sbruary i7, 1939 etre st Oe tate SS) el Ve OS Aa Page Three ity Roar papery ome teeerarett Get Civic 31 Returned Men Welcome; 9000 Crowd Depot pilied every foot of space in the big ‘rotunda, and swelled out into Cor- dova Street, and as the veterans marched with some difficulty into the cleared space at the reception commiuittee’s improvised rostrum, She cheers that broke from the hroats of the crowd seemed to lift the ceiling higher. Garrying their battalion colors 9n which were inscribed the names of Jaramea, Brunette, Teruel, Ebro Gand other Spanish battlegrounds where the Canadians won their mame of “fighting Canucks,” the veterans passed through a cleared path formed by arm-locked mem- cers of the Relief Project Work- srs’ Union. A little mother standing at the might of Mayor Telford with an anxious look and tears in her eyes kept reaching out for her son, Leonard Norris—e fighter in Spain for nearly two years. Finally they were united and clung to each other as though some force would tear them apart. She was Mrs. M. Mcleod who, since the news came through of the- veteran’s arrival in Canada, ®aad enquired almost daily for word of her son. Now she was the hap- piest and proudest person in the -otunda. Mayor Telford, on behalf of the eitizens of Vancouver, welcomed the volunteers back home. “TJ am not so sure that you are returning to peaceful scenes at nome ... we hope your honest ef forts Have not been in vain,’ he said. “T cannot say that you will get 211 the treatment you deserve, but you have made many friends who will do everything they can for 7ou.” By J. D. WILSON Amid scenes of mingled enthusiasm and pathés, 31 members J of the famed Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion marched from their } train last Friday night into the packed rotunda of the CPR sta- tion to a roaring welcome from a crowd of 9000 and greetings from Mayor Lyle Telford, Trades Council secretary Percy Ben- gough, CCF representatives and church ministers. The huge throng had begun to gather at the station by 10 pm [despite the winter’s only real snowstorm, and by 11 o’clock had P. R. Bengough, Trades and Labor Council secretary who was Present, was excused from speais- ing because of a throat ailment. Harold J. Pritchett, International Woodworkers of America presi- dent, welcomed the veterans on be- half of his organization and pledged te work for an end to the internecine strife between the CIO and APL and obtain unity of these two great organizations te preserve democracy and make them a bur wark against fascist threats here. Nathan Wemetz, Spanish vice- consul, extended his grateful gov- ernment’s greetings of welcome and declared that the republican government was not yet defeated. Eieutenant Joe Kelly, in charge ef the contingent, acknowledged the greetings, replying in his plea- Sant Irish brogue “when we laid down our arms at the decree of the Spanish government, we were not quitting the fight. : “The Spanish people are not de- feated. The fall of Catalonia means that we will have to work harder to lift the embargo on arms now that we have come home.’ He was confident that the fas- cists would be driven out of Spain in about two months if given the right to buy arms. Relief Project Workers made a wedge in the crowd and allowed the veterans to parade out to Sey- mour street and along Pender to a cafe where they enjoyed their evening meal. A large number followed in the hope of expressing their sratitude to the men while some were ready to offer their homes to the veterans who had held aloft the highest traditions of | Canada. Cuba’s Batista Opens Way For New Democracy rel(s Good Weighbor policy—the Cuban reactionaries tied up with Wall Street interests—are trying EO prevent the holding of the As- sembly, which would bring before che people the central issues of the }day: democracy, improvement of the peopie’s living conditions, de skyist hirelings of the Gestapo), a zreat National Front is being formed extending from the work-— ing elass and the Communists to the democratic elements in the tra- ditional parties, the Government and the Army. For the past half-year important progress has been made by demo- cracy in this island republic. Be- cause of the tremendous upsurge or the popular movement and the influence of the democratic move— ments in Mexico and the United States, significant shifts have been MAYOR-EXPOSES TAX DODGERS Vancouver taxpayers were treat- €d tO some inside information on how corporate interests evade tax- ation levies Monday night when Mayor Lyle Telford again went aiter private grain interests in a radio address under auspices of the civic forum. “Private grain interests are on relief in Vancouver,’ the Mayor Charged. “But they are glorified, specially privileged, relief recipi- ents who should really be lined up in queues with the rest of the un- employed.” Hie directed biting criticism on agreements between the city and the grain elevator owners under which all improvements on grain | elevators are taxed only 25 percent of the assessed value. “Taxes which should be paid by the elevators are being passed on ‘to the small ratepayer, who is him- sel facing loss of his property,” Mayor Telford stated. 