Endorsed by the N. C. &
Federation of Labor
AND DIXIE FARM NEWS
vjjicuu uvgan of Central Labor Union; Standing
for the A. F. L.
VOL. XII—NO. 49
TOUR ADVERTISEMENT IN TNI JOURNAL IS A
INVESTMENT
12 YEARS OF
CONSTRUCTIVE
SERVICE TO
NORTH
CAROLINA
READERS
CHARLOTTE, N. C„ THURSDAY, APRIL 29, 1943
journal Advertisers Deserve consideration op
THE READERS
$2.00 Per Y<
Labor Is On the Job For Victory
The ONLY REALLY INDEPENDENT WEEKLY in Mecklenburg Comity 1wC*m11amMTTFor a Weekly Its Readers Represent the LARGEST BUYING POWER in Charlotte
SEABEES BUILD PROUD RECORD:
YEAR’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF
CONSTRUCTION BATTALIONS
Although it is scarcely a year since the first Seabee Battalion
arrived at Island “X” to build the first springboard for America’s
global offensive, the record of this newest branch of the Navy
staggers the imagination. All over the world, bases, airfields, and
dock facilities have sprung up. Seabees, working at top speed,
sometimes 24 hours a day, have carved modern bases out of prim,
itive jungles.
(Released by Navy)
A large proportion of Seabees are former union men, who were recruited
with the close cooperation of Unions everywhere.
The list that follows gives some idea of the marvelous work accomplished
by Seabees in less than a year of operation:
1. Aided in the development of port and other facilities in Africa.
2. Took over the public works maintenance and operation of the Navy’s
bases in the United Kingdom.
3. Assisted in the North African movement which occurred in November.
4. Augmented civilian forces in Iceland to insure more rapid completion
of the Navy’s facilities in that country, and afforded a public works
maintenance and operating force for all completed activities.
5. Augmented contractor’s civilian forces in Argentina to insure more
rapid Completion of the Navy’s facilities at that outpost.
6. Augmented contractor’s civilian forces in Bermuda, Trinidad and vari
ous outlying bases in the 15th Naval District, and at the same time
took over the public works maintenance and operation of all of these
bases.
7. Took over practically all of the advance base construction work through
out the territory of Alaska, including Dutch Harbor, Kodiak, Sitka and
other points.
8. Replaced all contractor’s civilian employees at outlying bases of the
14th Naval District, and carried to completion a large portion of the
work contemplated for each of these bases. They are now maintaining
and operating these bases insofar as the public works functions are
concerned.
9. Constructed and continuing to construct advance base facilities for the
fleet throughout the vast Pacific Area.
These remarks of Brigadier General R. J. Mitchell. U. S. Marine Corps,
are typical of comments heard on all fronts concerning the work of the
Seabees: “Without fail every military commander throughout the South
Pacific mentioned these fine organizations (Seabees) and everyone was loud
in his praise of accomplishments. It appears that the units have served a
splendid purpose and that they have been carefully organized with highlv
skilled personnel, that they have been intelligently equipped, that they know
their business and that their ingenuity and speed of work have been, indeed,
remarkable. The only complaint heard, if this could be considered a com
plaint was ‘we need more of them.’ ”
The Navy is still in need of experienced construction men for service
in the Seabees. Mechanics, carpenters, riggers, stevedores, steel workers,
electricians and many other skilled craftsmen between the ages of 17 and
50 can now volunteer for service. Salaries range from $54 to $126 a month
plus 20 per cent for overseas duty, and include auarters, food, clothing,
transportation, medical and dental care, and other incidentals to which en
listed personnel are entitled. There are also allowances for dependents.
Full information may be obtained at any Navy Recruity Station.
CIO REJECTS TRUCE WITH AFL
ASHINGTON. D; C.—The CIO has rejected new AFL proposals for a
no-raiding agreement in the interests of promoting labor unity and the
nation’s war effort.
The latest attempt to seek a truce to inter-union strife took place at a
meeting of the AFL-CIO Peace Committee at the Washington Hotel which
lasted two days.
The representatives of the AFL usbmitted the following proposal to
the conference:
“It is the unanimous policy of this committee, in pursuing its objective,
namely, labor unity, that there will be no raiding by. the AFL where the
CIO has a contract or agreement or has won a representation election and
that in return there will be no raiding by the CIO where the AFL has a
contract or agreement or has won a representation election.” I
This proposal was designed to end the wave of raiding by CIO unions
against shipyards and war production plants now under contract with AFL
unions.
In rejecting it. the CIO made it clear that it proposes to continue such
raids in all cases where contracts have been signed before an election
has been held.
At the conclusion of the conference, AFL Vice-President Harry C. Bates
announced that he and CIO President Murray will set a date in the near
future for the next meeting of the Peace Committee.
Free Labor Will Out-Produce Nazi Slaves
THE MARCH OF LABOR
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This Week,
This World
L—-by Ted Friend
PROOF THAT A PEOPLE is politically mature, and is there*
fore the safe custodian of the mechanisms of democracy, is its
readiness to accept and make allowances for its dissident elements.
