The Freedom Call (Freedom, Okla.), Vol. 20, No. 10, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 4, 1941 Page: 3 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Oklahoma Digital Newspaper Program and was provided to The Gateway to Oklahoma History by the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
I
Serious Labor Situation
Hinders Defense Effort
1U
-
A&
kw 141 10-10 osk10
lar :of
par -17 MEW
11110 'wore
rem A PAr Am
er er A mew Irr af ilW 4 ow Amw aent - c
Ilembers of Congress Also Demanding Facts
On Charges That Big Business Plays
Favorites in Defense Contracts
- 'NU Service 1343 H Street N-W
Washington D C
The explosion in the defense set-
up in Washington foreshadowed in
these columns two weeks ago is
about to take place At least as
this is written the fuse is being laid
if not lighted Senator O'Mahoney
of Wyoming and Representative
Coffey of 'Washington are both de
mending facts connected with
charges that big business is playing
favorites in the defense contracts
But an equally amazing story lies
behind the way laborshas been dealt
with in the defense program Part
of the acts have leaked out piece-
meal some are still very much un-
cles cover Put together they make
: an amazing revelation of what wag
: behind the President's delay in
taking action in the captive' mine
strike and also how bungling all
along the-line forced the edrninis-
tration-into the wait laborsitua-:
tion lhet: has arisen sikice the
- tense program started -
—
- '' The trouEle began when it was
decided to take th9 Settlement of
certain labor disputes out of the
United States Conciliation Service
and place it in the hands of the
Defense Advisory commission with
branches headed by William S
Knudsen'and Sidney Hillman Up
to that time from 1)5 to 98 per cent
of the labor disputes were settled by
the Conciliation service But the
remaining 2 to 5 per cent were slow-
ing down defense and it was decided
that Mr Knudsen's staff represent-
- ing industry and Mr Hillman's staff
representing labor could settle the
recalcitrants The theory was that
Knudsen's men would crack down
4 on industry and Hillman's on labor
But it didn't work that way Each
favored his own kind
Mediation Board Founded
So the National Defense Media-
tion board was founded All went
along smoothly for awhile although
more and more criticism was heard
that the board was exceedingly pro-
labor and achieved settlements by
the simple process of conceding to
labor's demands
Then the board made a mistake
It handed down one decision which
opened the way for the United Mine
Workers union shop demands which
smashed the board threatened the
administration's foreign policy and
created the worst labor crisis that
the country has faced in many a
long day
The decision I refer to was in the
case of the Bethlehem shipbuilding
plant in San Francisco The A F
of L union demanded a union shop
that is that any man working for
the company a certain period would
have to Join the union The board
granted this demand thus forcing
20 per cent of the plant's non-union
workers to join Ale A F of1 One
member of the board Cyrus Ching
representing industry held out
against the decision Ile foresaw
that it would create a precedent
When the decision was announced
It was stated that it should not be
taken as a precedent This pious
statement was like giving the baby
a piece of candy "if he won't ask
for another"
Once the A: F of L had received
this concession the CIO stepped up
and said: "I want one too" The
result was the famous Federal Ship-
building and Dry Dock company
case of Kersny N J this time a
shipyard on the East coast Against
the vote of the members of the Na-
tional Mediation board representing
Industry the union was given
"maintenance of - membership"
which is a diluted union shop The
company refused to accept the deci-
sion and the navy took over
Another Precedent
Here was another precedent
--fivhether the board meant it or not
No And it didn't take long for John
' 'Lewis to take advantage of it and
' put in his demand for the union shop
71r in the captive coal mines If he
had planned ft that way he could
not have been provided a better
opportunity to vent his ancient
grievance against the President and
1 set himself right in the middle of
a national issue
If the case of the Bethlehem Ship-
building workers was good Lewis'
was far better CIO has a 95 per
cent membership in the captive coal
mines But not the kind of a 95 per
cent that most people think it Not
per cent non-union workers scat
- - By BALTKIIAGE
National Farm and Home Hour Commentator
proposals
President on the Spot
And the President was on the
spot Congress was insisting or
