VOL. XX; NO. 18
CHARLOTTE, N. C„ THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1850
Subscription Price. *2.00 Per Y<
Raleigh.—Some fotys have ex
pressed doubt that Kerr Scott
will back Willis Smith in the
coming senatorial campaign, de
spite the Governor's repeated
pledge to take the stump for his
party’s candidate.
The Governor is a Democrat
first, and despite his opposition
to Willis Smith in the two pri
maries will take to the stump for
Smith if party leaders wan£ him
to.
As a matter of fact, it has
already been planned for Smith’s
Alamance county campaign—is
not the entire campaign—to be
kicked off with a big Alamance
Young Democrats rally for
Smith at the Governor’s own Haw
River farm home.
Tar Heel boarders can be proud
of themselves. They sent sales
tax receipts up about $400,000
more than was expected last
month. Revenue Commissioner
' Eugene Shaw reported a gain of
more than $850,000 above the
same month a year ago. Since
this was more than $400,000
above the average gained each
month this year, Shaw could only
attribute it to "hysterical war
buying and hoarding.”
If the North Carolinians fight
ing in Korea had acted with the
same patriotism, the Korean war
would have been over two months
ago—with us pushed off the
'mean little peninsula.
Reported irregularities—partic
ularly misuse of public property
—are being investigated in the
State Forestry Division’s First
District.
The First Districts includes the
seaboard counties, where forest
fires are a serious problem each
year.
The report£f*Tnve*tigation ap
parently isn't worrying First Di
vision personnel. Just a few
nights ago, the Forestry boys of
the First pitched themselves quite
a party over near Little Wash
ington.
Along in the shank of the
evening, the boys became quite
gay. The gayer they got, the
more courage they found, and
before long they lifted their
voices in song—like a bunch of
hounds baying at the moon.
And what do you think the
tune was they were singing? A
little ditty entitled:
“Whos Afraid of Big Bad Kerr
Scott!”
You can forget that dry dock
at Wilmington. Blame it on a
lot of things: lackadaisical atti
tude of New Hanover county,
which always has its hand out
but doesn’t seem to want to help,
itself; fumbling by the State
Ports Authority; and the Navy's
refusal to co-operate with a re
tired army colonel (Col. Georje
Gillette), despite *11 th»t t*lk
about unification.
A $15,000 outlay would have
brought the drydock to Wilming
ton.
The Navy wasn't too hot about
the idea of putting the drydock
in Wilmington to start off. Ship
builders were opposed, too. But
the Governor pushed the idea,
and after personal insistanee of
Senator Frank Graham, President
Truman intervened and the dock
was assured if the $15,000 could
be raised. The State did not want
to enter private business, so
rightly felt it could not put up
the money. Despite their alleged
desire to expand, folks in New
Hanover looked the other way.
So Wilmingtoif can be assured
of remaining a second rate poet,
because ship owners are not go
ing to send their ships 30 miles
inland unless there are repair fa
cilities available.
Time-payment cattle are slated
for North Carolina’s future. A
group of New York moneymen
are interested in starting up
either a bank or finance coupany
to loan money to farmers to
buy cattle.
It’ll work just like buying a
car or a refrigerator. Pay so
much down and so much a month
or week until the loan is paid,
with the cattle as security. Some
loans will be made without even
a down payment, it is understood,
if the plan goes into effect.
The New Yorkers are enthu
siastic about North Carolina's
possibilities as a cattle country,
both beef and dairy. And any
time you don’t think there's
money in cattle raising, look at
all those Texas millionaires. The
experts say North Carolina is
better suited for cattle raising
than the Lone Star state, and
that cattle can be raised cheaper
here.
The Governor at a ress con
ference took a swipe at North
Carolina bankers for “not having
enough vision” to finance cattle
buying. The banks were the
same way about financing cars
some years back, he said, so the!
finance companies came in and
“made a killing.’*
Banking Commissioner Gurney
P. Hood said that only a few Tar i
Heel banks now make loans on
cattle. \
Assistant Budget Director
Dave Coltrane is hunting a farm
management specialist to take
over supervision of all state
owned farms. The hunt is on
because Coltraine found recently
that some of the State’s farms
are losing money, in one cash,
it was discovered that a farm
had twice as many registered
cattle out to grase as the pasture
RULES
foa SAFI WALKING...
L Carry or wear something white at
night to help drivers see you.
2. Cross only at crosswalks. Keep to the
right in the crosswalk.
