aero a a LISTEN IN TO Labor News Highlights - CKMO Sunday, 9:45 a.m. The People’s Advocate Western Canada’s Leading Progressive Newspaper LISTEN IN TO Labor News Highlights - CKMO Sunday, 9:45 a.m. FULL No. 161. VANCOUVER, B.C., FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1938 Single Copies: 5 Cents VOL. IV, No. 5 <== Published Weekly GOV'T TRIES TO EVADE LA OR ACT AGAIN Fascist Warfare In their third raid in one week on the American evacuation hospital at Tarracon, Spain, fascist planes wrecked this ambulance: Anniversary Of Brigade €onsuls Send Greetings To Friends As Fifteenth International Brigade Celebrates. Big rallies in many CGanadian cities this weekend will mark the first anniversary of the Fifteenth International Brigade of the Span- ish Republican Army,.composed of. the Canadian, American and Brit- ish battalions. The English-speaking battalions this week were at Valencia en route to a rest camp, after a month - of heavy fighting on the strategic Teruel front. According to uncon- firmed press reports, casualties in the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion were stated to be high. Blessages of greeting have been sent to the Friends of the Mac- kenzie-Papineau Battalion by Jose T. Piera, consul-general for Spain in Montreal, and F. Bartolome Rea, honorary Spanish consul at Toronto. . “My faith in the final decisive wictory of the republican army over the forces of reactionary fac- tiens was never shaken,’ Consul- _General Piera writes. “Even dur- ing the darkest days of Madrid and the temporary collapse of the Can- tanbrian zone my faith did not waver. - “After eighteen months of war the republican triumph is absolute- Ty certain. “The path begun at Brunete and Belchite has conducted us to Teruel. “With this glorious battle of Teruel the impulse of our army and the will to conquer have proved themselves, marking the beginning of the end of fascism in Spain “To ail those who have maintain- ed faith in democracy and to all) those who have assisted us moral- ly and materially, in the name of | the government of the Spanish re- public, I salute you.” . The message from F. Bartolome Rea reads: “After eighteen months the bat- tle for peace, freedom and democ- Tacy is still being waged in Spain. The conscience of the world has responded magnificently to the aid of the Spaniards who refused to accept the yoke of slavery at the hands of fascism. This world-wide response has given to Spanish men and women invincible courage in their fight for freedom. “Wietory for the forces of light and liberty in Spain means the sur- vival of democracy the world over. Defeat is unthinkable. * “As representative of the Span- ish republican government in To- Tonto I desire to express the most sincere appreciation to all those who, by, word or deed, have helped the legal government in its hour of greatest need.” Edson Elects Progressives EDSON, Alta. Feb. 10—En- dorsed by Social Credit, CCH and Gommunist party groups, R. Wil- son, rogressive candidate for mayor, was elected by acclamation for the town council here last week, Two progressives were also elected by acclamation to the School board. _When the ballots are counted February 14, three more progres- Sives are expected to win seats on the town council. Cortes Hears La Pasionaria Says People’s Front Leading To Victory BARCELONA, Spain.— ‘The policy of the People’s Front is the policy of victory.” Members of the Cortes, representing the democratic expres- sion of the Spanish people, heard Dolores Tbarruri (lua Pas- sionaria) make this statement with characteristic force when they met here on high Montserrat mountain. -Threughout-republican Spain; -the-reaction of the press is evidence of the pepularity and confidence enjoyed by the Negrin government. Solidaridad Obrera, organ of the Anarchist CNT, hails the cortes and expresses appreciation for the declaration of solidarity with them made by La Pasionaria, Ramon | Lamoneda for the Socialists, and Torres Campana for the Republican Union. Willingness to participate in the government was definitely stated vance from the early days of the war when the Anarchists, adher- ing to a principle which disavows political measures as a means of improving the lot of the working class, refused to participate in the government, Present at the opening of the Cortes were more than 100 parlia- in the editorial, “. . . . not merely | mentary representatives from Eur- to achieve a place of prominence, | ope’s democracies, including British but to help achieve victory.” members of parliament and French This represents an important ad- senators and deputies. Peace Ballot Taken Victoria Youth Votes For Peace, Democracy VICTORIA, BC, Feb. 10.