Page Six

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October &, 192%

The Peoples Advocate
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Vancouver, B.C., Friday, October 8. 1937

Trade Unions and the
Unemployed
ONGRATULATIONS are in order for the
wholly successful ending to the plucky
fight put up by Local 348, Projectionists Union,
against the powerful movie monopoly and, as
was stated in the Trades and Labor Council
this week, against the wishes of the BC goy-
ernment.

The trend toward higher wages and the
shorter working day, made possible by the
unity and strength displayed by the trade
union movement is in striking contrast to the
distressful conditions that are imposed upon
that surplus army of labor—the unemployed.

Apart from the humanitarian side of the
question, the good sense and generalship dis-
played by the trade union moyement, both
locally and mationally, should make it possible
in the very near future for serious discussions
and subsequent action to press the issue or a
public works program on the governments and
in this manner close the gap that exists between
the employed and unemployed.

Human beings can only stand so much and
desperate men will begin to look upon low
wages as riches compared to reliet seales. In
this lies the main danger to union labor and
which calls for a definite policy and program
that will give tangible assistance to suitering
thousands.

Behind the Scenes in Alberta

ee weeks now the daily papers have de-
voted columns of news to Alberta, news
that has been subtly colored to leave the desired
impression. that a spontaneous mass movement
of the people against the Aberhart government
is forming. In their editorials Aberhart has
been alternately called a Fascist and a Com-
munist, his advisers ‘foreign agitators.”
Ridicule and abuse have been hurled at the
Social Credit government and its early down-

fall predicted.

But while the Aberhart government has laid
itself wide open to attack from those who know
80 well how to juggle with democratic phrase-
ology by its insistence on proceeding with its
restrictions of the press, there is another side
to the picture.

Examined carefully, the “mass movement of
protest” proyes to be largely the fabrication
of the People’s League, which in itself com-
bines the most reactionary elements of both
Conservative and Liberal parties in Alberta.
There is a movement against the Aberhart goy-
ernment, it is true. But its sponsors and prin-
cipal adherents are the same representatives ot

_ big business who have consistently and with all
the resources at their command opposed it.

Tt must not be forgotten that the people of
Alberta voted for Aberhart as against the old-
line parties. The hollow promises of Social

| EDITORIZD FER

Credit which it cannot fulfil bedazzled them,
but the very fact that they voted against the
capitalist parties is an indication of this desire
for progress.

The People’s League, in devious ways, is at-
tempting to use the failure of Aberhart to fulfil
his promises to return reaction to power. And
behind the People’s League is the whole
streneth of Canada’s big financial and indus-
trial interests.

Tt is precisely because, where it has adopted
practical progressive measures, the Aberhart
government has threatened the bankers and
financiers, that such strenuous efiorts are being
made to oust it,

Such acts as that euaranteecing labor's right
to organize in unions of its own choice and to
collective bargaining are not to the liking of
the big interests. The legislation relieving Al-
berta bankers of $2,000,000 annually, to return
to the people money squeezed out of them, has
‘been bitterly opposed. :

Resolutions passed in the last session, one
demanding of the King government why
Canada voted to oust Spain from the League
of Nations Council, the other urging economic
action against Japan, which merit support of
all progressives, received scant space in the
press. But whem the bankers are threatened
whole pages are devoted to highly colored and
misleading reports.

Beban Disaster W hitewashed

66 O blame can be laid against any imdi-
vidual in the Beban Mine disaster of last

June when three men lost their lives, aceord-
ing to the finding of R. R. Wilson, M.E.. of
Vancouver, who conducted the enjwiry in the’
fatality on behalf of the B.C. Department of
Mines. His report was released Saturday night
by Hon. George S. Pearson, minister of mines.
“<Mhere was an admitted error of judgment,
Mr. Wilson points out in allowing an insuffici-
ent factor of safety im connection with the dis-
tance the old No. 1 Extension mine workings
extended beyond the poimt shown by the old
mine plan. But this error, he stated, could not
be attributed to any one individual but repre-
sented the combined judgment of all the vari-

“ous parties directly concerned. Such an error,

he added, might just as readily have oceurred
in any other mine based on the same incom-
plete and inaceurate data. “All the olicials con-
cermed are experienced and conscientious in the
discharge of their various duties,’ he found.

“<The direct cause of the accident was the
failure to file with the department of mines an
accurate mine plan of the old No. 1 mine, com-
pletely up-to-date at the time otf abandonment.’

