| [This Week in the House Western Canada’s Leading: Progressive The People’s Advocate Newspaper St. James Street Strikes Through Duplessis PAGE TWO = FULL NO. 149 <=> Published Weekly VANCOUVER, B.C., FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 1937 Single Copies: 5 Cents VOL. III, No. 45 1 ee ve corridors in the parliament building were deserted during the lat- ter part of last week and over the long week-end, with prac- tically the entire legislature attending the opening of the Pattullo Bridge. Notice of evening Sessions appeared on the order paper and it is expected that shortly there will be three sessions a day. One of the most noticeable things during the last fortnight has been the waste of time, both in meaning— less debate and holidays. This means that little time will be left to debate legislation which is of vital importance to the people of the province. Bills to shorten the Hours of Work Act, bills to im- prove safety regulations for work- ers in industry, bills concerning health insurance, labor's trade union bill and other progressive measures will, if handled as in the past, be crowded in one on top of the other. A NON-CONFIDENGE vote in the Pattullo government for its failure to put health insurance into operation was moved by Mrs. Steeves and seconded by E. E. Winch. The member for Burnaby Charged that the £overnment had failed to introduce health insurance because it had heeded the lament of big business. “Are we going to continue to cater to the small group of vested interests that have bucked health insurance right along,” he demanded, “or are we So0ing to see that the people get the act they want? It all boils down to this. The government gave a def- inite undertaking of a health Scheme which, while far from ade— quate, was better than nothing, and it hes failed to carry it out.” Dr. Weir appeared from the gal- lery to rather enjoy the barrage of attack aimed at the prime minister | and more conservative elements of the cabinet. From the voluminus note taken on both Sides of the » house it is obvious this will provide @ major assault on the ministry. A 5 NOTHER legislative measure which, according to mimor of the corridors, is a “‘thorn in the # sides of the government’ is the » trade union bill. Harold Winch has three times during the past ten | days queried Premier Pattullo re- | Sarding the bill, and each time re | ceived the answer: “I have no ob- | servations to make.” On Tuesday, in the belief the sovernment did not cee LE CIVIL RIGHTS A SAILED IN FU ope Ask Gov’t For Facts Civic Housing Report Reveals Sorry Conditions City Council Endorses Proposal For Long Range Housing Program After Exhaustive Surveys By University Men and W orkers’ Alliance. On Bridge Finance Spread Not Explained In State-= ments Made Public In Press. TOLLS HIGH NEW WESTMINSTER, BC, Nov. 18.—lLast glimmer- ing hopes that toll charges on the new Pattullo bridge across the Fraser would be lifted were dispelled With the of- ficial opening of the bridge this week when a modified toll tariff was announced. Evasive statements by Tom Reid, MP (Lib., New Westminster), im- plying that negotiations were being conducted between provincial and federal governments with a view to making the bridge free, served to maintain hopes ‘that a politic last-minute announcement would be forthcoming. At the same time, these statements were calculated to offset a petition signed by the Majority of Fraser Valley farmers. Signatures to this petition have now topped the 4,000 mark. Industrial workers here who must cross the bridge dally to work are incensed by charges im- posed upon them after announce Complete and devastating evidence of the present housing situation in Vancouver was presented to the city council last Monday by the civic housing committee in its interim report and endorsation of an adequate housing program, urged by the committee, was given by unanimous vote. In a 12-page report, attached to which is a graph showing the growth of population, registration of births, deaths and marriages, and number of dwellings erected, a startling housing need is clearly shown. Among other surveys, two pages are allotted to the recent survey made by the Workers’ Alliance which covered a rep- resentative area of the city. Other Surveys were made by students of the sociology department of the University of BC. Specific houses, with number of occupants and state of dwelling is given in the Workers’ Alliance survey and a sorry story is told. Nearly