The Wilmington morning star., 1945-09-27

with them as much as many Of his read.
ers. His articles serve the good purpose
Of making people Think
By WESTBROOK PEGLER
(Copyright, 1915, BY King Features Syndicate.)
NEW YORK, Sept 26 - This will be another
little lesson on the power Of few hundred
boss unioneers over all those Americans -
some say sixty millions of us - who work for
our living If you are willing to let some COON
run you off your job with tire iron don't
bother to study up on your problem. But when
it happens to you or that young man with the
purple heart. don't be writing letters to the
editor asking can such things be?''
l recently told you about some manufacture
ers of electrical equipment who were barred
from New York City by conspiracy between
local 8 of the Electricians Union OF the A. F..
of L. and combination of local manufactur-
ers and contractors. This was no contest be-
tween underpaid and doWn-trodden workers
and bunch of soulless corporations. n e
workers in the out-of-town factories were union
men, too, many of them members OF the same
A, F. of L. electricians but in their home town
locals.
The out-of-toWn manufa cturerS sued In the
Federal court for an injunction back in 1885.
John Kirkland Clark, a special master, held
long hearings and decided in favor OF the
plaintiffs. The Supreme Court recently upheld
him. However, the Supreme Court did not OBJ
ject to the boycott, as SUCH The court con-
demned it only because local did not act by
itself or in combination with other unions. That
would have been legal under Roosevelt justice,
regardless of the cost to the public in higher
building prices, higher rents for new apart
ments and higher taxes to pay for public build
ings containing such electrical equipment Any
mob of racketeers holding charter from the
A. F. of L. or the CIO may exclude from New
York goods manufa ctured by the labor of war
veterans living in say, Ohio because the Su.
preme Court has held that if unions act strict
ly in their own interest they may collect i'm
port taxes at state and municipal borders
and even resort to downright highway robbery
to collect the money.
These facts should be taught in the schools
and if anyone should deny them, you get any
lawyer to show you Frankfurter's decision in
the carpenters case and Byrnes' decision in
the teamsters' case.
The objection to boycotts and restraints Of
trade arises only when industry or capital
enters the scenario Then the boycott is ne
farious and illegal.
The out-of-town plaintiffs are much cheered
and are planning to proceed with an old dam
age suit for $1,300,0 600 against local 3. Spread
among the 10000 members, most of whom
have hardly any voice in running the local.
over three years. it would be painless.
These manufacturers couldn't recognize local
as the bargaining agent for their people be-
cause local 3 had no jurisdiction in their towns.
And as Mr. Clark found, local 3, in conlbina-
ton with the local manufacturers and con-
tractors, could charge the New York public
whatever they liked This is fine example
of the perfection of that ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
combination that you have been hearing so
49, H. D. 60 1:rx- ~
union racket. Don't think am trying to make
the local manufacturers and contractors look
virtuous either. They got fat too, keeping
competition out and passing on the cost to
the public.
Mr.. Clark pointed out something that has not
occurred to many of US. He recalled that in
the old Articles of Confederation the Ameri-
can colonies could impose import taxes against
one another and that one Of the great objec
tives of our Constitution was to forbid such
restraints on free commerce between h e
states. That is still in our Constitution but
the Roosevelt Supreme Court reiiggered the
Constitution py underhand processes so that
although the States can't impose such re-
straints, unions can.
We ought to teach that in the schools too
Mr.. Clark going further, pointed out that
even the legislature Of the state Of New York
could not enact statute imposing such re-
strictions' as this and other unions have i'm
posed and he was dead right
/ want to emphasize that the unions, which
are the sole possessors Of this right may con-
sist OF nothing but little groups Of the dirtiest
iail-birds in the country. The Scalise mob was
one such racket. the Browne-Bioff mob was
another and for other examples of low charac-
ter and criminal practise l refer you to the
careers of Joe Fay, vicious thief and thug
of the Operating Engineers Union, and James
Bove of the common laborers.
These are some of the freedoms bequeathed
to the American people by that late good neigh
bor Mr.. Roosevelt, under the title Of '1abor's
gains,'' in appreciation Of the white crosses
row on row, and the purple hearts the
lapels of men whose rights are subject to YER
boten by bands Of snarling racketeers by
dictum OF the Roosevelt Supreme Court