——"

Ee attempted bombing of
| 4 the Japanese steamer Hiye
= Maru last week in Seattle har-
»bor leaves much to speculation
' and conjecture. Sorting a few
' bare facts from the reams of
“sensationalism that litter the
pages of the Vancouver press,
' wherein nonenities often leap to

| prominence, one can build up
| a case that so far has been kept

_ off the record.

- Two young men—one who
lest his life in the attempted
_bombing — are the pmincipal

Remember The Reichstag Fire!

actors. Behind them — in ac
cordance with the best Hearst
practice —— stands a_ sinister
“QOnental” conspiracy. All the
weight of inference is aimed to
impress beyond doubt — that
the “Onental” conspiracy to
bomb a Japanese ship in an
American port, is a Chinese
plot!

The sympathies of the Ca-
nadian and American people
are with the Chinese people in
their struggle against Japanese

fascist aggression. Official
Japanese apologia has been un-
able to make the least dent in
this great peaceful bulwark of
public opinion to justify the
wanton actions of the impenial
government of Japan against a
peaceful neighbor.

It is clearly obvious that the
Chinese people of North
America are fully conscious
that they would have nothing
to gain by implication in such
an act. If the contrary were

the case, it is equally obvious

that they would net entrust the
carrying through of such a pro-
yocative act to men’of unknown
calibre. The wholé unwarrant-
ed inference of Chinese impli-
cation is crude and absurd.
Pa
IN TRE other hand, the
fascist block which at the
moment guides the destinies of
Japan, in the present extremity
of meeting a united Chinese
people, of attempting to consoli-
date its grip upon the domestic

situation at home which the

continuation of the war will
sharpen, must and will resort
to provocative “incidents” to
strengthen its position.

How better to alleviate the
indignation of the bombing of
the Panay than by a counter
bombing of an unarmed Japa-
mese vessel in an American
port? Ihe Japanese never tire
of reminding us that the Sino-
Japanese affair is all a huge
“‘misunderstanding, that they
have nothing but the greatest
“consideration for China,” that

they are such poor propa-
gandists.

While opinion may differ on
this point, the “incidents”
throughout this undeclared war
so far have shown the Japanese
fascists to be adept provoca™
teurs. Lhe shooting of a
British ambassador; the bomb-
ing of the Bnitish destroyer
Ladybird; the bombing and
sinking of the Panay; the burn-
ing and sinking of Standard
Oil tankers; the calculated
Japanese attacks upon British,

French, American and other
troops and police in the foreign
settlements of Shanghai . . . all
were incidents’ which show
beyond cavil that Japanese fas-
cism, like its murderous proto-
types in Germany, Italy and
elsewhere is a provocateur par
excellence.

We remember the “inci
dent’ of the Reichstag fire,
when fascist incendiaries pre-
pared a cold-blooded act to

(Continued on page 2)

WE’LL SEE YOU
at the

PA BALL
TONIGHT!

The People's

Western

Canada’s

Leading Progressive

Advocate

Newspaper

WE’LL SEE YOU
at the

PA BALL
TONIGHT!

<< Published Weekly

Single Copies: 5 Cents

VOL. IV, No. 3

FULL No. 159.

VANCOUVER, B.C., FREDAY, JANUARY 28, 1938

Domestics
Win Wage

Increases

Cheaper Room, Board
Proposed At Hearing
Given Girls’ Union
Representatives

FREE UNIFORMS

That $55,000 a month will
remain in the purses of an
estimated 5500 BC girls and
women, mostly chamber-

_ improve
* workers, officials of Local 91, Do-

maids, will be the immediate
outcome of amendment order
plans read out by Chairman
Adam Bel] at a hearing be-
fore the Board of Industrial
Relatiens in the Gourt House
recently.

Jubilant after a long struggle to
conditions for female

Mmestic Workers’ Union, stated to
the PA that many girls will be
getting the equivalent of $10 a
month pay raise.

Provided it is made law, cham-
bermaids, for instance, can no
jonger be charged $3 a week for a
reom whether they stay in it or
not. It will be $2 and then only
when occupied.

The same will apply to meals.
Whereas $5.25 was demanded for
2i meals per week, the new ruling
will reduce this to $4, and the girl
Can eat where she likes.

43-Hour Maximum.

Wo more than 48 hours a week,
Says the amendment proposed, and
if overtime is necessary then time
and one-half must be paid.

Uniforms must be supplied and
laundered at the employers’ ex-
pense, and rooms can be inspected
at any time.

This last ruling is important,
union officials state, because shock-
ing conditions exist today in many
hotels.

Im -the case cf restaurant em-
ployees, better treatment is to be
accorded in case of breakages.