strike legislation Speaker Sam
Rayburn had promised it Others
were demanding that the troops be
sent into the captive mines at once
That wiser heads who knew the
temper of the miners believed
would mean a strike in all the mines
and the army would have to beat
Its bayonets into pickaxes
So the President paused wrote
a conciliatory letter to both parties
Meanwhile congress could stew but
the President was pretty sure' that
Its members would not take the
Initiative of alienating the labor vote
with primaries coming up in the
spring and elections next fall The
prospective candidates for re-
election wanted the onus to be
placed squarely on him
Whether the Conciliation service
could have handled the captive mine
strike as it is still handling the other
98 per cent of the cases of labor
disputes no one can say But it is
clear that it was mishandled by the
Mediation board and it is likewise
clear that if- critical congressmen
finally crack down on Mr Knudsen's
dollar-a-year men for showing fa-
vors to business they have plenty of
grounds for cracking down on Mr
Hillman's stalwarts who created the
pattern- of labor-partisanship that
came near severely injuring not
Only the defense program but the
administration's foreign policy as
well
tered here and there in all the
mines But full 100 per cent mem-
bership in many mines and none
perhaps in a very few small ones
The National Defense Mediation
board voted down Me Lewis' de-
mand for a union shop and pan
dora's box flew open One of the
things that emerged was a highly
paradoxical and highly painful situ-
ation For the board by taking this
rare anti-labor step had virtually
left the operators in the 'position
that if they had yielded in the later
negotiations they would be in the
position of supporting Lewis against
the government Still the situation
might have been saved if something
had not happened when the Presi-
dent called the operators and Lewis
and Secretary-Treasurer Kennedy
of the United Mine Workers to the
White House
When thr men calhe in ihe Presi-
dent did what his labor advisors
hoped be would -He Made a brief
appeal to boll sidesto get together
and settle the question since a
strike must be avoided If he had
stopped there all might have been
well But he went on and said what
Lewis felt was prejudicial to his
case This not only woke all the
smouldering anger in the breast of
John Lewis but when the commit-
tee of 200 C10 advisors heard
about it they were just as mad
His feeling was reflected when he
turned down the President's later
proposals
President on the Spot
And the President was on the
spot Congress was insisting on
strike legislation Speaker Sam
Rayburn had promised it Others
were demanding that the troops be
sent into the captive mines at once
That wiser heads who knew the
temper of the miners believed
would mean a strike in all the mines
and the army would have to beat
Its bayonets into pickaxes
So the President paused wrote
a conciliatory letter to both parties
Meanwhile congress could stew but
the President was pretty sure' that
Its members would not take the
A Rip-Snortid Texan
Comes to Washington
Another Texan has come to Wash-
bigton and the moment of his arri-
val was an historic one We have
had a lot of rip-snortin' ringtailed
wildcats from all parts of the coun-
try some human sand some not
quite Now we have something that
will make even the Texas delegation
in congress sit up and take notice
for this unwilling delegate from the
Lone Star State is the wildest of
them all
He is a Texas long-horn A steer
with an eight-foot spread of horn
He is 12 years old He weighs 1200
pounds and he is admittedly wilder
than anything in the zoo' where he
has been given the place of honor
—right up near the entrance -
Most people do not know that the
Texas long-horn is rarer than the
buffalo which he once displaced on
the Texas plains He is a direct
descendant from the wild cattle
which the Spaniards brought to
America when they came Those
cattle could walk endless miles to
water They °Were bred and de-
veloped to meet conditions that
existed a hundred years ago in the
great Southwest Then water was
piped and ditched into the great
ranches and the fatter easier go-
ing Herefords were introduced
The long-horn had the muscles and
the endurance but he did have the
meat so he began to disappear I
I
THE FREEDOM CALL -FREEDOM OKLAHOMA
WEEKLY NEWS ANALYSIS By Edward C Wayne
Drive of British Troops Into Libya
Forces Axis to Fight on Two Fronts
Peace Comes Again to U S Coal Fields
As Miners Accept Plan for Mediation
(EDITOR'S NOTE—When opinions are expressed in these solemn they
aro those of the news analyst and not fly of this newspaper)