—Final results of the recently- conducted peace ballot as announced at a meeting of Victoria Youth Council are; For the League of Nations and collective security, 1,043; in favor of isolation and self-sufficiency, 14. In the eastern conflict: for the Chinese, 1,069, and for the Japanese, 6. In the Spanish civil war: for the loyalist government, 1,028, and for the fascist rebels, 8. On the question of a boycott against Japanese goods, 952 voter in favor, 31 against. In ‘order to co-operate with the executive organizing the Interde— Joseph Hepe nominational Conference, the Youth Council has decided to postpone its all-inelusive youth convention until March 5. Plans have been laid for a two-day conference, to be held at the YWCA, with registration of delegates to take place on Satur- day aiternoon, to be followed by a social and dance in the evening. Arrangements for Sunday include church service in the morning, com- mission sessions during the after- noon, and, in the evening, a ban- quet followed by commission re- ports and discussion of resolutions. Delegates decided to add another commission to the previous list to study “Youth and Religion.” Daniel Brand and Neil Butler were elected fraternal delegates to attend the provincial convention of the Relief Project Workers un- ion, to be held here this week-end. A resolution introduced by dele- gates from the Student Christian Movement at Victoria College, pro- testing the action of the UBC board of governors and the government of British Columbia for increasing fees, was the basis of a long dis- cussion. The resolution was adopt- ed and ordered forwarded to the authorities responsible. President. of the Chinese Cana- dian Club and member of the Chinese National Salvation Bur- eau, who will speak at the Or- pheum Theatre in Vancouver Sunday night at a mass meeting sponsored by the Medical Aid for China Committee of the Cana- dian = eague for Peace and Do- mocracy. “China Strikes Back,’ first authentic film of the famous Chinese Eighth Route army will be shown for the first time at this meeting. The film, depict- ing the training and work of the former Red Army, was taken by Harry Dunham, first camera- man to penetrate the Special Administration district in the northwest province of Shensi. Plea Ignored Despite his claim that wage vouchers from a forestry project camp on Vancouver Island were eight days overdue and that he could not starve until they were handed to him through the Van- couver office, a young man was sentenced to two months in Qak- alla in police court last Monday for obtaining a meal in a res- taurant without having funds to pay for it. : CCF Sends. Greetings To Cortes Correspondent Gives Graphic Account Of Fascist Air Raids On Barcelona. ‘WORST YET’ “Co-operative Common- wealth Federation members of the Canadian parliament ex- tend greetings to the Spanish Cortes. May the stfuggle of the Spanish people soon end in vic- tory and democracy triumph.” This was the message sent by the CCF parliamentary group to the Spanish ‘Cortes which met last weel in the mountains near the city to avoid danger of an air -raid. By JOSEPH: NORTH. BARCELONA, Spain, Feb. 10— Twice today I-sat down to write an article about the opening of the Cortes but was unable to fin- ish because of the black-winged Capronis which were: subjecting Barcelona to its most devastating raid of the war. I have just come in after the second visit of raiders in two hours. You can’t help but be heart- sick after viewing what the bombs did to crowded parts of town. The government has declared that only after 19 mionths of war- fare did it decide to bomb the fascist cities of Salamanca and Seville. It stated that if the fascists halted their attacks on open cities, loyalists would do likewise. . Today the fascists replied. A bright sunny morning—most of the people lolling in their rooms over the Sunday papers—then the raiders came. - That was 9:05 am. You could hear bombs whistle as they cut through the air. Then the deep boom of landing—Boom! Boom!— five times in all. I hurried down and saw a huge cloud of black smoke rise up near the cathedral. When I got there, nothing much was to be seen: just a heap of ruins’ in a jammed working-class section. On the single bare wall which was left standing, the picture of President Manuel Aana swayed slowly. Second Raid I returned to my room to finish the piece about the Cortes. I had just- typed the ‘first paragraph when the siren went again. Lieut. Conrad Kaye, member of New York-Central Trades and La- bor Council, was in the room... We steod by the window watching fountains of debris shoot up. Bursts of anti-aircraft shrapnel appeared near the “V’’ of the fascist planes as they. seudded across .the blue sky. Then, Boom!— and one of the windows of my roem shattered. .A bomb had landed a few yards down the street. We hurried down, meet ing Lieut. Sanford Land on ‘the street. We helped rescuers’ inside the remains of a handsome apart- ment building. Wreckage was piled 20 feet high. Franco’s Answer People tore at the guards, trying to. get inside and search for their loved ones. Lieut. Kaye rescued the debris-covered body of a five-year- old child lying under a tangled heap of beams, “Look out!” people yelled as parts of the walls toppled down. Rescuers had to abondon their work for*the time being. Chen they returned to the now even bigger pile of wreck- age, people began pointing to the air again. Fascist planes were back once more. : Again boomed, anti-aircraft batteries again bombs thundered, again people disappeared in cellars | and again you could hear ‘the cries of