Mauch publicity, organizational
work, and representation to the
government has been made by the
Domestic Workers’ Union for these
reforms since its inception eighteen
months ago.

YCL To Support
Students’ Demands

Covering Wednesday’s mass stu-
dent meeting of 1500 which, de-
manded of Pattullo restoration of
the $600,000 government grant and
provision of more accommodation
in University of British Columbia,
and arranged for a city-wide peti-
tion campaign to win public sup-
port,, a PA reporter, in interviews
with individual students after the
Mmass meeting, gathered that the
sentiment of many was in no means
expressed on the floor.

“The raising of student fees,”

Said one young fellow, ‘will sure be
a@ hardship. I’ve worn this suit for
five years and can barely make
my summer stake sufficient.”
Said another:
“What we need is the old ginger
group. Although we must win the
public to our side, yet a stronger
lead would help plenty.

“A guy like Lionel Backler would
be right in the thick of this fight,”
he added. (Backler, a graduate
from UBC, was killed recently
while fighting in the ranks of the
Mackenzie-Papineau battalion in
Spain.

Wotices have been published that
@ mass rally In support of the
Students’ demands will be held on
Tuesday, February 1, 8 p.m., Moose
Hall auditorium, under the aus-
pices of the Young Communist
League. Student speakers are ex-

pected.

In Teruel

Loyalist soldiers, after their cap-

ture of Teruel, search ruins of civil
governor's building for fascists.

Deductions To Be Returned

ing Company.

similar claims.
Company Aim
Is Defeated

Blubber Bay Workers
Walk Out When Attempt
Made to Question Union

Rights.

BLUBBER BAY, BC, Jan. 28. —
Unity of white and Chinese work-
ers here defeated an attempt made
last week by Pacific Lime company
fo set up a company union, when
employees walked out of a com-
pany-called meeting to demonstrate
their loyalty to genuine trade union
principles.

Hoping to take advantage of
slack times at the plant and be-
fore the busy season commences,
the company called a meeting on
January 21 of all employees, ap-
pointing as chairman an employee
named Simpson who acted as a
strikebreaker in the 1937 strike.

Ostensibly called to discuss the
Conciliation and rbitration Act,
the real purpose of the meeting be-
came apparent when it was put up
to the men whether or not the un-
ion committee, four members of
which are temporarily unemployed,
had the right to represent the men.

The men decided that it had, and
walked out of the meeting, later
affirming unanimous allegiance to
the union and committees elected.

Feature of the Blubber Bay Local
74, International Woodworkers of
America, is the strong bond exist-
ing between white and oriental
workers who are about equal in
number. The company, state union
officials, has tried repeatedly dur-
ing the eight months since the
strike to play up racial hatred, but
without success.

Organized last June, the local has
a good functioning committee
which binds the company to the
hard-won agreement signed at that
time.

CHICAGO —(FP)—Faced with a
strike threat which could not be
swerved by intimidation or “loyal-
ty’ meetings, the management of
two Hearst newspapers here, the
American and Herald-Examiner,
has signed with the American

Wewspaper Guild.

the books would show illegal de-
ductions for years previous, were ,

Fishermen’s Claims
Met Out Of Court

Glaims of 24 union fishermen totalling over $500 were
settled out of court yesterday (Thursday) by Canadian Fish-

When, three months ago, the company met the demand of
one fisherman that he be paid $22 for illegal compensation
deductions from his pay check, 24 other fishermen pressed

Charges made by the union that

substantiated in an examination of
company books, ordered by Su-
preme Court of British Columbia.

Claiming previous records were
destroyed, the company could only
show books back to 1930.

George Miller, business agent,
Salmon Purse Seiners of the Paci-
fic, stated that over 200 men had
filed claims with the union against
Canadian Fishing Company for
alleged illegal compensation de-
ductions.

Probe Sought Of
Election Forgery

CLOVERDALE, BC, Jan. 28—
The section committee of the Com-
munist party here this week re-
quested an investigation by the"
provincial Attorney-General’s de-
partment into violation of the
Municipal Blections Act by individ-
uals who used names of local can-

didates to a “contemptible” docu-
ment which was circulated to
voters.

Found in rural mailboxes Friday,
January 21, the day preceding
municipal elections, was a crude,
hectographed leaflet drawn up as
follows:

“Comrade: Our efforts toward
taking over control these times are
nearing success. Help us with your

vote on Saturday, 22nd. Per Sey.
Com., affiliate of Sov. MRussia.
Ardiel. Binny. Shepherd.”

The three names were those of
candidates for municipal office,
two of whom, T. Binney and B.
Shepherd, were elected in Wards 1
and 2, respectively. They de-
clared the leaflet a malicious for-
gery calculated to play on former
mInisrepresentations of the Commun-
its party of which none is a mem-
ber.