itteleased by Western Newspaper Union)
BRITISH : -
' Open Second Front
The long-awaited bitterly de-
manded "second front" in North Af-
rica has finally been opened by the
British with a surprise attack of sur-
prising power and terrific impact
upon the combined German-Italian
forces in Libya
The severity of the military blow
drew for a time all interest from
the magnificent stand the Russians
were making and presented Hitler's
generals with the difficult problem
of either conceding the Royal Air
force complete mastery of the Afri-
can skies or the withdrawal of many
hundreds of planes from Germany
or from the Russian front
Rapidly the British drive went 50
60 130 milei Into Libyaand a glance
at the maps had been sufficient to
shów that the typical Nazi blitz tac-
tic was being employed
Instead of q frontal attack against
the -Axis forces the British moved
to the-soUth gnd shoved tank spear-
beads In an enveloping action which
reached tobruk's garrison that had
rushed out into a sortie and were
practically able to join hands with
their advancing comrades in arms
from the south '
This trapped what the British
reckoned as half the German tank
forces (reckoned at two divisions)
In a triangular space bounded by
Tobruk Bardia and the Mediterra-
nean coast
Oil this triangle the British were
pouring all their fire by land sea
and air and battles were developing
which might turn out to be the
WINSTON caunanu
The second halt would follow
forced surrender of all the Axis
forces in the trap or a debacle sim-
ilar to those which Germany had
forced on weaker opponents
That it could oe another Dun-
querque was impossible for the Axis
forces had no possibility of escape
by sea It was stand and fight
against forces at least equal to their
own
Of especial interest to Americans
were the reports which told of feats
performed by American-made equip
ment particularly airplanes and
tanks One-fourth of the British
tanks were said to have been built
either in the U S or in Canada
Objectives of the British attack in
North Africa were twofold—the de-
struction of every Axis weapon of
war in the territory the knocking
of Italy outof the war
The first of these Churchill said
would be half accomplished when the
battle of the Tobruk triangle had re-
sulted in a British victory The sec-
ond half would follow immediately
he added indicating that there
would be no slowing down of the
drive
As to the second objective it was
not so obvious what the British plans
were Some felt certain that the
British once in undisputed posses-
sion of all North Africa save French
territory would launch an expedi
tionary invasion against Sicily and
then use it as a base for further in-
vasion Others felt sure that Britain's only
idea was to hold its gains and with
the Mediterranean free of menace
to launch air attacks on all of Italy
from the nearest points in Libya
and Tripoli and so to discourage
Italians with the war that they would
rise against it
The British felt sure that this
would cause the Germans to attack
Italy just as the Germans turned
against Russia and that thus an-
other problem of occupying a hostile
country would arise to plague the
Nazis
TOKYO :
Tinder Box
Oddest of all the potential volca-
noes in the world had been the Far
East situation with Tokyo hard
pressed by the Nazis to plunge ac-
tively into the war on the theory
that it would create a new front for
the British and American navies to
cope with
But Kurusu had found Secretary
Hull not at all frightened at the
prospect and with the exploratory
STRIKE
I
EMPEROR HIROHITO
Japan prepared for the worst
talks quite in their midst the head
of the American state department
had called a conference of the ABCD
nations' (American British Chinese
and Dutch) representatives from
which the Chinese ambassador had
emerged with a broad smile
Coincidentally the British had re-
newed their blunt warnings to Japan
not to plunge another area of the
world into a "blood-bath" but to re-
flect that the personnel of the Brit-
ish navy had expanded 300 per cent
and that the navy now was in posi-
tion to divert considerable of its
forces to the Pacific
At the same time it was evident
that Tokyo itself was preparing its
people for the worst That Japa-
nese leaders were badly frightened
over the spot they were in was evi-
dent yet few of them could see a
way out without war
Sixth Appeal
The sudden end of the coal strike
and the answer of John L Lewis
that he was willing to accede to
President Roosevelt's sixth appeal
for labor peace in the captive coal
mines brought a question to the fore
in the strike crisis—who was the
winner in this bitter battle the Pres-
ident or Lewis?
