A History of Organized Felony and Folly - The Clarence Darrow ...

A History of Organized Felony and Folly
P. A. Cooley, business agent, Local No. 58, New Orleans,
La,: Original sentence six years; pardon refused; conviction
sustained by Circuit Court of Appeals.
Frank M. Ryan, (president, when convicted), delegate to
convention of iron trade unions at Pittsburgh; general shop
organizer, Chicago district: Original sentence seven years;
released on bond; ordered back to Leavenworth by Circuit
Court of Appeals.
John T. Butler, president and treasurer, Local 233, shopmen,
Buffalo, N. Y.: Original sentence six years; pardon
refused; conviction sustained by Circuit Court of Appeals.
William E. Reddin, financial secretary and business
agent. Local No. 8, Milwaukee, Wis.: Original sentence three
years; released on bond; refused pardon by President, and
ordered back to Leavenworth by Circuit Court of Appeals.
Seven of these names appeared in the roster of officers
contained in the Bridgemen's Magazine for January, 1922,
those of Houlihan, Beum, Cooley, Ryan and Butler having
disappeared from the list.
This roster discloses quite clearly how far a union
affiliated with Mr. Gompers* Federation of Labor may be
trusted to punish its criminals.
Unionism a Law^ unto Itself
Enough has been written in these columns to show that a
large part of the leadership of the union movement in
America either promotes crime or condones crime. It is only
fair to say of Samuel Gompers, the head of the movement,
that he has never publicly counseled atrocities—and seldom
condemned them—but he has frequently expressed a theoreti-
cal disregard for law that must have borne criminal fruit
among hundreds of his ignorant, susceptible and corrupt fol-
lowers.
Something has been said concerning Mr. Gompers* early
defense of the McNamaras and his later repudiation. Reference
has also been made to the sympathy manifested by
some of his organizations for Mooney and Billings. It will be
remembered, further, that he publicly excused the East St.
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