“The Beban mine fatality, together withthe
recent flooding of the Northfield mine, he as-
serts, have focussed attention on and empha-
sized the necessity of amending the Coal Mines
Regulations Act to provide adequate sate-
guards god protection for the lives ot the men
employed.”

The above is a reprint of an article in the
Nanaimo Free Press which needs no comment
to show how evasive are these “enquiries,” the
intent of which is to cover up and allow the
time factor to blunt the indignation of citizens.

As in the Copper Mountain disaster some

months ago when a cage erashed 400 feet to
the shatt bottom because of worn-out saiety
devices, the only answer is union conditions
which demand satety committees composed of

WMIWers.

_The United Mine Workers’ Union in the
Nanaimo district should take steps to see that
real tests are made of old mine workings to
prevent further tragedies to brother unionists
and their families.

The Temper of the British
People

FTER his third attempted march through

the streets of London since May this year

Sir Oswald Mosley, leader of the British Union

of Fascists, should have no illusions as to the

temper of the British people toward those who

side with the murderers of women and children
‘im Hthiopia and Spam and China.

Barricades were raised in the streets and
from strategic rooftops missiles were hurled
down on the blackshirted marchers. Despite
strong: police protection for the Fascists, a de-
termined crowd of London anti-Fascists esti-
mated at 100,000 barred the route of Mosleys
7,000 marehers. Not cheers but the anti-Fascist
salute greeted Britaim’s aspiring feuhrer.

~ s

And when 96 of their number were charged
in court with rioting, hundreds ot police with
linked arms were required to hold back the
erowd.

It should not have been these anti-Fascists
who appeared in court, these peace-loving men
and women who saw in the hated symbols ot
Fascism paraded through Jondon streets, a
menace -to their own democratic rights. Siz Os-
wald Mosley and his lieutenants should have
been in that dock charged with deliberate in-
tent to ereate disorder and incitement to riot.
But Sir Oswald Mosley goes free, the idol of
Mayfair.

Britain’s anti-Fascists will not tolerate the
flaunting of murder and rapine any more than
anti-Fascists elsewhere in the world and Sun-

day’s demonstration is a sure indication of the

erowing realization in Britain that the time
to oppose Fascism is now—before it is too late.

Mosher and Local Renegades

T would be a mistake to imagine that A.
Mosher, ACCL leader, came all the way
from Eastern Canada to talk to the forlorn 50-
odd who eame to hear his attack on the Am-
erican [Federation of Tabor at the Moose
Temple Thursday.

Coming immediately after the recent at-
tempt by a group of union renegades to estab-
lish an ‘“‘independent Jabor council,” Mosher,
by the type and number of contacts made dur-
ing his visit here, is attempting to consolidate
these elements that would challenge the genu-
ine trade union movement.

His shameless proposals made at the Moose
Temple that Canadian labor should collaborate
with captains of industry and “maintain in-
dustrial peace” by this method is further in-
dication of the unionism for which he stands.

Obviously his plans fit in with the open-
shop policy of the Shipping Federation and
Loggers’ Association who see in Mosher a
fitting tool to keep the Vancouver waterfront

In its present condition of weakness and di-
vision.

While “independent labor councils” in B.C.
are doomed to die at birth because of the
healthy hatred displayed even by backward
workers to this sort of thing, yet the Moshers,
Thompsons, Burgesses and other renegades are
a thorn im the side of labor and until the vast
number of wnorganized workers are unionized
by genuine trade union leaders, the employers
will exploit to the full such situations that ex-
ist in the provinee today.

The Trades and Labor Couneil is the au-

thoritative body to take action and make it
impossible for these renegades to thrive.

of Canada on the
Pacific

HE British government has opened the
doors to let fighting planes go to China.
The Australian government, under the
shadow of scheduled Japanese invasion, has
put forward a proposal that a conference of all
threatened Pacific countries be called to curb
Japanese ageression in China and destroy the
“time table’? Japanese Fascists have drawn up
for Pace conquest. 2

Defence

The French government, following up the
League-of Nations condemnation of Fascist
barbarity in China, proposes a sub-committee
fo study what can be done to check this and the
Japanese invasion of peaceful China.

The United States associates itself with the
democratic countries m ‘the League in opposi-
tion to the far-reaching plans of the Fascists of
Japan.