injured after the fall of build- ings. This is how General Franco, facing an ever-stronger republican army, answers the defeat of Teruel, by the bombing of cities far from the front. Trades Council Presses Embargo Resolutions urging the federal government to put an embargo on all Canadian shipments of war ma- terial to Japan have been sent this | week to all unions affiliated to the Trades and Labor Council for endorsation. This work was done by the boy- eott committee of the council, headed by Sam Shearers Each local has been asked to set-up 2 boycott committes, No More War Materials For Japan! AST Friday the federal government presented defense estimates totalling $34,034,364 to the House of Commons. Of this, $2,645,000 is to be spent in further fortifying the British Columbia coast. Two new destroyers are being purchased at a cost of $2,000,000. A new airdrome at Patricia Bay, near Victoria, and another at Prince Rupert will cost $175,000. Airplane bangars at Vancouver, a seaplane slipway at Alliford Bay in the Queen Charlottes, a service magazine at Esquimalt and a powder magazine and other defense works at Kamloops bring the total to $2,645,000. There is no doubt in the minds of the people against which enemy our coasts are being defended. Across the Pacific the Japanese military machine, controlled by men whose insane lust for power envisages world conquest, rips at the living heart of China. The thousands of Chinese civilians—men, women and children—slain, the systematic devastation of China’s cities, bespeaks a policy of ruthless warfare and terrorism unequalled in modern history. >. And conquest of China is to Japan’s warlords only the first step toward domination of Asia and the Pacific! ° UT while the democratic people of British Columbia and _of Canada applaud the heroic struggle of the united Chinese nation against invasion; while they seek to express their sym- pathy in tangible form through the supplying of medical aid, BC metals are being used to spread death and destruction in China. No amount of quibbling can hide this fact. Announcement this week that the eld Tidewater copper mine has been reopened to supply concentrates to Japan shouid awaken public opinion to a realization that Japanese capitalist interests are exploiting the natural resources of this province to “blast democracy from the face of Chima,” as Leslie Morris, former editor of the Toronto Daily Clarion, stated here a short time ago. The Tidewater mine is only one of several BC mines now being operated by Japanese interests to feed their gigantic military machine. British Columbia’s mining millionaires—the “patriots” who wave the flags whenever it suits their purpose—are waving not flags but balance sheets now. Col. Victor Spencer, of BC Wickel-cum-Pacitic Nickel Mines, told a meeting of shareholders last Friday “that first consideration is securing a market for he feels “that should the occasion arise . . . undoubtedly the au- thorities will take the necessary steps.” In the meantime, Pacific Nickel, Consolidated Mining and Smelting and a dozen others are reaping a handsome profit from their traffic in death. 3 oe EP eo Z so 7HAHE time has come when the people must demand that _the authorities take the necessary steps.’ The “patriots” of British Columbia, whose objective aid to Japanese military- fascism is indicative of the reactionary policies they can be ex= pected to pursue at home, must be made to feel the strength of outraged public opinion. The issue has already been well- stated in the House by Angus MacInnis and M. J. Coldwell for the CCF and J. H. Blackmore and E. J. Poole for the Social Credit group. : ; ‘We refuse to supply a legitimate government in Spain . yet we are exporting large quantities of goods to Japan for use against China. Our export figures today represent, in part, the price that is being paid by the mangled bodies of women and children in congested Chinese cities... .” This is how M. J. Coldwell puts the issue. J. H. Blackmore is equally clear. “I cannot, without the greatest revulsion and horror, think of sending lead to Japan in order to make bullets with which my sons may be killed. Even the most callously inured to these things must be incensed at that sort of thing,” he declares. The issue before the Canadian people is no less clear. Powerful interests will fight against the embargo. The ma- jority of the Canadian people is overwhelmingly in favor of it. Shall the Mackenzie King government give a lead for peace to the democratic nations of the world by imposing an em- bargo; or shall it countenance continued aid to Japanese mili- tary-fascism? The answer lies with the Canadian people. They must demand an embargo which, while stopping the supply of Canadian war materials te Japan, dees not cripple the Chinese people in their great struggle against invasion. Support Grows For Conference Dr. Weir Favors Federal Unemployment Insurance While Vancouver Trades and Labor Council pressed for fed- eral unemployment insurance 10 years ago as a competent method of looking after the unemployed before the great de- pression period, the Canadian Welfare Council, in its annual