OCR Text |
Show IKE URGED Ml MONTANA Representative Jpanette Rankin Rank-in Places Responsibility for Labor Troubles. BLAMES AMALGAMATED Offers Resolution Empowering Empower-ing President to Take Over and Operate Palmes. WASHINGTON, Aug. 7. Responsibility Responsi-bility for. the labor troubles amdng metalliferous mine workers In Mon-tnna, Mon-tnna, whidh has curtailed the output of coppflr!,and contributed to rioting and other disturbances, was charged to John'; DjRyan of New York, president presi-dent of tho,. Amalgamated Copper company, com-pany, today by Representative Jcan-etto Jcan-etto Rankin, in an address to' the house. Abolition of the "rustling card" system, sys-tem, a plan by which the Amalgamated Amalgamat-ed companies decided what miners shall be permitted to seek work in its properties, would restore peace.f.Miss Rankin asserted, and added - that it was within the power of Mr. Ryan to take this step if he desired. Her efforts ef-forts to convince him of this, fact by telegraph had nroduced no rosnlts sho- said. ; , , Would Empower President Miss Rankin was speaking, o'n a resolution res-olution to give the president Vower to take over and operate metalliferous mines, which she offered today. It was referred to a committee. Miss Rankin declared she had made futile efforts to interest federal officials offi-cials in tho Montana situation. After the Bisbee deportations, she said,) Butte people appealed to her for help and on the night before Frank Little was lynched in Butter she received a particularly urgent appeal which caused her to call tho secretary of labor by telephone after midnight. He asked her to- see him the following day. "I tried all .the next day until late in the evening and was still tryingito see the secretary on the following day when I received word that a man had been lynched," she declared. Men Discouraged by System "This rustling card system." she said, "has effectively discouraged the men from organizing. It h'iis prevented prevent-ed themfrom obtaining tho. enforcement enforce-ment of'jaws requiring safety devices in the mines. It has caused them,lo hesitate to discuss their grievances on the outside. Conditions in the mines i have grown more and more unsafe. I have, had heartbreaking letters from the wives of some of the miners saying say-ing that when their Jiusbands went to work in the morning? they never knew whether they would..! ever- return and that they lived inf-constant anxiety. On June 8 160 men were burned to death in a fire in ' one mine. This was the climax. The men stopped work. Would Abolish Rustling Cards "The workers knew that thev would never 'be safe as long as the rustling card system existed. For under un-der that system every man who complained com-plained of conditions or reported dangers dan-gers or endeavored to form an organr ization was laid off for one reason of another and it would bo impossible, for liim to obtain work again in any mine in Montana or elsewhere. It fs easy to see the necessity of abolishing abolish-ing the rustling card system." Miss Rankin also declared that the Amalgamated Copper companies have refused to accept tho 1G.67 cents a pound for copper at which the government govern-ment has been purchasing and Is awaiting action by the committee on war purchases. Representative Johnson of Washington Wash-ington interrupted Miss Rankin to remark re-mark that members :of the I.-W. W. should not "squeal" when one of their members is hanged V'by decent citizens citi-zens now and then," inasmuch as they had murdered a governor of Idaho and planned tho murder of the governor of Utah. I |