Some reporters described the sud-
den ending of the strike as a dis-
tinct victory for the President in
that Lewis had agreed to "binding
arbitration" of the strike some-
thing he had held out against since
the fall-down of mediation board ef-
forts to end it -
But when the personnel of the de- -
ciding committee became known
the matter of the President's vic-
tory became dubious because the
committee included Dr John R
Steelman head of the conciliation
service of the department of labor
representing the public Mr Lewis
himself representing the strikers
and Benjamin F Fairlesspresident
of U S Steel representing the mine
owners
There was little question about the
stand that Lewis would take in the
fight for a closed shop contract for
his members That was a foregone
conclusion As to the other two
Dr Steelman was generally given
credit by labor for having won them
the closed shop in commercial
mines
Looking at Mr Fairless it was
generally believed by the union
workers and so stated by Lewis
more than once that Mr Fairless
during other conferences had ap-
parently been the only steel man
willing to give in In fact Lewis put
the blame for the failure of pre-
vious negotiations squarely upon Eu-
gene G Grace of Bethlehem Steel
Lewis had declared that he faced
the decision of the committee with
the utmost confidence in the out-
come The ending of the strike was
dramatic The union policy commit-
tee of 200 waited 212 hours for its
meeting They didn't know the rea-
son but Lewis did He was waiting
for a letter from the President of 1
the United States
PETAIN:
On Spot
MARSHAL HENRI PETAIN
How much would he promise?
Marshal Petain head of the Vichy
government had been reliably re-
ported as on his way to a confer
ence with first Hitler and then
Mussolini as the hour drew near
when the French would have to de-
cide definitely whether to join the
Axis as full partner or not
The 'conference 'according to the
Rome-radio was "to be held soon
somewhere in occupied France"
The incredsed- pressure on France
was seen ad is sequel to the British
offensive in Africa and the sudden
resignation of Marshal Weygand as
commander of France in Africa
was seen as part and parcel of the
same reaction
Germany observers said was
prepared to offer Petain a full peace
instead of an armistice based en-
tirely on how much increased aid
the old marshal was willing to
promise thus making France an
Axis ally in truth if not in name
Even in Washington a presiden-
tial source said that Germany was
planning a general European con-
ference in December or January
and that following it would probably
come some "high-sounding scheme"
for economic rehabilitation in the
name of peace and order
Two reports were current—one of
them that the French had been
asked to give naval convoy to Italian
supply ships moving to north Africa
and had refused the other was that
Germany was asking France for
300000 soldiers to take over the
policing of areas in occupied Rus-
sia in the spring
ALIEN IIANDS:
Helping Nazis
A Berlin dispatch hence author-
ized declared that the labor prob-
lem in Nazi war industries now that
most of the manpower was engaged
in war with Russia was being
solved by the use of alien labor
Aliens from occupied countries
largely Poles had been recruited
outside Germany and put into the
factories with Storm Trooper man-
agers and a plentiful sprinkling of
police through the plants to discour-
age breaking of time rules and sab-
otage of other types
Croats and other nationalities be-
lieved friendly to Germany also are
manning many plants and are re-
ported to be getting better food pay
living conditions etc than the
Poles who get the least of all
The Polish workers have yellow
bordered black "P's" on their left
arms Polish and Belgian men are
quartered in dormitories while those
of so-called "friendly" nations are
permitted to live in suburbs near
their work
RUSSIA: -
Saves Machines
A Walter Kerr dispatch from Kul
byshev had been enlightening on th
subject of what Russia's losses had
been in the area occupied by Ger-
man troops
S A Lovsky Soviet spokesman
had declared that Russian factory
equipment had been almost entire
ly evacuated from the occupied
area
Kerr checking on this statement
wrote that he had made a 2280-
mile railroad trip from Archangel
through the Soviet Union and that
machinery was being moved and in
quantities that would astonish most
Americans
His trip took 16 days because his
passenger train was sidetracked
often to permit trains carrying ma-
chinery and workers eastward were
given preference
Day after day he saw an endless
procession of freight trains of from
30 to 40 cars drawn by one to two
locomotives carrying machinery
machine tools and skilled workmen
- He said he never saw a wreck nor
evidence of a previous wreck He
also saw munitions being landed
from America and Britain at the
wharves of 'Archangel and moving
rapidly on railroads to the Interior
of Russia He said he did not dream
that Russia had so much rolling
stock nor of such magnitude
f
I
' ' 4
- Sel
I
i N 4k:
-I
4 1 1 ?UV
!
