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Show GOMPERS OPPOSES BENEFIT AMENDMENT Seattle, Wash.. Nov. 18 The pro--'r-slve element or the American federation of Labor was voted down twice thi morning when the con vention In Bession here defeated two ' constitutional amendments of a slm- I liar nature having to do with the payment of strike bwneSts The first measure would have given the executive council "discretionary ' Power to authorize payment to newly new-ly organized unions the members of which were locked out or discharged for having organized. The aecood substituted "the? for discretionary " I The vote on the first was 69 to 113; I on the second 74 to 142 Strike Benefits. Advocates of amendments declared declar-ed the Industrial Workers of the World had accomplished much that the federation had been unable to do because of the provision of the constitution making strike benefit available only to those who had been members of a union at least a year "I have heard enough about Industrial Indus-trial Workers of the World charging the American Federation of Labor with not doing Its duty." declared President Gompers It will be a sorry day for labor when we stoop to meet the frivolous, purposeless charges made by that sort of peo-'' peo-'' Every time they pave made a row we have been called upon to pny the fiddler and the piper. I don't think we should be disturbed by what they think of us " President Gompers declared the adoption of the amendments would bankrupt even the treasury of the United States were that at the dls-pesal dls-pesal of the federation. |