The Bill of Rights of the United States not only guarantees minor
ity groups equal justice under the law, it also shields malevolent
in their destructive machinations.
It was precisely because the Ger
man people had not reached that
point of political maturity which en
abled its majority to tolerate the in
conveniences of divergent opinion that
the Weimar republic fell and Nazism
came into power. National laziness
will always find an obliging despot
on hand who is ready to take over.
The American democracy, as any
other democracy, is not a perfect
state organism which operates with
out strain or pain. It doesn’t just
float through the breeze with the
greatest of ease performing manifold
wonders. Keeping Democracy in
working order is a hard job which
requires everlasting and lo "ing at
tention. And the biggest part of the
hard job is putting up with the works
of the practitioners of evil who, for
the money of it or the neurotic self
satisfaction of it, are a curse and
a pestilence to the body politics.
There is no nation on earth that
is all silk and a yard wide. The
moral, social and political backward
ness of some of our own dear South
ern states, as a case in point, matches
the worst of any nation, either demo
cratic or absolutionist, anywhere in
the world. The Copperheadism of
the kept-press is another disgrace and
danger to the American people. The
recurring activity of the Ku Klux
Klan; the popularity of quack social
and religious nostrums, including the
not so late and lamented “Ham and
Eggs Movement,” which all but swept
the West Coast off its feet; the agri
cultural lobbyists and industrial Bour
bons; the professional Red-baiters as
well as professional Reds; the strike-.
breakers and errant labor leaders may
all make one wonder if democracy is
worth the trouble. How much easier
it would be to undemocratically wipe
all of them from the face of the earth!
And yet it is worth it! Just as
a Giraud rose from out of Vichy
ashes to redeem the meaning of pros
trate France, just as a Churchill came
forth to gird British valor as it stood
under the hammer blows of the enemy,
just as an Ataturk stood up to mod
ernize a decadent Turkey and a
Chaing-Kai-Shek rose to unify his
people so that they might hold off
aggression, so will equally enlight
ened leaders, reflecting and personify
ing the wil lof the people, come forth
from the ftrile soil of America to hold
the democratic shield aloft. A Roose
velt today, a Willkie tomorrow, a
Stassen the next day, a Saltonstall the
day after that — America will have
loyal sons enough to reflect its glory.
Faint hearts should not shrink in
fear, though they may rightly blush
with shame, when puny little men
such as Rep. John E. Rankin of Miss
issippi rise in steady monotony to be
smirch the basic idealism that is
I America. The history of the United
States shows many Rankins—and Rep.
Clare Hoffmans, and Sen. Robert E.
Reynolds, and Charlie Coughlins and
Gerald K. Smiths—and it shows them,
for all their noise and bluster, as ab
ject failures. And as long as the
United States is a democracy it will
unfortunately have its filthy little
demagogs, subversivists and confusi
onists—its Joe McWilliamses, Court
Ashers, E. J. Garners, Ralph Town
sends and Patrick Scanlons. And of
course it will have its lady purveyors
of fascism such as Mrs. Ethel Groen,
Mrs. Ruth Zink, Mrs. E. J. Johannig
nan and Mrs. Elizabeth Dilling.
That such tripe can be tolerated,
particularly in war time, is proof that
the foundations of the republic are
strong and that the watchword of the
people is not ‘“Discouragement” but
“Vigilance.” tU * m
WORD-EATING DEPARTMENT:
“The situation in the U. S. A. has be
come chaotic because of the shortage
u/ raw materials. They have prac
tically lost the war.” (Radio Tokio,
April 15, 1942, in Italian) . . . “Ger
man assertions to the effect that the
Atlantic Ocean is more or less desert
ed are absolutely true.” (Radio Lux
emburg, April 15, 1942, in German)
. . . “The Mediterranean has become
a real death trap for the gigantic
naval power that is Great Britain.
The Mediterranean is very important,
probably the most important of all
theatres of war.” (Gayda on Radio
Rome, April 19, 1942, in Italian).
MRS. WITTER
IMPROVING
IN HOSPITAL
The Journal is glad to report that
the condition of Mrs. W. M. Witter,
who has been in the LeRoy Sana
torium, New York City, the past three
weeks is reported as much better,
though recovery is slow. Letters re
ceived, and phone calls, reveal the
fact that she is deeply appreciative of
the scores of telegrams and messages
from Charlotte friends, to say nothing
of the beautiful flowers. We are hop
ing that within the next five or six
weeks she will be back with us again,
even though not able to be on the job.
-V
FOR VICTORY: BUY BONDS ■
OUR SOLEMN PLEDGE
We, American workingmen and workingwomen, pledge our
selves to our first duty—to defeat and destroy Axis tyranny.