3. Before crossing—look both ways. Be
sure the way is clear before you crow.
4. Grow only on proper signal
5. Watch for turning oars. * '
8. Never go into the roadway from be
tween parked cars. r
7. Where there is no sidewalk, and it is
necessary to walk in roadway, walk
on left side, facing traffic.
(
ypplft PO IT, MAC j|
would stand. In times like these,
even a state-owned farm ought
to at least break even, Coltrane
believes.
With Its decision to allow Tide
water Power and Light company
a $200,000 a year rate increase,
the Utilities Commission by a 3-2
vote has put its approval on poor
management of the company.
The raise is being paid by
home and store consumers, while
industrial users will get a slight
cut.
The amasing thing about the
whole action is that nowhere in
the many-paged report of its de
cision is any reason given for the
raise except “to allow Tidewater
to sell some $2,000,009 in new
stock.”
This two million bucks is need*
ed, it was said, to “expand serv
ice” and to make repairs—a lot
of which, the report said, have
been needed since the war when
materials were unavailable.
No one would quarrel with an
expansion of service by Tide
water, but it is peculiar that it
is one of the few—if not the only
—companies in the country that
did not build up a reserve during
the war to make post-war re
pairs. Other companies, unable
to get materials during the war,
put aside the money they would
have spent if they could and
saved it for work after the war
ended.
Despite poverty pleas. Tide
water has been able to pay an
avenge dividend of one dollar a
share for at least the last two
years.
The Commission’s refusal last
week to reopen the case, means
that the poor consumer will have
to go to court if he wants to
fight the rate raise further. And
the Utilities Commission is sup
posed to protect the public!
If the Utilities Commission
wants to do something it could
either force Tidewater to give its
consumers decent service at a
decent price or make them sell to
someone who can. Since the
company buys 85 per cent of its
power from Carolina Power and
Light Company then resells it at
a profit, and since CPAL’s Presi
dent Louis Sutton, says his com
pany has plenty of power, it
looks as though that would be
the logical company to serve the
Tidewater area, anyhow.
i
Tidewater’s poverty pleas
brought a laugh in front of the
Sir Walter Hotel here last week.
Two top Tidewater officials
stepped out of the hotel, into •
plush, block-long Cadillac—com
plete with liveried chauffer—for
the ride home to Wilmington.
Incidentally, Tidewateris ^reel
lent is reported to get a salary
#f more than $26,000 a year plus
» “very generous” expense ac
count. The expense account plus
salary, the report said, runs more
than the combined salaries and
expense accounts of all live of
she Utilities Commissioners. Not
»ad for “pore folks”
And the power argument spot
ighted last week bids likely to
socome the biggest political issue
rf the state. The Governor says
the state’s power potential is
great but V&derdeveloped. He
claims industry is passing the
State by because of lack of power
.and that hydro-electric flood
control, water conservation dams
should be built with federal
funds
CPAL’s Louis Sutton says
tain’t so; that private power
companies an taking care of all
needs adequately; that steam
power is better than hydro-elee*
trie; that industry is not passing
the state by; and that it’s all
just another attempt by the gov
ernment to take over private
power companies.
But Sutton talks only about
power. He doesn’t say anything
about flood control, other than
it should be done seme other way,
water conservation.
Up to now no one has come up
with any flood control, water
conservation plan that doesn’t
entail government spending. Ifj
at the same time power output
can be boosted, it would be fool
ish not to do so.
Since North Carolina is one of
the top states in payment of fed
eral taxes—and on the short end
of the deal as far as federal
money spent in the State—the
Governor and some others think
it’s time some of those federal
projects came this way.
Anyway, it’ll be a knockdown,
dragout fight.
This week a rsport from Wash
ington, via the Tar Heal Capitol:
Direct controls affecting the
farmer—o*i such items as farm
implemerta. fertiliser, etc. — are
not in sight' They won’t be
damped on unless the war
spread*, beyond Korea.
Som i 850,000 farm workers
will >je eligible for social se
curity — old age benefits come
January 1. The law leaves out
farm owners or operators, ten
ants, sharecroppers, migratory
workeis .and members of the
farm family under 21. A farm
worker must establish eligibility
by woi king full time for one
employer for a calendar year,
and muit put in two months
work out of every three to stay
eligible. Uncle Sam will collect
a S per cent tax on all cash
wages—paid equally by worker
snd hie employer. Benefit pay
ments run from $25 a month to
a top of $80 a month.