3 “Why should the homeowners of this city have to carry such a burden because of these special _ and unethical metheds of taxa- ' tion,” he asked. ' He showed where, despite a ple- ibiscite opposingS special taxation Privileges to elevators, grain inter- Ssts went to the machine politi- ‘cians and overrode the will of the people. sical HAVANA, Cuba.—One of the most important steps taken by Chief of Staff Col. Fulgencio Batista in strengthening Cuban democracy has been the ealling of a Constituent Assembly to determine the country’s future. The foes of President Roose- made in the Government led by Batista. These changes are in the direc- tion of more democratic and pro- gressive government, greater civil liberties, social legislation and gen- erally more favorable conditions for the daily struggle of the people. Many trade uniens are officially recognized, and many of them previously banned have been re- formed and the Cuban Confedera- tion of Labor now numbers more than a haif-million members. The Cuban Communist Party is now legal after many years of underground activity. A whole list of arbitrary restrictions on organ- ization of the people have been eli- minated. But reaction still is strong and is regrouping its forces to halt the application of the progressive mea- sures of Batista. Certain official circles which have not broken their ties with reaction are therefore sabotaging some of the most im- portant reforms. The wealthy are sabotaging all social reforms, particularly by a “sit-down strike” against the na- tional economy. Those guilty of this erime against the people are the bankers and big Spanish trad- = > “provincial -govyernments: City Hall Highlights This Week @*= OF the queerest proposals ~ to receive consideration at the City Hall in many weeks was ad- vanced Monday when a motion to send letters to the Board of Trade and other business groups asking them not to hire women whose hus- bands opposition from Ald. Helena Gut— teridge. The reactionary proposal seemed a little too strong for even the Tory-minded among aldermen, however, and Aid. Wilseon’s motion to adopt the letter received no sec- onder, the question being referred back for further discussion. “Women have struggled against such things for hundreds of years,” Ald. Gutteridge declared. “Such discrimination would be a back ward step and a blow to the whole question of sex equality.” Se ITY Council is finally on record as favoring the legalization of } conducted - hospital sweepstakes under control of the federal and the aldermen; who can show a sur prising lack of unanimity as lone as they’re not discussing such yital projects as Slum clearance and housing, argued with considerable vociferousness on the matter; fin- ally splitting four to three in the voting. Mayor Telford, while not casting a ballot, indicated he was in favor. Aldermen Cornett, De Graves, Gutteridge and Crone were in favor, with Aldermen Corey, Wilson and Bennett opposed. eS = HE WORKS department at City Hall is now laying out final plans on the city’s 1939 unemploy-— ment works scheme which forwarded to the provincial govy- ernment. Sharp discussion is looked for when aldermen meet in special committee to discuss the plans, since Ald. Crone has stated he favors park and recreational de- velopment as the best means of making unemployed work out their relief, while Ald. Corey wants road, sewer and waterworks construc tion. Size of the project has not been decided, but it is believed the estimates will call for an expendi- ture of over a million dollars. S HE BiG canning companies and wholesale fish outfits are up in arms over the proposal of the Pacific Coast PFishermen’s Union that the city construct a fish dock and net racks at the head of False Creek. They sent a letter to coun- eil Monday protesting the move and are understood to be exerting plenty of pressure to block the project. Their letter was referred to the harbors committee for ‘“fur- ther discussion.” have jobs met with strong | Somie w= 7- providing will be WHEN MAC-PAPS CROSSED INTO FRANCE Headed by Major BE. Gecil-Smith—center, without hat—some of the Canadian veterans who returned to Canada last week are seen here at the Cerbere railway station in France. = Britain Supplied Arms Fo Franco, Mac-Paps State Actual use of British arms by fascists in Spain was shown by Lieutenant Joe Kelly at a banquet in Ukrainian Labor Temple Saturday night in honor of 31 Canadian veterans who returned to Vancouver from Spain the night before. Government forces had captured a battery of artillery, seventeen machine guns bearing on their gun barrels the inscription ‘Vickers 1938” and seven SBritish tanks Shortly before the Mac-Paps were demobilized, Kelly stated during his acknowledgement of greetings of welcome. Members of the Mackenzie-Pap- ineau Battalion, although their papers and passports were in order for