We of American Labor, realize that this conflict trans
cends all other struggles and that every possibility of
social progress depends upon the victory of the free na
tions. We, American soldiers of production, who pro
vide so much of the Material, Men, Mobilization,
Money, and Morale, vow that our country’s war effort
shall be organized without regard for any vested
interests. We extend warmest Labor soli
darity to the suffering people under the heel
of the brutal Axis conquerors. In tribute to
their great courage in keeping the flames of
freedom burning, we declare: no ap
peasement or tolerance wil lever be shown
to the Fascist Hangmen. We appeal
to the working people* of Germany,
Italy, and Japan to take matters
into their own hands and settle
scores with their savage Fas
cist rulers. This is our
common path to lasting
peace and justice.
v v v v y y
v v y v v
v v v v
BUY WAR BONDS TO YOUR LAST DOLLARS;
BETTER BROKE THAN TO BE A SLAVE;
LET LABOR SHOW CAPITAL THE WAY.
THE MARGIN BETWEEN FREEDOM
AND SLAVERY FOR LABOR MAY
BE TEN PERCENT
Baxter Defeats Currie For Mayor;
Backset Given The “Iron Dukes”;
Run-Off For Council Next Tuesday
With an unusually light vote cast, considering interest in the
primary held last Monday, H. H. Baxter defeated E. McA. Currie
by 324 votes. Only 10,408 ballots were cast, against a registra
tion of over 38,000. The run-off takes place next Tuesday, May
4th, and it is believed that the vote will be larger then than in
the primary. It is quite evident, whatever the outcome of the
Councilman’s race, and regardless of the optimism felt by some,
a few changes will take place in the personnel of the city jobs
setup.
The Council Ticket as it will be voted for next Tuesday and
thp vnfp tspriirpH *
Ward 1—W.' N. (Bub) Hovis, Peoples, 5,315.
Ward 2—J. Murrey Atkins, Citizens, 4,138, and Joe S. Rob
inson, Independent, 1,084.
Ward 3—John Ward, Peoples, 5,202.
Ward 4—R. Kent Blair, Independent, 1,537, and Abraham
Homsy, 331.
Ward 5— William (Ed) Norton, Independent, 713, and J. B.
Thomas, Independent, 613.
Ward 6--Claude L. Albea, Peoples, 5,066, and Charles H.
Daughtry, Citizens, 4,447.
Ward 7—W. Irving Bullard, Peoples, 4,290, and M. Luther
Harkey, Peoples, 3,667.
Ward 8—A. Z. Price, Citizens, 4,279, and J. A. Baker, Citi
zens, 3,286.
Ward 9—C. D. Brady, Independent, 497, and L. H. Painter,
Citizens, 3,982.
Ward 10—Lester W. Slye, Citizens, 4,139, and J. I. (Jimmie)
Campbell, Peoples, 3,940.
Ward 11—Ralph Hood, Peoples, 4,538, and Joe Cope, Citizens,
3,387•
Nominated for the school board and the votes they received
were:
J. E. Burnside, incumbent, 4,119; Rev. Joseph Fraylon, Negro
minister, 1,617; Marshall E. Lake, incumbent, 3,911; E. Lowell
Mason, 4,592; Roy L. Smart, incumbent, 4,011, and Rev. Herbert
Spaugh, incumbent, 7,023.
All six of the School Board candidates are eligible for the
election, as there were not enough candidates for the possible two
nominees for each of the four places to be filled on the Board.
DEATH TO FASCISM! NOW IS THE
BATTLE CRY IN NORTH AFRICA
[We herewith present some portions of an energetic anti
fascist appeal published some weeks ago in the French demo
cratic paper "Combat.” At the time of the issuance of this mani
festo, “Combat” was still being published underground. Despite
a number of measures recently taken and despite repeated insist
ence by De Gaulle, the laws of Republican France have not yet been
restored in North Africa.—Editor Labor For Victory, Press Service.]
“Death to Fascism! Well, yes, we say it very loudly; we proclaim it
with all our strength; we shout it with all our lungs; in the struggle which
is beginning again for the liberation of the Mother Country, it is our watch
word, our battle cry. We wish the death of Fascism because we with the
death of everything which has tried to kill France, because we wish France
to live. It is Fascism which has thrown her on the bed of defeat where
she is dying. It is Fascism which is oppressing, starving and killing our
brothers. This truth, written in our sky by the fire which blood painted
on our land, hammered into our highways by the oppressor’s feet, this truth
we assume the right to proclaim. For it is by the teachings of the battles
lost yesterday that we shall find for tomorrow’s holy battles a rule of
victory . . .
“Frenchmen of North Africa! As in September 1939, as in the gloomiest
days of this strange war, people in high positions, powerful people behind
whom shameless sleeping partners are acting, are trying to conceal from
you what this war is. They wish to change its meaning. We ourselves
bring you the message. This message we have learned first from our
French brothers, then from Roosevelt and Churchill and from all the com
rades in arms whom America and England are sending us by hundreds
and hundreds of thousands.
“This message is simple and clear: this war would have no meaning if
it were to leave Fascism standing on the ruins which it has heaped up, on
the prisons which it has filled, in the blood which it has spilled. This war
has a meaning because it is a fight to the death against Fascism. Death
to Fascism! in order that the liberty which Fascism has killed in our home
may live again.”
Free Labor Will Out-Produce Nazi Slaves
I ?
“They Give Their Lives—You Lend Your Money”
Ctufty King Ftaturta