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

More documents

Recommendations

Info

A History of Organized Felony and Folly Right of Free Speech The Labor Day address of Samuel Gompers on the "right of free speech" and his fear that this right would be abridged by the temporary injunction granted on the application of Attorney General Daugherty make it interesting to revive the attitude of one of the country's principal unions on this "right" among its own members. Of course, there is no clear line of demarcation between the right of free speech and the abuse of oral license, but if the provocation of a strike is a right the expression of an individual opinion on a legislative question can hardly be termed an abuse. Section 11 of the "Constitution and Statutes" of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers provides: "Any member or division refusing to sustain the official acts or instructions of the legislative board, or who circulates or signs any petition, or who, by verbal or written communication to railroad officials or others, calculated to injure or interfere with legislative matters offered by the legislative board, or at any time makes suggestions to railroad officials or to state legislators that may be detrimental to the interests of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers or any train service organization, shall be expelled, when proven guilty, as per Section 49 of the statutes." The members of this brotherhood are admittedly among the most intelligent and dependable workers in the country, yet their union affiliation denies them the right, granted under the constitution to millions of men of lesser capabilities, to speak their minds freely on legislative issues. The issues whereon the locomotive engineers would be likely to have an opinion are the issues on which, of all others, these men would be likely to have the best considered opinions. Thus, not only are they denied the right of expressing their opinions, but the country is denied the advantage of their opinions. Nor is Section 11 a mere stuffed club to frighten the timid. In 1916 it proved to be a big stick and was swung freely and with disastrous effect on the victims by "Brother" Stone. 74
A History of Organized Felony and Folly At that time the Interstate Commerce Commission was taking testimony on the question of requiring carriers to install high-power headlights on their locomotives. This question was being, considered, not in the interest of unions or of railroads, but in the interest of the traveling public whose safety was involved. There was a difference of opinion even among experts, some claiming that the high-power lights were an advantage by lighting the tracks for a greater distance, while others claimed that the lights, by blinding the engineers, prevented them from seeing signals. Here was a question on which the free opinions of individual engineers, the best informed men in the country on this subject, would have been of the utmost importance to all and of far more importance to the people at large than to the engineers themselves. But "Brother" Stone favored the highpower headlights and proceeded to invoke Section 11 against all testimony in opposition to their installation. One of the engineers, who opposed high-power headlights and testified against them, was nervous at the prospect, and was reassured by Stone, who said that "nobody who tells the truth was ever thrown out of the brotherhood." He needed this reassurance, because two other engineers had testified that they had been ousted from the organization on the sole charge that they had opposed high-power headlights before the commission, while the truth of their testimony had never been called in question. W. H. Eother, an engineer on the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis, testified that he had been tried and acquitted by local division of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, No. 492 of Indianapolis, on charges preferred by Grand Chief Stone of violating the "laws" of the brotherhood in having testified before the Interstate Commerce Commission that he regarded electric headlights as dangerous. After Rother's acquittal, Grand Chief Stone recalled the charter of Division 492, organized a new division in its stead and excluded Rother, together with those who had voted for acquittal and those who had refused to obey an order not to associate with Rother. 75
Page 1:
isisi A History of ORGANIZED FELONY
Page 5 and 6:
CHAPTER CONTENTS PAGE "Uplifting" t
Page 7 and 8:
CHAPTER PACE Unionists Slay Under W
Page 9:
Introduction The Wall Street Journa
Page 12 and 13:
A History of Organized Felony and F
Page 14 and 15:
Page 16 and 17:
Page 18 and 19:
Page 20 and 21:
Page 22 and 23:
Page 24 and 25: A History of Organized Felony and F
Page 88 and 89: \ — — — A History of Organize
Page 104: A History of Organized Felony and F
show all

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

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?