their homeward trip, had of- fered their services as a battalion to help stem the fascist drive on Barcelona, he said. Premier Juan Wesrin had de- clined, however, the offer of the last unit in the International Bri- gade to leave Spain with apprecia-— tion, stating the battalion had car— ried out all previous orders and re- questing them to carry out the last one on Spanish soil—to demobilize in accordance with the government décree. : George Edgar, another veteran, displayed no note of pessimism or defeat on Catalonia’s fall, but like his forme@ commander evinced confidence that Loyalist forces could still win in about two months Canadians would bend federal on war govern- every effort to induce the government to lift the ban materials to the republican ment. A two minute silence was ob- served for those of the battalion who had fallen in action. Greetings of welcome were deliv— ered by BPergus McKean, Gommun- ist Party provincial secretary, A. M. Stephen, League for Peace and Democracy, Mrs. D. Hill, Finnish Organization, Nadya Romack, Can- adian Ukrainian Youth Federation, M. Siaus, Croatian Educational Home, and J. Ossipoff, Russian Workers’ Club. Jean Cameron, secretary of the B'riends of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion, introduced the veterans. The affair was sponsored by womens’ groups from Ukrainian, Russian, Swedish-Pinnish, Finnish and the Francis Women’s Club... The banquet, which required three settings to seat some 600- citizens, was presided over by Mrs. Kinloch. Use of the Labor Temple was given without charge to the com- mittee for the evening, and danc- ing was enjoyed by veterans and citizens alike after the banquet was over. Professor Laski To ID NTA PU Lecture [In Auditorium “Prospects of Democracy, a subject on the lips of everyone ' during these times when fascist aggressor countries are making +a bold bid to smash all forms of democratic government, will be the theme of Frofessor Harold J. Laski’s address in the Auditorium on Friday, February 24 at 8 p.m. Besides being a professor of poli-¢ tical science at London University, he is also a national executive member of the British Labor Party and one of three judges for the Left Book Club, an organization with membership in a number of democratic countries which start— ed out to procure cheap books for the education of the labor move- ment One of the best known books published by Prof. Laski is “Par- liamentary Government in Eng- land.” Hearst newspapers, running true +o type, sought to discredit Prof. Laski when he taught in Columbia University for teachers from Sep- tember to December. At present he is conducting a i10-week lec- ture at the University of Wash- ington under a Wallace Ames lec- tureship. Secondary School Teachers of the Lower Mainland are sponsor-— ing the professor’s lecture here. The Massacre of Santa Coloma Italian Fascist Tank Drivers Turn Machine Guns on 1500 Helpless Refugee Women and Children EW YORE, NY. — From Spaingalada. A great column of refugees@at Aquilo and saw to it that the prehension as to what was going has come a belated account of one of the most cold-blooded mas- sacres of non-combatants in the history of warfare in which 1500 helpless peasant men, women and children were mowed down in broad Gaylight by sub-machine guns in the hands of Italian tank drivers of the Lattorio Division. Wow known as the Santa Coloma massacre, the incident, which took place on January 15, was witnessed by Loyalist troops who were forced to watch the scene in helpless rage. The story was later told to an American newspaper correspond- ent, Brank Smothers, of the Chi- cago Daily News, by General En- rique Lister, commander of the Hifth Army Corps. His account was as follows: S cé te HAD taken up a position protecting the read to Teu- with their carts had filed safely through the Santa Coloma de Que— ralt, where they gathered for a breathing spell. These were refu- gees from Asturias, Madrid and Aragon people who had been placed as refugees already in vil- lages around Montblach and Bor- jas Blancas. “We thought they were safe there and I myself was in Santa Coloma when suddenly word came that Italian tanks were almost on the Willage. They had sent a column of licht tanks, followed by some cay- alary, which crossed from Conesa, where they had infiltrated. “T ordered the troops to occupy the heights behind the town whiie T went around to extricate the troops cut off by the manoeuvre, Rodriguez _ Cuieutenant Golonel Dodriguez of the Pieventh Divi- sion) came forward from his post troops were distributed in posi- tions about 2000 yards from Santa Goloma overlooking the village. “Tonks and cavalry drove in, cutting each of the four roads so no one could get out of Santa Co- loma. These were Fiat tanks be- longing to the Littorio Division, which was in that sector. Rod- riguez and his men could see every- thing clearly from their positions for it was a bright day. “They saw crews with sub—-ma- chine suns get out of many tanks and start the round-up. All the