The Wilmington morning star., 1945-07-05
BY WEsTBROoK PEGLER

Copyright. 1915, BY King Features Syndicate.)
NEW YORK,-The very hour that the Fed
eral Industrial Relations bill was introduced
in the Senate, bill to rescue American labor
and the rest of the nation from the power of
union BOSSES these same bosses set up
howl of protest They want to be heard and
consulted" and reasonable, but mistaken,
liberals instinctively agree that they should be.
But why should they be heard?
The country has been hearing from them
and taking orders and abuse from them for
and speak for labor.
Recently, however, John L. Lewis, president
of the United Mine Workers. who led the
! CLIO during its most violent days, admitted
| that there is no labor movement in the United
States, and he is right.
The men who were given every opportunity
to create a labor movement and give it con-
scientious leadership have failed wretchedly
and not always through incompetence but
more often through ambition for personal pow
er and prestige, through political schening,
dishonesty and jealousy. Lewis himself, is a
historic failure and is largely responsible for
many present dangers in the land.
There are few men in the Union movement
who might rise to the chance for patriotic
service IN clearing up the sordid mess that
others nave made of labors affairs if
they could clean their own minds of old SUI
perstltlons OF the unioneering trade and their
W cabularies of outworn terms This, however
requires degree of intellectual honesty and
courage that few of them have shown today
Therefore, labor requires something on the
order of public receivership under new laws
ana the case is too urgent to permit elaborate
observance of the old political forms such as
self-serving appearances of these bosses be-
fore congressional committees, we all know
in advance what they would say
The fright to strike'' is one of the most
precious and most dangerous bromides in the
present controversy. Good leadership would
exert itself to avoid strikes except as a last
resort
Yet these people would maintain the right
OF an arrogant and whimsical boss such as
Dave Beck, of the Transfers union and die
tator OF the Northwest, to order his subjects
oft the job and paralyze an entire section of
the country. They would insist on their right
not labor's right, to silence the press of the
whole state of Florida and tie up the post
war housing and rehabilitation program, be-
cause they who 60 there only to drink and
gamble i'll season. are offended by a consti-
tutional amendment, adopted by popular vote.
permit no interference with the power Of a,
racketeer to "strike'' a plant in which it
materials and close it down as a means of
forcing unwilling workers in the plant to Join
the racketeer's union and pay him tribute
The term "strike" has lost its original honest
meaning during years OF abuse and shyster-
esque pleading by clever but dishonest minds,
some OF them on the United States Supreme
Court. The 'strike'' has now become revolu.
tlonary device which can be used and soon
will be used Unless preventive laws are adopt
ed, not to advance any aim of the workers
themselves but to provoke violence through
anxiety, want, hunger, cold and resentment
The jurisdictional "strike'' which ties up
the reconversion of automobile factories where
thousands OF idle workers could be put back
on the payrolls, is purely wrangle between
rival groups OF union bosses, each greedy for
power and money. Nobody possibly can gain
except the bosses who ultimately win the con-
test and the situation is only another routine
example Of the incompetence of those who
tricked and connived their way to command
ing positions over labor, industry and the
very nation, ITSELF
1t is time to examine the quality Of this
leadership and observe what it is made Of.
1t consists largely of personal publicity trick
cry and the patronage Of the Roosevelt govern
ment which made proteges of these people and
protected their outrageous powers in return
for campaign contributions and organized sup
port.
The national maritime union is reaching for
Cortland of our merchant ships, but by it's
rules the vast majority of the American mer-
chant seamen ineligible for union office,
because few of them have had the required
two years at sea, meanwhile, ashore where he
has spent the war to date, barring one va
cation cruise, Joe Curran the president, con-
stantly lauds himself in the Union publication
supported by the members but devoted to his
personal propa ganda. A recent issue contain
ed six photographs of Curran. This was just
average. What chance has sailor at sea in
opposition to such propaganda and entrenched
power.
Joseph Padway, general counsel, of the A.
F. of L., for years has posed "spokes
man" for labor actually he is just lawyer
company of vicious union racketeers.
l have on my desk Christmas card bearing
e. pretty engraving of the White House, no
less and the inscription, ''Mr and Mrs. Joseph
A. Padway. extend the seasons greetings"
submit that defaulting leadership has
been heard enough and that congress had
better listen now to its manhood and civic
| conscience.
William L. Chenery. the publisher of Col
lier's, writes that I struck a low blow in
commenting on his appearance on the same
platform with William Gailmor, the renegade
rabbi, thief and party-l'ne propaganda OF the
radio. agree with him.
Mr. Chepery merely accepted an invitation
to describe to New York group the horrors
he had seen in the German torture camps in