correct po-
litical faith. Having received, by his own a
count 81, 1000 from George Scalise, of the Ca,
pone mob, ostensibly for writing a constitu-
ton for the building service union, Padway
solemnly certified to the Encouragement that
Scalise, like BioH, an entrepreneur in prosti-
tuition, was a person of feckless character
few months before Scalise was convicted of
robbing his subjects of vast amounts. Brother
Will Green, the president OF the American
Federation of Labor endorsed this opinion and
Green, Padway and Uncle Dan Tobn often
sat in the councils Of the A. F. Of L. with
brother Browne who was an honored member
of its executive body until he went to Jail.
Moreover, a little over year ago, by Mr..
Rooseveit's invitation, brothers Tobin and Pad
way flew to Britain on a special mission to
the great body of British labor SO you will
observe that, altogether, brother Pad~hy
ranks high among the professional political
defenders of labor's gains, whereas my own
status is that of a labor-hating, red-baiting
stooge of the forces of opposition.
Brother Pathways income from the practice
of laborism is something too enormous for
the comprehension of those who pay the dues,
from the mass of which. in turn, his fees
are paid. But it cannot be said that he does
not know his stuff, besides which his political
position at court is not to be ignored in COM
putting his value as counsel to union racke-
teer.
So here, strangely you find Pegler and
brother Padway giving the same advice and
counsel to Jimmy Petrino, though never the
twain have met and find Jimmy standing
firm in his refusal to rescind or even moder-
ate his decision to levy a tax on every single
unit of popular commodity, namely phono-
graph and juke recordings. The money does
not pass into the hands Of needy musicians.
It remains in the treasury with no litigation
that so much as a nickel of it shall relieve
the want of an INDECENT Saturday night saxo-
phonist. 1t is, moreover, a tax on the gen.
eral public, not the manufacturers OF record
ings, who pass the cost along to the custom
ers and the precedent invites the mine work
ers, the garment and clothing workers and
all other unions to collect taxes on all arti-
cles for consumption or use without the slight
est pretense that the money will be dlstrib-
uted to needy members in times OF unem-
ployment or any explanation or accounting
whatever Already, Jimmys treasury con-
tains four million dollars and he anticipates
hundred million more.
Advice is so often disregarded that I nat
urally admire the wisdom of Mr.. Petrlllo in
accepting mine. Once, when he was cited to
face committee of the Senate he asked me
what he ought to do and I told him to tell
them to 90 to hell because he was only exer-
cising privileges which had been placed in
his hands by the senators, themselves. was
proud to read, few days later, that he had,
in every practical effect, followed my counsel
and had got away with it. That incident ana
the current correspondence with MIR. Roose-
welt in which, again Jimmy compliments my
firm sagacity, is even more gratifying.
l trust that he will stand pat and that LABOR
will see in this case another instance OF us