Show ROUND MERRY Lewis Lewi Debate Debat Prowess Aided Climb By DREW V IE PEARSON ON W. W WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Franklin S Franklin D D. Roosevelt did many magnificent things thing for tor the American workIngman work Ingman but he handed labor Jabor and the American people one one lemon that he regretted to his dying day That lemon was John L. L Lewis Roosevelt cant can't be credited with all the miseries which the tho mine labor Jabor boas has haa visited on the American people but there is fl no doubt that the Roosevelt administration was WU chiefly responsible responsible re re- re- re for building Le e into the powerful all-powerful figure he heIs heb heis Is b today What few tew realize ia is that Lewis WAS a broken man trying to hold together an almost almot bankrupt bankrupt bank bank- rupt organization before the advent of the New DeaL From Froma a powerful once powerful union boasting more than members after World War I the United Mine Workers had dwindled to members and Its books showed a treasury balance alance of only around And in 1932 approximately 72 of ot the nations nation's bituminous coal was being mined by nonunion labor Today in contrast the United Mine Workers Workers' treasury has about with received for tor the welfare fund fundin in six months alone Today miners are paid better than everIn ever everIn everin In have purchased the fashionable old University club here to use as John L. L Lewis' Lewis headquarters plus pIu an an office building across the street while John L L. himself lives In a beautiful beautiful beautiful beau beau- Virginia mansion draws a salary and sports a swank chauffeured limousine Lewis Vs VI U. U S. S Today S.-Today Today John JohnL L L. Lewis Lewis' in the full flush of power and glory Is demanding that the American people faced with a cold winter and few tew coal reserves knuckle under Lewis may get what he wants this time time thanks thanks to his friend John Steelman In the WhiteHouse White WhiteHouse House But sooner looner or later the showdown has ha got to come A continued surrender to the Insatiable insatiable Insa insa- greed of one man is le something something some BOrne thing th the American people will not tolerate forever In order that they may know the man with whom they eventually eventually even even- must come to grips here is a quick look at the life of the labor Jacor leader about whom Huey Long once said Old Huey thinks this John L. L Lewis will win willbe willbe be the most powerful man In Inthe Inthe Inthe the U USA USA unless S unless A-unless unless I get there first firstY Most people have the idea that Lewis worked his way up as a coal miner miner- Real fact tact however is Js that he ho was never In the mines to any ny great extent His father was a coal miner but John was an organizer a talker and a union delegate He never raised many calluses digging coal No matter what you may think of Lewis however his life reads like a Horatio Alger story Born in Iowa never attending school beyond the seventh grade Lewis ran a debating society managed a baseball team wandered wandered wandered wan wan- dered around the country doing odd jobs including some coal mining But chiefly he concentrated concentrated concentrated con con- on public speaking and before long Jong had talked himself himself himself him him- self Into a delegates delegate's Job with the United Mine Workers Thereafter he became a statistician statistician statistician statis statis- for the the uni union n Joined the Inner clique of bureaucrats in union headquarters and rose t to power along with Bill Green as asa a good speaker and wire puller within the miners' miners bureaucracy Lewis Lewis' White House Friend Friend- One year after the last war war war- Nov 1 1919 John 1919 John John L. L Lewis pulled a Strike somewhat similar to his tactics after this war Just as the nation was trying to top p pull ll itself back to a peacetime basis Lewis yanked miners out of ot the pits But Woodrow Wilson acted with forthright decision Calling it an unjustifiable and unlawful unlawful unlawful un lawful strike Wilson secured an Injunction against the miners whereupon the b blustering Ius t e r I n g miners' miners boss backed down We cannot fight the government government govern govern- ment he declared and ordered his men back to work Today h however wc Lewis knows that when he goes into a showdown showdown showdown show show- down with the government he heIs heIs heis Is negotiating with loaded dice and a cold deck One of his best friends War John Steelman sits at the right hand of the president Other labor leaders claim that Steelman never has been known to let Jet Lewis d down wn Copyright 1946 Bell Ben Syndicate |