Orchid of the week foes to:
Captain L. R. Fisher, director of l
the Highway Safety Division.'
(Continued ea Page 4)
French Told Their Wage
Price Structure Out of Line
John P. Frey, A Pioneer
In A. F. of L. Movement
(John P. Prey will hold the
new title of president emeritus of
the AFL Metal Trades depart
ment when the annual conven
tion begins September 14, 1950,
at Houston, .Texas. This is the
story):
Washington. — On Thursday,
May 4. the resignation of John
P. Frey as president of the Metal
Trades department was received
and accepted by the Executive
Council of the department, at itsj
meeting in Philadelphia.
This resignation was received
with great reluctance by the
council, but it did not come as
any surprise. Mr. Frey hid in
timated on various occasions his
desire to retire from active serv
ice in the trade union movement,
to be able to devote more time to
special aspects of it
John Frey was born on Feb.
24, 1871, in Mankg^u Minn. Re
versing the general trend of “Gw
West Young Man,” John went
east and on May 10 of. 1896 was
initiated into the Molders Union
No. 5, Worcester, Mass.
Those were the days when
trlde unionism, outside of those
who were a part of it was not
to8 popular.
On July 1, 1896, John became
president of the local union of
Molders, and a delegate to the
Worcester Central Labor Coun
cil^ His force was soon recog
nised in the Central Labor Un
ion. In 1899 he became the dele
gate from his local union to the
convention of the Massachusetts
State Federation of Labor, and at
that time was elected as one ef
the vice presidents.
In 1903, John was elected as
editor of The Molders’ Journal. It
was during this editorship that
The Molders* Journal became rec
ognized by the entire trade union
movement, by economists, and by
students of history as being a
moving force in the progress of
the trade union movement and as
making a great contribution to
the understanding of the philoso
phy of the trade union move
ment.
In addition to the duties as ed
itor, John remained as an organ
izer, and was in charge of strikes
supported by the International
Union. He was also one ef the
negotiators with the Foundry
men. Again during this period,
the evils of the injunction, the
yellow-dog contract and their el1
Feet upon union organization and
the rights of the human being
became increasingly apparent.
In 1924 John was placed in
complete charge of all organizing
activities for the International
Union.
1
tnat jonn rreya career and
experiences in the trade union
itor he was also an author, hav
ing written several books which
received wide acclaim.
His first book #as titled, “An f
American Molder in Europe,”
based upon his own experiences
gained as a result of a visit to
many European countries. His
second, published in 1922, was
entitled, “The Labor* Injunction.”
This book played a great part in
making the trade unions of Arner-J
ica aware of the evils of the in
junction and aided in the trade,
union effort to have the Norris
LaGuardia Anti - injunction BUI
idopted by the national Congress,
it might be added that, for three
rear*, John was a member of the
hFL committee of three which
worked with the subcommittee of
;h« U. S Senate committee on
judiciary, which drafted the Anti
njunction Bill. In 1944, John
vrote a book entitled, “Craft Un
ons of Ancient and Modern
rimes,” a history of the trade
rnion movement and the efforts
>f men to organize to protect
heir own interests almost since
he advent of civilization.
John Frey served as a mem
*er of the Hoxie committee in
1913 and 1914, which made a
tudy of scientific management
*d labor. This study exposed
-• \ 1
the fallacy and menace of scien
tific management then becoming
widespread in industry, and fur
ther served as material for the
study of the Industrial Relations
commission.
The Government Defense agen
cies had indicated intentions to
institute scientific management
systems in their facilities. It was
as a result of the Hoxie commit
tee’s study and findings and the
resultant testimony before Sen
ate and House Committees on let*
tat that prohibitive clauses to the
use of scientific management pro
posals in defense facilites were
adopted. These studies clearly
demonstrated the menace of the
speed-up, stretch-out and other
engineering proposals, which
made an automaton of tho indi
vidual, rather then a human bm>
ing.
John was choeen on several oc
casions to represent either the
American Federation of Labor, or
the United States on missions to
Europe. He served as a frater
nal delegate to the British Tradt
Union Congreaa in 1909. He was
secretary of the first labor mis
sion, appointed 1>y President Wil
son from the United States to
Allied countries in 1918. He ac
companied President Gompers to
Europe in 1918 in support of the
over-all was effort. He attended
‘the 1921 and 1994 conventions of
tho Pan-American Federation of
Labor, representing the AFL. In
1927 he was a labor advisor to
the American Delegation «f the
International Labor Economic
Conference la* Geneva Switaer
land.
