The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1946-05-17
Gondressiona
0ideIiqhfs
aM A
Conqressmsu VIM. NJ CoImer

Notwithstanding the fact that
the White House was enabled,
through some arguments or prom
ises not generally known, to get
John l.. Lewis, the arrogant and
would-be dictator of labor, to call
a two weeks truce, the fact re-
mains that the country is still tied
up in q serious threat to the eco
nomic life of the country.
The people at home fail TO un.
derstand this. II is also difficult
for many OF us here to under
stand. But the cold fact remains
that such a strike is possible be-
cause the administration and la
Dor have been strong enough in
the Senate to prevent the passage
Of any legislation there. Although,
as we have pointed out many
times in these columns, it is gen
orally known that during the past
five years the House has passed
four bills which had for their
purpose the prevention of such ca
tastrophes. as this in the field of
management and labor, they have
all been pigeon-holed in the Sen
ate with the exception of the So
called Petrillo Bill, which dealt
only with musicians.
On Thursday Of last week we
again voiced our protest OF the
floor of the House in the follow
ing language:
'Mr. Speaker, the Administra-
.tion and the Congress of the Unit
ed States have sponsored and en-
acted into law many bills in the
past two years aimed at the pur-
pose of an orderly re%conversion of
our wartime economy to a peace
time basis. We have passed laws
and appropriated billions of dol
lars to aid and assist our return
ing veterans to insure their spec.
DIV rehabilitation from that of
warriors who saved tn Republic
to useful citizens in times of
But we now find that entire
program thwarted by a wave of
strikes, which has eliminated in
the most harmful of all-the coal
II the purpose of John
Lewis is to completely ~paralyze
our reconversion program he
could not have chosen a better
weapon at this time. For after
all, no automobiles, washing MAJ
chimes, radios, farm and industrial
machinery and tools car be pro-
duced without steel. As | pointed
out when we were trying to do
something about the last coal
the mining of coal is the
basis of our whole economy. II
takes tons of coal to manufacture
so many tons of coke; it takee q
given quantity of coke to manu-
facture a given quantity of steel.
Steel is essential to our entire
system of living, including the
operation of our transportation
system, for heating, lighting and
even for cooking.
$50 it is apparent, Mr. Speaker,
that by one full swoop this arro-
CANT, uncompromising man threat
ems to stvmie our whole recon-
version program.
BE it said to the credit OF the
House, we have on several oc-
casions passed Legislation which
would attempt to do something
about this situation. But always
our efforts have been pigeon-holed
in the other body.
MIR. Speaker, if it is the pur-
pose OF the Congress and the Adj
ministration to follow the usual
course of waiting to the last mo-
ment, then have the Federal Gov
ernment seize the mines, operate
them for a short time, meet Mr..
Lewis demands, and then turn
the mines back to the operators,
as one who is seriously Interested
in our reconversion program and
as n who has given so much
thought and effort to the whole
matter, ] would respectfully sug-
gest that such action be taken
now before the situation becomes
hopeless and thereby save six
months to a years progress in our
re%eonversion program. While /
do not approve OF such a proce-
dure. ii that is to be the strategy,
it ought to be done now