all houses mentioned are declared as unsanitary, with leaking roofs and a number have already been officially condemned. Rats, mice and vermin infest some. Deplorable Housing Shortage The graph shows a slight upward trend in dwelling con- struction in the past two years, but the average cost is $3,000, which is far above the resources of those needing housing most. Vancouver’s population is reughly divided into four groups: those who have plenty of money, modest incomes, CHARGE BROUGHT AGAINST P! Empress of Canada Picketed fe —Weand Studio Photo Above are shown some of the pickets who greeted the Empress of Canada when she docked here Wednesday with a cargo from Japan. A big crowd watched from the road above the wharf. ‘Fascist Organization On Doorstep’ Bengough Denounces New Industrial Association “My frank opinion is we have a Fascist organization on » intend to introduce the bill, the GCF » member for Vancouver East gave ) notice that the CCF group intends ,to proceed. Later, on the under ” standing that the cabinet was dead- those who can pay only a charity. smal] rent, those in receipt of Empty dwellings are shown as 2.9 per cent, whereas 5 per cent Is-needed- for normal - yo ment had been made that “any motor vehicle used exclusively for the purpose of transporting in- + dustrial workers” sould be ex- conditions. — empt from tolls on the authoriza- our doorstep,” declared Secretary P. Bengough, after the Trades and Labor Council this week had instructed him to: send a vigorous protest to Premier Pattullo regarding forma- tion of an employers’ Industrial Association of BG; avowed ) locked over the issue and that it was | to be referred to the Liberal caucus » for a decision, the GCF notice to in- ) troduce the so-called Bill 62 en- ' dorsed by the Trades Union Con- ) gress was withdrawn, pending » further action from the ministry. ; Mrs. Steeves has given notice of ) amendment to the Minimum Wage |) Act which would empower the In- ' dustrial Relations Board to fix minimum wages for domestic / servants. Volunteer To ‘Speak In City "Sergeant Wally Dent ‘Has Served In Famous ‘Canadian Battalion In - Spain. By WILLIAM PURVIS A tall, eager youth who, at twenty years, is a sergeant in Can- ada’s famous Mackenzie-Papineau ‘Battalion, a unit of the Interna- ) tional Brigade in Spain, sat across a desk from me one day this week jand told of the historic Brunete Nand Belchite offensives in which ethe Loyalists demonstrated their Iright to rank as one of the finest ‘fighting forces in Europe and the "Canadians proved themselves "worthy of their country’s finest Straditions. Vancouver will have an oppor- | tunity te hear Wally Dent next Sunday evening at the Colonial theatre when he speaks with A. | E. Smith, and New Westminster | will hear him Sunday afternoon ' when he appears at the West- | minster theatre, 6th street at 4th. A veteran of the Jarama defense in Hebruary this year when the Fascists launched their attack on the vital Madrid-Valencia high- way, young Dent told me how he ljoined the International Brigade learly this year at a time when the brigade was defending Madrid against well trained and equipped German troops, outnumbering the defenders two to one. For four months the brigade was in the front line, unable to get relief for She simple reason that there was jaone to take their places. Most of (che Canadian and American boys, Ihe said, had no training and “just aad to hang on until the govern- ‘ment could develop reserves.” “You see it was like this,” Dent fexplained: | “The Gabellero government was yacillating on the question of cen- ‘tralizing the people’s army under ®ne command and this, of course, showed in weak organization. Not until the Wegrin government got ts mandate to take over did the (Continued on page 5) See DENT In the report is a letter te the Mayor and city council] tion of the minister of public which states: “ae described as ‘slum conditions’ of the worst kind. The cases men- tioned in the report are typical of existing over-crowded housing con- ditions.” Headed by Alderman H. Gutter- idge, chairman, building, civic Planning and parks committee, With Professor F. B. Buck and A. J. Harrison, the committee de— clares that it is now engaged in pre- paring a comprehensive housing: plan, and, in the meantime, the city council is requested to study “the unfortunate conditions which exist in our city today.” WA Puts Case Financed by the Workers’ Alli- ance from collections taken at meetings of local