Evening star., 1952-11-10

age of 10 to go to work as his
fathers helper in Scottish mine
for 80 cents a day.
In 1902 when he was 16, the
Murray family, father, mother
and nine brothers and sisters,
came to the United States. Their
boat reached New York on Christ
mas morning-the Murrays pas
sengers in steerage. Late the
following night the clan arrived
at Irwin, Pa, coal mining town.
They walked six miles through a
bitter snowstorm to the home of
relatives.
For the Murrays life in Penn
sylvania outwardly was not much
different from life in Scotland.
Phil and his father worked in the
mines during the day. At night
they studied together at home.
This was the land of opportunity
The son spent $50 on a corre-
spondence course in mathemat tics
and completed it in six months in
stead of the regular 18.
Fired After Fist Fight
One day as he came out of the
pit, young Murray stopped at the
weighman's Office to complain that
he was losing pay through having
his coal shortweighted. Bitter
words led to a fistfight. The next
day he found he had been fired
for engaging in q brawl on COM
pany property. What surprised
him most. he related later. was
that 600 miners in the town laid
down their tools and walked out
to join him in protest of the way
the coal was being weighed.
A strike meeting was held and
Phil's father, William Francis
Murray. who had Joined in the
walkout. helped elect his son
president of the UNIV.
Hunger broke the strike after
four weeks. Murray, surrounded
by deputy sheriffs, was hustled to
q train for Pittsburgh and warned
that it would be unhealthy for him
ever to return.
1--we never had a doubt in my
mind since then of what I wanted
to do with my life" Mr.. Murray
commented, adding that he after
ward had opportunities to take
more remunerative jobs with in
dustry.
"y, He then climbed steadily up
ward In the Mine Workers organ
iZatior1. In 1912 he was elected
to the unions International Exec
utive Board. A short time before
he had refused a $5.000-a-year
job as assistant manager Of the
mine for which he was then work
ing. His pay as a miner at the
time was about $1,000 a year. He
was elected vice president of the
UNIV in 1920, the same year that
Mr.. Lewis took over as president,
and held the post at the time of
the Lewis break in 1912.
Built Up Reputation.
Although overshadowed by the
personality and fame of Mr.. Lewis,
as second in command of the
miners, Mr.. Murray in the ensuing
years quietly built up a reputation
as a good negotiator and union
organizer.
It was, however, after the for
nation of the CIO-then called
the Committee for Industrial Or
ganization-in 1885 that Mr.. Muir
rays talent for organization and
leadership really became evident.
Mr.. Lewis and a handful Of other
AFL leaders set up the committee
to organize the mass production
industries on a plant or company
wide basis. Mr.. Murray pitched
in with the new movement which
a couple years later led to their
expulsion from the AFL.
Mr.. Lewis put him in charge of
the gigantic task of organizing the
steel industry, a union citadel
which had repulsed the efforts of
many other union leaders. Mr..
Murray formally was named
chairman of the Steelworkers'
Committee and he set
up headquarters in his home town
of Pittsburgh.