But the cables report that the voice of
Canada is silent in Geneva. They report that
Senator Dandurand expressly retrained from
voting ou the appointment of a sub-committee
on the grounds that he had received no instruc-
tions from Ottawa. Yet when he voted against
the re-election of Spain to the League Council,
thus giving aid and comfort to the Fascists of
the west and his present inaction gives aid and
comfort to the Fascists of the east, Ottawa
explained that he did so on his own initiative
and without imstructions.

We would like to think that Senator Dan-
durand’s failure to back a measure against
Japan is due to the fact that he was rebuked
for yoting, on his own responsibility, against
Spain. But that would imply that Ottawa was
maintaining a delegate at Geneva while giving
him no instructions and rapping him when he
acted on his own initiative.

: No. Instructions or no instructions Ottawa
is responsible in either case for the actions of
its representative in the Council of Nations.

Therefore Ottawa must be compelled to line
up with the democratic countries in crying halt
to the overlords of Japan. Its China’s turn
now. It will be ours later on. Tb help China
today is an act of defense for Canada herself.

We must follow the lead of public opimion

in Britain and move to boycott Japan and to

make supplies available for invading China.
That, and all parallel policies, should be our
program in the League of Nations and in the
proposed Pacific conference.

To Deny Role

By ROBERT LEALESS

Ghinese peoples. And this distor-
tion of Socialism appears

Of Aggressor

lines where there are class lines

in a we are going to see them eutting:

mocracy, bourgeois democracy, he

z : tarian
would be ‘repeating the tragic

revolutionaries and true
sons of our people. When we come

Nations Is To Assist Fascism

about Macieod’s “acting“as capi-

ON SMITH, editor of

The Federationist, has
done what no Fascist would
openly dare do: use this CCF
paper in an attempt to dis-
organize the growing resist-
ance of the people against
the liberty destroying wars
of Japanese, German and
Italian Fascism.

In order to hide his own despic-
able part in the struggle of the
Spanish people for their imdepen-
dence, Smith directs his fire
against an outstanding fighter for
peace and democracy, A. A. Mac-
Teod, national chairman of the
Canadian League for Peace and
Democracy. He likens the speech
of Macleod to the speeches of the
reformist labor leaders of 1914 in
support of imperialist war- What
hollowness of thought!

The CCF has come to 2 Sorry
plight when such a person is al-
Jowed to call upon his readers to
treat with “contempt” the ideas
and leadership of the international
struggle for peace and democracy.
We has the effrontry to call for
this attack upon the anti-war
forces, “in the name of the work-
ers who were persuaded to com-
mit suicide in 1914,” while in this
entire full page article Smith ut-
¢ers not one word of encourage-
ment or praise for the workers of
4937 who are heroically defending
and laying down their lives to in-
sure victory of the Spanish people.

In his article, Smith actually
tears to shreds resolution adopted
by the CCE national conyention
supporting the Spanish Loyalists.
Giving the reason why this reso-
jution has so far remained mainly
on paper, he indicates that as far
as he personally is concerned he
will do everything in his power
to prevent his readers from rally-
ing to the support of the Spanish
and Chinese peoples. Smith helps
no one but the Fascists by such a
contemptible article.

BE even See the length of
accusing MacLeod of ‘Sugeling
with national hatreds to preserve
capitalism” because the League
for Peace and Democracy is rally-
ing support for the Spanish and

paper that claims to speak for
Socialists.

What is Smith’s style? He ap-
pears as a “‘big”’ revolutionist, one
who is not concerned with the
petty jealousies of the capitalist
class and calls upon the workers
to take no sides in these quarrels
because “the results to the masses
will be similar” regardless which
side wins.

He expresses concern that the
workers are repeating the tragic
blunder of 1914 in supporting the
people of Spain and China. By
“reason,’ he attempts to delude
supporters of the peace and anti-
Fascist movement. -

Smith is very much perturbed
by the correct statement of Mac-
Leod, “That there are three ¢crim-
inal nations in the world,” and re-
plies to Macleod, ‘There are no
criminal nations, and the sooner
the workers of every country
realize that and commence to
think and act on that assumption
the sooner will the danger of them
committing another mass suicide
vanish.” How lovingly he will be
embraced by the Fascists for this
“assumption!”

The world’s most famous pro-
ponents of Socialism never ad-
yocated such ideas regarding war-
In fact, they consistently fought
against such dogma putting itself
forward as analysis.