refugees, men, women and children who were not inhabitants of Santa Coloma, were herded into an open space just outside the northeastern edge of the village on one side of a gentie dip. On the opposite side soldiers With sub-machine guns placed themselves in half-kneeling postures. At first their was no com-4: to happen, but the machine guns opened up quickly. =) €¢é O NOT ask me to describe that scene. Rodriguez al- most choked when he told me of it. Weither he nor anybody else there could stand it, so he sent back im- mediately to the armored car, which was behind, and ordered the crew to go down there and do some- thing about it. It drove about 1000 yards down to Santa Coloma and tried to distract the Italian machine »Zunners. by firing into them, even at the risk of hitting some refugees. “However, they were quickly at— tacked by a number of tanks and could not remain. I do not Know how many refugees were killed, but we do know there must have been about 1500 of them there at the time and presumably they were all massacred.” elcome For Vets ‘ONLY TRAITORS LIKE DUPLESSIS FAVOR FASCISM’ Quebec Communists Term Mayor Houde’s Speech ‘Grave Error’ MONTREAL, Que. — “Only traitors like Duplessis and Areand favor fascism,’ de- clared leading officials of the Q@uebee Communist Party in a public statement issued last weekend in response to Mayor Camilien Houde’s declaration that French-Canadians are fas- eist-minded. “Phe French Canadian people are profoundly democratic, posses- Sing a rich liberal-democratic tra- dition which dates back before the struggles of 1937-38 and which to- day is very much alive,” the state- ment, issued over the sisnatures of E. Dube, chairman, and Stanley Ryerson, secretary, on behalf of the Quebee provincial committee, declared. “Houde’s own election was itself an expression of the de mocratie sentiment of the people of this province, whose opposition to the corrupt, oppressive Duples- Sis regime is growing stronger every day.” Declaring that Montreal’s mayer was gravely in error and Played inte the hands of demo- cracy’s enemies by his state- ments, the Communist Party leaders pointed to the fact that the real question was not the sentiments of the Quebec people but “ the fact that there are trea- sonable elements sowing hatred and disunity and furthering fas- cism in the province.” These elements are easily iden- tified, the statement declared, pointing to Maurice Duplessis, “Who is working to wreck Gana- dian unity and destroy all sem-— blance of democratic liberty,’ and Adrien Arcand, “ili-disguised spy ef Hitler Germany, protege of Du- plessis and editor of his organ, fo- menting race hatred and fascism, arming and drilling his shock troops for the violent overthrow of Canadian democratic institutions. “And behind these traitors to Canada stand the powerful fin- ancial interests, the textile, steel and power trusts, exploiters of our country and enemies of its people.” Emphasizing that the few “trait- ors in our midst,” operating as agencies of German Waziism and italian fascism, by no means re present the true sentiments of the Brench-Canadian people, the Gom- munist Party statement declared that the padiock law, like the anti-labor bills 19 and 20, “was never given as a mandate to the present government by the people; it was adopted at the behest of bie business interests whom Duplessis slavishly serves...” MacNEIL ASKS CHANGE IN CODE OTTAWA, Ont. Legislation amending the Criminal Gode to take some of the sting out of its “unlawful assembly” provisions will be introduced during the pre— seat session of parliament by Grant MacNeil, CGE member for Vancouver North. MacNeil’s measure is prompted by the recent prosecution and con- victions of 15 Blubber Bay strikers, now in Oakalla serving four and six month sentences. The amend- ment would establish the right of picket lines in case of strikes. Present “unlawful assembly’ provisions are so vague that they may be frequently used against picketing in lawful strikes. This was the case in Blubber Bay Where numerous strikers were ar- rested when a group of scabs and company officials tried to prove that there existed “reasonable fear” of a disturbance. MacWNeil’s proposal would make it impossible for a small faction to establish for prosecution pur= poses that “reasonable fear’ exists for the public safety when a picket line is assembled for a lawful pur- pose. The present section of the Cri- minal Code does not draw any dis- tinction between assemblies gath-— ered for a lawful purpose and those organized by anti-democratic ele- ments for the purpose of disturb- ing the peace. Trade Union Classes Off To Good Start First of a series of trade union study classes under auspices of the Workers’ Educational Association were held in Labor Headquarters Wednesday with excellent attend- ance. Professor CC. W.- University of BC delivered the epening lecture on principles of trade unionism, and it is under- stood that classes may be broken into two groups, probably econs- Topping of the mics or psychology.