John became recognised as a
national figure in the trade un
ion movement with hia election
to the American Federation of
Labor convention in 1901; a dele*
gateahip to which he waa regu
larly elected, with two years’ ex*
ception, through 1949. He served
as secretary of the Committee on
Resolutions of the AFL conven
tion, continually from 1908
through 1924. In 1934 he again
became secretary of the Commit*
tee on Resolutions and served
through 1949. Few men in the
union movement have made their
influence felt in AFL conventions
as much as has John Frey. He
was a close personal friend and
confidante of President Sam
Gompers for a great many years
The city of Norwood, Ohio,
where he made his home after
leaving Worcester to become part
of the international family of the
Molders, honored him by making
him president of the Board of
Education, in which capacity he
served from 1917 through 1921.
Also, during this period of
residence in the State of Ohio, he
became president of the Ohio
State Federtion of Labor from
1924 through 1928. It was during (
his term of office as president of
the State Federation of Labor
that the federation sponsored
the A n|i-Yellow Dog Contract
bill and served as a pattern for
other State Federations of Labor
to follow. The Ohio law was in-!
Lorporated in its entirety, in the"
Xorris-LaGuardia Anti-injunction
bill.
Hf was commissioned a lieu
(Continued On Page 4)
DON’T
ALIBI
LATER
REGISTER
NOW
WASHINGTON. — Marshall
Plan Labor Adviser Bert M. Jew
el! told a visiting team of French
trade unionists here this week
that according to French figures
the wage-price structure in their
country is "out of line” and asked
what they planned to do about
it.
Simultaneously, he made it
plain that the Economic Co-oper
ation Administration and Ameri
can labor will support a program
to lower prices and improve pur
chasing power.
“Wages have fallen way be
hind <« the foot-race with prices,”
Jewell declared, at * meeting
with It leaders ef major French
non-communist trade unions now
•tudytnf _ U. S. l*bof edueagot
rr.etKod* ” "When production ha»
been iacreaaed as much ss it had.,
in France, there ia some need
for trying to find a way to dis
tribute more widely results of alt
this—so that workers will have
greater purchasing power ...”
He continued: “1 want to
make it very clear that so far
concerned, we are
looking for this team to help,
to show how the results of In
creased productivity should be
distributed fairly among the
people and the workers, possibly
through reduction of prices or
increase in wages.”
At the same time the former
key American Federation of La
bor official emphasised that the
“time is now here when every
effort should be bent” to build
strong free trade unions in
France*. %
“We want to do everythin* r~
can to Nip . you build your fr
trado anion* and to Nip
overcoiOn tN influence o'
Communist unions, which
rimenUT to your' cooarfy ” ho* as
serted “flut,” N added, “we
can't come over and do tN or
ganizing for you — that’s your
job.” <
He said American trade un
ionists would be happy to visit *
France and assist in any way
possible, provided they’re needed,
wanted and invited.
Jewell also suggested that
French labor leaders establish a
free trade union advisory com
mittee to consult with the ECA
Mission in France on the dis
tribution of MarsNll Plan funds,
"We want your views on what
we’re doing and why.” he said.
Miss Denyse Wurmser, 45, a
teacher and member of the
Force Ouvriere, speaking of the
recent Government action fixing
a minimum wage, said: “The
Government has tried to please
both labor and management —
but has tended to lean toward
the cmnlover ” .————
She suggested that as many
U. S. labor teams as “possible”
be sent to France, particularly
from the rank and file.
Pierre Chevallier, member of
the Executive Committee of the
Railroad Federation, CGC, in
charge of education programs,
said he felt teams should be
very carefully “planned”’ before
being sent. He was critical of
the French tax system and held,
too, that no increase in produc
tivity will be possible “without
the intellectual participation of
management.”
Roger Hagnauer, Assistant to
Secretary, National Federation of
Education, FQ, said that “by all
possible means,” contact between
American and French workers
should be increased.
Following the meeting, in the
board room at ECA headquarters,
the team was received by George
Delaney, AFL International Rep
resentative. Today they visited
the national oices of the CIO
and the International Association
of Machinists (Ind.).
Later. Jewell welcomed a team
of Austrians, composed of three
members of the Austrian Parlia
ment and three key Austrian
trade union officials.
Roger Ernst, who is in charge
of the ECA’s Austrian desk
here, asserted that the record of
increase in production in Austria
has been “large and astound
ning.’ However, there is still “a
great deal of room for improve
ment,” he said.