J. Ardiel, who ran unsuccessfully
for reeve, phoned the editor of the
British Columbian, New Westmin-
ster daily, which printed the story,
asking that he print an official
denial should it be made by the
Gommunist party. The editor re-
fused. Sig) os

Further

JAPAN SEEKS TO BUY NEW BC PROPERTIES

Mines On Island ©

Prominent Citizens To
Sit On Medical Aid To
China Committee Set Up
Here :

NANAIMO TAG DAY

Victoria League For
Peace, Democracy Calls
Peace Conference For

Feb. 4

Announced this week by the pro-
vincial office of the Canadian
League for Peace and Democracy
is formation of a Medical Aid to
China Committee on Which “many
prominent citizens will sit.

Members of the committee are:
Rev. W. Cooper, St. James Angli-
can Church; Rev. R. N. Mathieson,
Collingwood United Church; Mrs.
Stuart Jamieson; W. G Black,
Ph.D.; G. G. Sedgewick, Ph.D.;
Rabbi Samuel Cass; Mrs. Dorothy
Steeves MLA; Miss Jean Cameron;
Foon Sien, Chinese Benevolent
Association; Charles Ting; Joseph
Hope, Chinese National Salvation
Bureau; A. G MHolmes, editor,
Highland Echo. Medical advisor
to the committee is Dr. R. E. Cole-
man, MD.

Press Gov’t
For Embargo

Organized by the league, a reso-
lution directed to Prime Minister
Mackenzie King calling for an em-
bargo on war material to Japan,
is now being circulated. The reso-
lution reads:

“On April 10, 1937, the Customs
Act was amended in such a way as

to make it possible for the gov-
ernment, by order-in-council to
‘prohibit, restrict or) control the

exportation, or the carrying coast-
wise, or by inland navigation, of
arms, ammunition, implements or
munitions of war, military, naval
or air stores, or any articles deem-
ed capable of being converted
thereinto, or made useful in the
production thereof.’

“We, as citizens of Canada, de-
sire to associate ourselves with the
action of the Canadian League for
Peace and Democracy in calling
for an embargo on shipments of
war materials to Japan.”

Collect $603
For China

NANAIMO, BC, Jan. 28.— Citi-
zens throughout the district here
last Saturday donated a total of
$603.19 in a tagday in aid of the
Chinese Medical Aid Fund.

With permission from the city
council to organize street collec-
tions, the league committee con-
ducting the tag was assisted by
the local Chinese National Salva-
tion Bureau, which collected
$140.50 from the Chinese commun-
ity in Nanaimo toward the total
amount.

A. M. Stephen, provincial presi-
dent of the league, addressing a
well attended meeting in Union
Hall Sunday, voiced his apprecia-
tion to taggers and the public for
their splendid co-operation, stat-
ing, “This magnificent expression
has again placed Nanaimo in the
lead.”

Victoria Plans
Peace Conference

VICTORIA, BC, Jan. 28—Sched-
uled for February 4,8 p.m., in the
auditorium of the Chamber of
Gommerce, the Canadian League
for Peace and Democracy here has
called a conference to help build

(Continued on page 5)
See “BOYCOTT”

Discontent Stirs
Trail ‘Tranquility’

Special Correspondence

TRAIL, BC, Jan. 28.—This happy hunting ground of Con-
solidated Mining and Smelting company for the past 15 years,
envy of every big employer and corporation in Canada with
its employer-employee cooperative plan, over which S. G.
Blaylock rules with all the powers of a dictator, smoulders

in discontent.

erease on the basic wage.

at any time by the company.

mittees.

Conditioned by exelusion of legitimate trade unionism
and maintenance of an elaborate spy system, abuses arising
from the regime in this company union fortress are challeng-
ing the long-yaunted “tranquility.”
ferreting out workers to be blamed for the growing dissatis-
fa¢tion in this greatest of Canadian war industries:

But, arising out of its proposal to increase working days,
the company has suffered its first major defeat in 15 years.

On January 1, Blaylock informed workmen’s committees
that all employees would receive an extra 25 cents a day in-
Newspapers throughout Canada
carried the announcement as front page news. Later, Blay-
lock claimed he had made a mistake, stated the 25 cents in-
crease was an “increased cost of living bonus” to be rescinded

Actually, this bonus was given about a week after smelter
workers turned down the company’s proposal to increase the
number of working days a month.
company of growing dissatisfaction among the men as a
result of the practice of giving favored employees extra work.
The company utilized this srievance to propose that the num-
ber of working days be increased from five to six with two
days off. This involved a rotation shift with no time-and-a-
half for Saturdays and Sundays.