1 Lleth
1
i
i
1 — WN
1
The
1 uP in
4 these
1 about
- this is
If not
of W
' Coffey
tnandi
charge
:
tavoril
But
t behind
4 with 11
f of the
1 meal
i deP co
I : an art
behind
taking
' strike
' along
1 utroanti 711
1
- r - tense I
-- :
The
I decide
i certain
I United
I and pi
I Delens
branch
Knudse
to that
t of the 1
1 ' the Cc
remain
ing clov
' that M
ing ind
' represe
I- recalci
! Knudse
I4 on inch
But it
' favored
1 Media
S o t t
f tion bo
along s
more a
that the
labor I
the sin
labor's
Then
1 It hand
opened
' Worker
smashe
drain!!
created
i
: the cot
4 long da
: The e
case of
' plant ir
: - of L u!
i that is
' the ton
have to
I
granted
4 20 per 1
i workere
4 membe:
1 - represe
I against
that it
4' When t
it was
i taken el
stateme
i
f a piece
4
t tor ano'
i Once
i this con
I- and sal
3
4 result v
1 building
case of 4
shipyar
4 the vote
tional It
industr3
I "maint4
: which I
i compan
4 sion an
i Anothe
4 Ilere
flivhether
I
1 Cikt And it
1 Lewis I
' put in h
4 Nur
in the
! had pis
! not hal
I
1 opportu
grievan
t set hirr
a natio
I
lithe
k
' building
was far
cent me
mines
i
- :
— —
g
i
a
P
1
t
i
-
I
'
-
z
t
1
- 4 16
a
T
'
0
THE FREED() O
51 CALL FREEDOM KIA1101IA
t t -
t
----- I
-- rio :
A mar Ipwr
t t
A Alle pNW
V"-'"" e' Yr 4
- - r
- -
i
- -t
1
-
-
:471:17r'41''' :::j:!1::i::ii
x::ii:ff'::::-1 :':i0V-
e:$:1Mii:::'ii:::f::::!A ::::::::::iiii
-45'::'j:'-:::?'?:i::'i:::-:'::: riw:I:-
::a::5'::::-::i'!:'il'!::::::::::::!' fA'':'::
1::::iiiit:Iiii!!!1:::(::11::?::::1:::-''-'::i'J:i:i-::::1:1:7::::':i:'"'!:':i':i::::'!!1:::::!::::':::
61$5'?:::::'?:::::Lig:'?:'':''? :::Vfg
t''' ''"::':Fi:4'ittsrnt:' ::4:ii'
::-::!:n:':::!::'N::::::::ikl
:-- !:4:!:er':':'::H3:'::'::)::-:41i4ii
:: vf-zi::::::::§:l :'':Y?:::i:::: '''?
A::A ::?:::::-::::::40
: i1::::::4:?:::s:::5-:::::
i !0:15:41":4:mi!::::!i:i:::!":'
:-144i4M:!r'
41144eQ0:02::
6-1-
:0 ! i
!-:ii-
':f':t ' - 711
-a
:::::
7-' : 1 :l: '
-T I: A y
: :
:
::::::::m:
I
Dt
!!
oe ::
-- !:
0 t ::-
w
vo
L t t--771: '
is
::: ::0:
:ii: ::: ::i:4 :qn::
!-?)0::im!: ::gqpi1::::::::i
-4 ":" J!4!:LI
I
1
': -: '::: :: - 'i :em
A -4 :-' - : Ikt N
sp
:::: s -- 0 -: 1
(fkr ' rfK 4i 'r 4 4 c
t 3:3' ''41 '::a 1
9: 4:4fk ::::o
: :':::1 ' :':)
- ' ' i ''1'
z V
4
q::11 kol
I a
' iv
4
'
(
i
-
L
I:
1
1
Iv:?:::r:xi
I9::::"::::i!1::?:)
L11
:::1!71:
0:”)1
f:ii::1:s:
t:A)
t::vie ::
:::44i:
:::s:z1 L'i:
'''''Li
-
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Hinton, Ruth. The Freedom Call (Freedom, Okla.), Vol. 20, No. 10, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 4, 1941, newspaper, December 4, 1941; Freedom, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc2108059/m1/3/?rotate=270: accessed July 18, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.