*

DS EOE Vee theory and

practice teaches that there
are various kinds of wars—wars
of national emancipation, of revo-
jution, of imperialism. Marxism-
Leninism demands a concrete
analysis of every given war, De-
cause only on the basis of such an
analysis can correct tactics and
slogans be arrived at. General
wars are non-existent. All wars
are speciife and concrete. They
arsie out of the nature of the his-
torical period in which they take
place and the relationship of
classes on the international arena
and in the warring countries in.
particular.

Smith maintains, “there is an
exploiting class and an exploited
class within each ‘nation’ the
world over and if the workers are
going to see artificial ‘national’

each other’s throats once again to
preserve these same class lines.”

In the present case of Spain and
China Smith would have the
workers apply the correct slogan
of Liebknecht when applied to im-
perialist war, “the enemy is in
your own country,” incorrectly
applied to Spain and China. This
was the defeatist method that the
Trotskyites used in Barcelona.
The enemy is the people’s front
government, they asserted, and at-
tacked loyal Spaniards from the
rear.

In China an entire people is
united against Japanese imperial-
ism. Defeat of this imperialism
will mean defeat of all imperial-
isms in China. Hence to say in
such a war, “that the enemy is- in
your own country,” would mean
to attack the Chinese people and
to aid Japanese imperialism to
victory. In Japan, however, it is
to the interests of the Japanese
people and of the international
proletariat, to direct the struggle
against “the enemy which is in
their own country-”

The people must endeavor to use
all the differences existing im the
position of the various imperialist
powers, using them skilfully in the
interests of peace, but not for one
moment forgetting the necessity
of delivering a blow against the
enemy in their own ecountries—
their own imperialisms. This,
however, does not mean that we
should follow the advice of Smith
and “take up the parrot-like ery,
‘there are no criminal nations’.”

ASCISM is the mortal enemy
of the Communist, Socialist
and Trade Union movement. Lt
must be defeated before we can
advance along the road to So-
sialism, no matter where TEE ats},
Would Marx have called upon
the people to come to the aid of
the Spanish and Chinese peoples?
Marx in 1848-49 fought together
with the democratic bourgeoisie
of Germany for the democratic re-
publie as an jmmediate aim. He
write: ‘Our actual opposition first
begins when the black-red-gold
republic is established.” Karl
Marx had no fear that in ealling
upon the people to fight for de-

blunder.”

Marx fought along with the
bourgeoisie for the German Tre-
public for the reason, “that the
German workers may straightway
use, as sO Many weapons against
the bourgeoisie, the social and po-
litical conditions that the bour-
geoieie must necessarily introduce
along with its supremacy, in order
that, after the fall of the reac-
tionary classes in Germany, the
fight against the pourgeoisie itself
may begin.” (Communist Mani-
festo, Page 43, International Pub-
lishers edition).

Marx, in 1848, demanded that
Germany and France declare war
against Czarist Russia because it
was the main buttress of reaction.
Is not Fascism a hundred times
more murderous and reactionary
than Czarist Russia ever was?
And, while today the international
peace movement does not call for
war on Fascism, it is calling for
the unity of all anti-war forces to
prevent outbreak of imperialist
war. All fair-minded people must
admit that there would be no
question as to the position Marx
would tale in calling for aid for
Spain and China.

The position of
Wapoleon If, to the
Civil war against slavery, to the
national struggle of the Irish and
Polish peoples should be made
better known to the people of
British Columbia so the pseudo-
revyolutionists of the type of Smith
may not be able to use false argu-
ments against the people of Spain
and China in the name of So-
cialism.

Marx towards

*
IMITROFE has given the
answer to Don Smith in the
following words:

“When we carry on a resolute
struggle for the defence of demo-
cratic rights and liberties, against
reaction and Fascism, we do so as
Marxists, as consistent proletarian
revolutionaries and not as bour-
geois democrats or reformists.
When we come forward in de-
fence of the national interests of
our own people, in defence of their
jndependence and liberties, we do
not become nationalists or bour-
geois patriots; we do as prole-

forward in defence of religious
freedom, against the Fascist per-
secution of believers, we do not
retreat from our Marxist outlook,
which is free of all religious
superstitions.”

Instead of Smith being worried

talism’s recruiting sergeant,” let
him in future answer why J. 8.
Wroodsworth, Angus Mcfnnis, Dr.
Iuyle Telford, the Winches and
other prominent leaders of the
GGF are not doing as much to
rally the people against war as
MacLeod is doing.

