The Wilmington morning star., 1947-11-29
AS Pegler Sees It
By WESTBROO KPEGLER
Copyright, 1947, ing Features Syndicate,

OoPS AASHS, Ac1'' I'D = Ss~S~~OS NJ -AN~A0sss''
NEW YORK-This is the continuation OF
the story about Otto H. Frobe, the secre-
tary- treasurer of Local 100 of the Team
sters' Union, of Cincinnati. Frobe says he
speaks for 1000 drivers whose family re-
sponsibilities embrace 10000 persons, The
pay of 5000 of them ranges between 81
cents and 81 an hour. Union officials are
paid well to draw good contracts for the
members. Probes excuse for inadequacy
of the scale accepted by Local 100 in l945
was that the National Association of Manu-
facturers Scrapped price controls and drove
up the cost of living. The truth is that
| President Truman scrapped price controls
just before election last year and the elect
| ed Congress, representing the people of the
United States and not the NJ M, repealed
the O.P.A.
| Frobe does not contemplate in his article
the possibility that incompetent bargaining
exposed these 10000 people to poverty, and
that the bargaining agent therefore should
be fired like anyone else who has failed
and caused CHASTITY mess. But unions are
political machines, and the rank and file
can fire an official only by revolution.
Yesterdays instalment closed on a
mortuary note but not necessarily a sad
one. told of the death in October of Brocky
Farrell greedy old gambler, rounder and
parasite on labor. He was fifth vice-presi-
dent of the national union and an old
courtier and dependent of Dan Tobin, the
king president
Would you take the word of Mr.. Frobe?
Cincinnati court of common pleas by Otto
FrObe and other members of Local 1O0
In April, 1912, petition was filed in the
charging that Farrell, as trustee or die
tator, of Local 100 and ten other unions
for "a years, had failed to account for an
amount between SIS and $40 million Later,
appearing in court, Probes attorney, ]. w.
Brown, said he believed the amount which
had come under Farrell's control might be
between $50 and $40 million.
Farrell had been named trustee by Dan
SO long ago that many of the original mem
bers were dead, and the plaintiffs didn't
know exactly when it began. They thought
It started in 1913, five years off the true
date.
Most of the members in 1912 had never
known the privilege of voting for an eIec-
tive officer or speaking out in meeting for
or against wage scale or an assessment
Under the union constitution, a writ re-
semblng some of Hitler's whenever Tobin
believes that any local is mot being con-
Quoted for the benefit of the trade, he may
troll of all it's affairs, money and property
ana remove all the elected local officers
The trustee may name his own mob and
take any action he deems necessary
Sef,government through the ballot box
ana elected local officers can not be re-
Tobin and Tobin approves In some biz
unions 1t IS common practice for the boss
| TO declare an emergency and appoint a
trustee, or protector" as Hitler called
them, whenever a local has amassed
tempting treasury or some local official
Irelgning despot out of the presidency. It
is way of killing off rivals.
looln has the right to seize local and
ITS treasury and paralyze a revolt against
shocking conduct and conditions in his own
administration Tobin has been national
boss for Al years. Farrell grabbed not only
Local 100 but in fast sweep of aggres-
sion, initiated years later by Hitler and by
IStalln overran the other ten Cincinnati
locals. From that time on, no teamster was
Ia man in his union.
| What else did Frobe say against Farrell?
He said Farrell refused to let the men,
bers hold meetings, that he surrounded
|hlmself with thugs, raised the dues from
81 to So month and charged SIS initiation
to keep out applicants who might make
lowing. Frobe named Charles Farrell, the
old hoodlums son, co-defendant. Charlie
was and is an international organizer. The
constitutional pay for this job is $4,000, or
about $500 a week, by contrast with the
that Frobe could get for the men after the
dictator finally was withdrawn
Probes attorney told Judge Stanley
Struble that Brocky flashed $4,000 dia-
mond at the Seattle convention of the team
sters and said he was giving it to one of
the big-shots. There weren't many bigger
than himself.
Frobe said Brocky blacklisted all drivers
who tried to wrest back their locals from
him and when Farrell claimed credit for
raising wages from $12 to $40 week, the
obvious retort was that all prices rose and
the dollar dwindled in a quarter of centu-
ry Many non-union tean,sters were getting
more.
Farrell called on John F. English, the
national auditor from indianapolis, to saw
that he had audited accounts but the judge
dismissed him when he admitted that he
had never studied auditing
During his reign B1ocxy was iah1g lghroller