The day notices asking for a decision were posted a snap
vote was taken by the workmen’s committee. Smeiter work-
ers, however, defeated this move by boycotting the ballot and
even boldly throwing out those representatives on the com-

Trail Housing Conditions ‘Appalling’

The smelter-controlled Trail Daily Times supplies many.
reasons for unrest to the observant reader.
appalling loca] housing conditions published recently shows

”

Company stools are busy

Spies had informed the

An account of

(Continued on page 5)
See “TRAIL”

aid Under Consideration;
C Shipments Increasing

Several Mines Expect
To Reopen To Feed Big
Demand Of Japan’s War
Machine

:

‘PROFITS OF DEATH’

Fourteen Thousand Ton
Of Copper Shipped From
Copper Mountain Mine
To Japan

Japanese capitalist inter-
ests, which already control
vast timber and mineral-re-
sources in this province, are
surveying mining properties
on the west coast of Yancou-
ver Island and on Porcher
Island with a view to pur-
chase, it is reliably reported
this week.

Last year Japanese interests
purchased the Iron Duke mine on
Louise Island in the Queen Char-
lottes, writh ore reserves estimated
at 10,000,000 tons, and timber prop-
erties at Port McNeil and Cowi-
chan Lake, Vancouver Island, in-
volving an estimated 700,000,000
feet of timber. Sale price of- the
Port McNeil property was stated
to be more than $1,000,000.

While the Japanese boycott wins
support from ever larger numbers
of the Canadian people, British Co-
lumbia’s mining millionaires con-
tinue to derive huge profits from
the sale of war materials to Japan-

Gargoes of concentrates destined
for Japanese munition factories
leave the Port of Vancouver almost
daily. Mines, long closed because
they could not be operated at a
profit, are now being reopened to
fill the demands of Japan’s insati-
able war machine.

Latest mine to join the list of
those shipping regularly to Japan
is Lucky Jim. A test shipment of
zinc concentrates was sent two
weeks ago and a further ship-

ment left on the Hiye Maru last
weekend. The mine expects to

make regular shipments up to

New Sooke Fish
Traps Protested

VICTORIA, BC, Jan. 28.—Strong
protest against proposed setting of
eight new fish traps at Sooke and

request that the Todd interests be
| refused a license for such action,
was sent last week to federal de-
partment of fisheries by Victoria
Trades and Labor Council, in sup-
port of petitions now being circu-
lataed by the Fishermen’s Union
and local sportsmen.

Following are new Trades Coun-
cil officers elected by the council
at the last business meeting: E. 8.
Fox, Street Railwaymen, president

by acclamation; N. Robertson,
Typographical Union, vice-presi-
dent; Miss E. Johnson, Local 49,

Laundry Workers’ and Dry Clean-
ers’ Union, secretary-treasurer

(first lady to sit on the council);
W. Coe, Inland Boatmen’s Union;
sergeant-at-arms; executive council,
CG. Chivers, Carpenters’ Union; C.
A. Peck, Electrical Workers, and
#. Belton, Truckdrivers and Help-
ers.

A strong organizational commit-
tee was set up, composed of one
delegate from each affiliated local,
and is charged with the task of
setting in motion an active cam-
paign of organization.

Chu Teh

fi —o— ie

hein uh

1000 tons monthly for an “indefi-
nite period.”

Other BC mines expected to re-
open shortly on the strength on

Famous Communist leader and

commander of the 8th Route
Army, who is directing Chinese
guerrilla warfare against the
Japanese. Repeated raids which
have broken the invaders’ lines
ef communications and annihi-
lated isolated troops, are credited
with having prevented Japanese
capture of the important Lung-
hai railway, main east-to-west
lifeline.

Japanese purchases are White-
water, Ruth Hope and Noble Five.

The entire copper output of
Granby Consolidated Mining and
Smelting company is now being
absorbed by Japan, which has al-
ready taken 14,000 tons of concen-
trates under the present contract.

Cameron Loses
By Three Votes

Jim Gameron, well known Fraser
Valley progressive, needed but
three votes to be the new reeve of
Maple Ridge last Saturday, when
26 British Columbia municipalities
voted on candidates for office:
Reeve Soloman Mussallem was Te=
elected. Councillors O. E. Mattson
annd John Larson were returned
in Wards 4 and 5, respectively.

Councillor J. W-. Ardiel : polled
1469 votes in Surrey, losing to
Gouncillor John Hunter.

Milton Switzer, candidate for
Matsqui reeveship, lost out by. 30
votes to Reeve George A- Cruick-
shanks. Fred Ayling was elected
councillor in Ward 3, but Rev.
E. H. Baker went down to defeat.

Vincent Yates and E. M. Geuho
were elected councillors for one=
terms:

| year