branches and by borrowed money, five delegates will leave for Victoria, Saturday, Noy. 20, midnight, to present the case for the Vancouver city project workers to the government. Urge Caution At this week’s meeting of Van-' couver Trades and Labor Council Secretary Bengough was instruct- ed to write to Harold Winch, MLA, requesting him not to introduce the trade union bill to the House until asked by the committee appointed at the recent Victoria trade union conference. -.. much information has been gathered, which not only reveals a deplorable shortage of housing accommodation, but also Shows that many persons are living in what are generally War Material works. Toll Charge Besides pedestrians, who cross the bridge without charge, other : free classifications are supposed to be: Pedal bicycles and tricycles; animal on foot, led or driven; horse and buggy; motor vehicles carrying ‘KH’ license plates (vehicles trans- porting farmers and their produce to and from markets) empty or loaded; mail vans, school! or student buses, ambulances, police cars and fire apparatus; MILA’s and MP’s. Busses pay fifty cents, autos and trucks, twenty-five cents, motor- cycles, ten cents. Monthly tickets are: autos $3; trucks, from $5 to $15 according to weight. While the CGF motion in the House last week to consider toll charges “as a matter of urgent public importance” was voted down, a definite concession to pressure of public opinion, ex- pressed through the petition or- fanized by a trade union-farmer committee, is seen in exemption of ‘K’ vehicles. Shipment Hit Canadian Exports To Japan Scored by King Gordon in By - Election Campaign VICTORIA, BC, Nov. 18.—Declar- ing that the people of Canada can- not allow the issue to pass by, Pro- fessor J. King Gordon, CCF candi- date in the Victoria federal seat left vacant by the death of Dr. Tol- mie, scored the present shipments of war material by Canadian firms to Japan, in a speech to a crowded meeting at City Temple here this week. King declared that until the fun- damental causes of war were abol- ished, a rally of the democratic peoples against the aggressor was 2 deterrent and assisted in the maintenance of peace. Addressing the meeting in sup- port of the CCF candidate were M. J. Coldwell, CGF member at Ottawa for Rosetown-Biggar, Sask, and national chairman of the CCF: Colin Gameron, CCF member for Comox-Alberni; Mrs. Grace Mac- Innes; Nigel Morgan, chairman. By FRED TYLER Opening of the Pattullo bridge this week has left many wondering just how the undertaking was financed and who is profiting by monies invested. In a special advertising supple- ment on the bridge, the News- Herald, Vancouver morning daily, (Continued on page 5) See BRIDGE intention of which is to combat the trade union movement. Alex Fordyce Labor’s Choice 29 Local Unions Pledge Support Of Candidacy; Progressive Platform Put Forward. Carrying the endorsation of 29 local unions, Alex Fordyce, labor aldermanic candidate, this week opened an intensive campaign which progressive civic voters fully believe will win him a council seat. Branding the so-called WNon- Partisan Association as “the Citi- zen’s Leapue in a new guise, rep- resenting the most reactionary in- terests in the city,” Fordyce, in an interview with a PA reporter de- clared Thursday: “There is a long list of imme- diate problems on the city hall agenda — the intense suffering en- dured by thousands of families, the acute housing problem, the eriev- ous burden of bonded indebtedness now strangling progress, the high- handed policies of public utility companies—which call for imme- diate action. “The well-being of our city and its people are affected to a tremen- dous degree by the personnel of the council and few people are (Continued on page 5) See FORDYCE In the words of President Jamie- son, who moved that the protest be forwarded to the Premier, “the Serious questions now confronting this body justify the changing of the usual business procedure,” and permission was given to Bengough to introduce the reading of a copy of the constitution of the newly formed subversive organization which has its headquarters in the Marine Building. Gutstanding among reactionary by-laws read out by Bengough was the restriction on all mem- bers that approval of the execu- tive must be obtained before any agreements are signed with a trade union. Gnuly employers can be members of the association and a fee of $200 a year is set. As- sessments can be made of mem- bers at any time for reasons that may be decided upon by the ex- ecutive, which body is declared to be entirely arbitrary and cannot be questioned as to decisions. Bengough asserted that the Shipping Federation and boss Log- gers’ Association were prominent in this group which he described as being “a menace to the whole trade union movement.”’ The subject of Fascism in Canada was introduced by Sam Shearer, Railway Carmen, who reported on the recent BC convention of the Canadian League for Peace and De- mocracy. He warned on the com- ing attacks by capital on the trade union movement, Rising in support of Shearer's (Continued on page 5) See TRADES COUNCL. 1® {Support For Spain ... grade unionists demonstrate in support of the and (right) crowds, headed by marchers carryin Fights to Franco, parade through the streets of Paris, Loyalist government in the streets of Valencia (left) § a sign condemning the proposal to grant belligerent ——n—, hh —o— a aft p83 PAS DE RECONNAISSANCE OU BROIT BE eas Bak FRANCO Liideays ul Assembly Is Charge Empress Liner Pick- eted By Supporters Of League For Peace, De= mocracy. ARREST PICKETS At press time, Information that CPR interests are now pressing for preferment of “unlawful as- sembly” charges, was given ex- ecutive members of the Canadian League for Peace and Democracy. Such a charge has stiff penalties attached, the PA was told by Gar- field King, counsel for the ar- rested pickets. In preparation for such a situa- tion, the league, through the PA, requests all citizens who witnessed the picket incident, to report at the office of the League, 615 West Hastings. Hundreds of citizens and a mili- tant picket line demonstrated against the unloading of Japanese goods from the RMS Empress of Canada, when she docked at Pier D, CPR docks, Wednesday. Police arrested 28 of the pickets while the crowd jeered and hooted. Organized by the Canadian League for Peace and Democracy, members of which distributed thousands of handbills urging pub- lic support for the boycott of Japa- hese goods, a large number of pickets carrying slogans, sought to picket on the CPR ramp while 4 large crowd shouted encourage- ment. were girls, displayed boycott slo- gans until a large body of police arrived in the “wagon” to arrest them. ironical shouts of “Feil Hitler” and “Down with freedom of speech,” greeted this action of the police, many demonstraters raising clenched fists in the anti- Fascist salute. The arrested pickets were released the same evening, when they marched through the main streets displaying their slogans. They ap- peared in police court Thursday morning and were released in their Own recognizances on a week’s re- mand. Single Girls Are Accosted Police Are Slow To Take Action When Informed Procurers Exploiting Destitute. That there are dozens of procur- ers accosting single unemployed girls on Vancouver streets is the admission of detectives to officials of the Domestic Workers’ Union, which has now become a centre for destitute girls, refused relief for little or no reason. On information given the union by one girl, a reoming-house on West Hastings street was visited, but it required the assistance of a police matron to obtain the hotel register and locate S. Murack, the man named as a procurer by the girl Later, the landlady admitted that a large number of girls had been going to and from his room recently. Action from the police, however, was not forthcoming, one detective stating that the force would be working day and night to catch up with all those engaged in this traffic. Heart-rending stories from des- titute girls are being told daily to the Domestic Workers’ Union, offi- Cials state, and an increasing num- ber have signified their last resort to keep from starving or freezing, is to go on the streets. One case reported to the union by a girl who declared that she earned $4 a week and fed three other girls in her room at Arden Rooms, is typical of suffering en- dured by hundreds throughout the city. Another who came from the prairies eighteen months ago is broken in health after trying to hold a job which kept her busy fourteen hours a day at heavy work. Details of this case are on file at the union office, showing that the employer is a local doctor living at Shaughnessy Heights. Vancouver Trades and MTLabor Council this week decided that a conference of representatives of all fishermen’s unions should be called immediately to discuss question of affiliation with the council. --fwenty-eight-pickets, 4 of whom