re- port, released recently, admits that “almost three full ‘upward years have now been lost because of constitutional barriers against the erection of our necessary social defenses against unemployment.” Wever before to the same extent ¢ were Conatiana cepanne, et] Compensation Return Asked ways and means to ((:al with the greatest single problem today Other Claims Will Be Pressed By Fishermen unemployment. It is fitting that the trade union Against Fish Company Here movement in every important city in the Dominion has’ discussed Ot- iy Further claims for return of compensation fees illegally deduct- tawa’s announced intention to de- velop a national insurance plan and a national employment service. ed by Canadian Fish company of Vancouver have been won by 142 union fishermen here. While no But outside of the ranks of or- ganized labor the ferment is also definite sum was announced, it is understood a large amount was growing. Scheduled for Monday, February 21, 8 p.m., an all-inclusive confer- ence will be held to organize the involved. Cheques will be sent to claimants this month. | Recently, 24 fishermen success- fully claimed $537 under similar widest public support for the fed- eral government's amendment to charges against the company, after an examination of books was or- passage of federal unemployment insurance. Many prominent people have promised to attend and assist in this campaign. (Gontinued on page 5) the BNA Act, in order to enable dered by the Supreme Court. See INSURANCE Refuses Loggers’ Protest Affidavits Sent By Union Here State Operator Admitted To Blacklist. HINT PRESSURE Appointment of a Concilia- tion Commissioner, under pro- visions of the new Conciliation and Arbitration Act, in the dis- pute between union workers employed by Pacific Lime com- pany at Blubber Bay, BC, over the right to maintain their or- ganization, is the latest situa- tion now being watched anxi- ously by organized labor. Other disputes in which a Conciliation Commissioner has been appointed are the Chanti- eleer Lunch, Vancouver Cafe-’ teria, and one involving the Truckdrivers’ union. Indications that the BE Lum- bermen’s Association, organiz- ation of the logging operators, is determined to crush legiti- mate trade unions in the indus- try, are borne out by the black- listing of three members of Loeal 71, International Wood- workers of America, who at- nickel concentrates.” On the question of shipments to Japan, | tempted to hire out to Allison Log company last week, having worked for this company last sea- son. Their appeal to the depart- ment of labor was met with eva- sion. The Ddlackiisted men told union officials Allison had stated he-was entirely satisfied with their work and regretted he could not re-hire them because of past union activi- ties. Later, Secretary J. Brown and other TWA officials interviewed Allison to protest the blacklisting, reporting back their conviction. that pressure had been brought to bear on this logging operator as to his hiring policy. Affidavits Sent Thoroughly aroused by the situ- ation, the union obtained affidavits from the blacklisted men and for- warded them to Victoria, with a re- quest that the Department of Labor intercede for the men under the new act. Embodied in one affidavit is the following: « . . In giving his reason for not hiring me, Allison said, There is no use of telling you there is no blacklist, because you know bet- ter.” Dated February 5, the following reply was received from B. Ht E. Gault, secretary registrar, Industri- al Gonciliation and Arbitration Act: “T am directed to inform you that it is the opinion of this department that ‘logging’ is a seasonal occupa- tion and that once an operation closes down, the employees therein are free to seek work in other locali- ties. “Your affidavits point out in each case, that you completed your sea- sonal work, prior to the 20th day of November, 1937. The ‘Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act’ received assent December 10. “TWnder the circumstances, in the cases that you have put before us, we must advise you that you have no claim under the Act. “Tf, on the other hand, dismissal had taken place for the reasons given, while you were engaged in an operation, during the time the Act was effective, you would un- doubtedly have come under the provisions of Section 7 of the sta- tute.”” Demand Action Union officials of Local 71, TWA, stated to the PA that here at least was a case that-Hon. G. S. Pearson “could go to town on” and prove that his pet piece of legislation had teeth. : “These affidavits gave all the evi- dence needed by his department,” Brown stated, ‘and proper use of them would have restored some of the rapidly dwindling faith among working men for an impartial ap- plication of the Act.” The matter is by no means ended, he warned. CTM To Convene MEXICO CITY, DF, Feb. 10.— Four thousand delegates from all parts of Mexico are expected to participate in the first general con- gress of the CIM (Mexican Con- federation of Workers). It will take place here February 21 to 25, to consider national and international problems and elect a new national executive committee.