The Ruling Ciawss

By REDFIELD

American -

“We'd better

hurry home before they hatch out.”

i

SOD
By
OL’ BILL
Guest Part of this col-
Col 4 umn is turned over
OlummMist 6 a local trade un—

jonist today. He cut out buying:
the “Sun” during the Burns strike
and was later importuned by the
circulation manager of that smelly
rag. He received a letter whick
contained a long list of the cam-~
paigns the “Sun’’ has either initi-
ated or aided in, and a reply en=
yvelope for which the “Sun” was
willing to pay double postage-
Here is the letter he sent:

The Vancouver Sun. —~

“All the lies that are fit to print.”

Sir: Since you are, on your Ow?
say-so, trying to publish a good
paper Il tell you how to do it.
First, get out of the toils of the
‘Shipping Federation, the mining
moguls and the other gougers who
exploit the workers of BG anc
whose interests you so consistent
ly serve. If you take this step
you may then be in a position to
print news that bears some sem=
pblance to the truth, news that
might explain why one million
and sixty thousand Canadien
people, not counting” panhandlers,
were living on relief during the
past year.

Such a step might also enable
you to lend support to the efforts

of the miserably paid and fiercely —

driven slaves of the mining, log-
gine and shipping industries whem
they attempt to organize unions
that will better their standard of
life and prevent them from being:
murdered so that companies like
the Consolidated Mining and
Smelting Company of Trail can
pay about $2.50 dividend on 4 $5
share as they did this year.

You might also be able to alter
the editorial policies of your lying
rag so that your Pascist tenden-
cies do not show so openly in your
political writing, now glaring im
spite of your furtive attempts te
hide them. You would spill the
blood of Ganada’s youth, male and
female. on another altar of capi-
talist greed, as you helped to do
in the last war and the news you
publish is largely propaganda for
that purpose. For these reasons ©
don’t want your paper.

Like a good bourgeois, you try
to place the blame on the delivery
boy. ‘On second thought,” you
say. But you know that was real-
ly your first thought. Every bour=
geois thinks that way and blames
others for his own failures.

Please print this in your edi-
torial page; it may help you te

lose some more worker subserib-

ers. I notice among your “major
campaigns” you do not mention
your present campaign against
the Cro.

Yours for the truth in the news-

P.S—1 wouldn’t have troubled
to answer your letter but I know
the answer will cost you 4 cents.

The writer's name is left off for
obvious reasons. Have any of you
who read the “Sun” seen this let-
ter on the editorial page? The
People’s Advocate and the Clarion
never receive endorsements of this
kind, and this should be a goog
Treason for everybody who esti-
mates the worth of the capitalist

press as the writer of the above

letter does to get solidly behing
the present press drive.

Se eee Ae
> . Already donations
pow Miss are coming in to

help pile up OY
Bill’s share of that $3000. The
South WVancouyer section of the
CP has sent in $5 for a start
which should be an encourage-
ment to other press committees,

Wext week, on this page, you
will find a digest of the history of
civilization, at least what history
looks like to me. Well, here is &
proposal to help the PA and Clar~
ion. I will get the “Pageant of
History” printed on good paper,
with a neat border, suitable for
framing. To everyone who sends
me a twenty-five cent donation
for this column, a copy will be
sent on return. To press commit-
tees who would like to boost their
contributions by using the “Pag-
eant,” selling it in their terri-
tories, I will send two copies for
each twenty-five cents they do-
nate—this is, we go fifty-fifty. As
soon as it is printed a copy will be
on display in the office of the PA
and the New Age Book Shop.
Rush in the donations! Three
thousand dollars is a lot of money

= * =

The sorrows of
Hay and E the babbits on
Clover Next tne Relief De-

partment are almost over, at least
they will be almost over, and “as
long as grass grows” the Wwat=
lords will have no fear of a food
blockade. If there is any sub-
stance in the statement made by
Dr. Slade, a London delegate, to
a recent meeting of the Britisb
Association.

“Cheese” is now being made out
of grass, and 600 pounds of this

“nutritious and palatable” protein
can be mowed off an acre of land.
Of course it will only be for the
workers like the cactus described
by an American scientist somé
time ago, that would make “excel-
lent food for horses, cattle and
working people.”

i
i
i
a

She Coe Lay ea: