to speak

recognized the contributions

the world.

Stefansson speaks in Van-
couver on the night of Novem-
ber 17 in Exhibition Gardens
on “New Frontiers for Peace.”

Recognition of the famed ex-
plorer’s work in “enlarging the
boundaries of the world” was
made by the Canadian govern-
ment as early as 1921 in an
official citation declaring: “. . -
He has turned men’s minds
toward the north country as a
possible source of food supply
and a home for colonists, and
his work and advice
proved the greatest incentive
in promoting public and private
development of our northern
resources.”

But while the Canadian gov-
ernment was the first to recog-
nize the new outlook in theory,
it remained for the Soviet
Union to ineorporate that
theory into an active policy
which succeeded: on a large
scale. ‘

During the period of their
second Five Year Plan, the
development of the Soviet
Arctic was in the hands of the
Central Administration of the
Northern Sea Route, directed
by Professor Otto Schmidt,
himself: a noted Arctic ex-
plorer. Schmidt is quoted by
H. P. Smolka in his book
“Forty Thousand Against the
Arctic,” as having said: “We
fully believe the word stamped
by the American Polar «ex-
plorer Stefansson: ‘The Friend-
ly Arctic’ But we do not only
believe it, we are really making
friends with the Polar world.”

It is said of Stefansson that
he had “discovered and ex-
plored more than 100,000 square
miles.” One of .his most thrill-

Pioneer of Arctic

The governments of two nations have officially

by Vilhjalmur Stefansson, famed northern explorer whose
startling discoveries have captured the imagination of

have}

on peace

to Arctic development made

ing exploits was a 600-mile
sledge journey north from’
Alaska over the treacherous
ice floes of the Arctic Sea. The
party lived by hunting where

VILHJALMUR STEFANSSON

scientists, explorers and Eski-
mos had previously agreed no
game could possibly exist.
Considerable interest has been
stimulated in Stefansson’s
forthcoming visit to the city,
since he is known to be an
able lecturer. Reserved tickets,
$1.00, will be on sale at Kelly's
commencing November 10th.
Regular tickets, 75 cents, may
be obtained at the Pacific Trib-

une office, 650 Howe Street.
For further information, call
Marine 5288.

be implemented, that. the VLC
could not accept Labor Minister
Wismer’s invitation to participate
in the proposed Labor Relations
Board as specified in the ICA.
The Minister of Labor has for-
warded letters to both AFL and
CCL central labor bodies, pro-
posing that each should submit
a number of: names from which
the government could appoint
labor representatives on the board.
Two weeks ago the BCFL met
members of the Cabinet and sub-

‘mitted a brief containing a’ num-

ber of proposed amendments
aimed at bringing the ICA (Bill
39) into line with democratic
principles.

The general opinion of organ-
ized labor is that as Bill 39° now
stands, with scores of striking
steelworkers before the _ courts,
charged with infractions of its
restrictive provisions, and facing
fines and possible imprisonment,

Seeks Bill 39 changes
before board set-up

Vancouver Labor Council delegates voiced the opinion
Wednesday that until there was some assurance from the
Anscomb-Hart Coalition that ammendments to Bill 39, as sub-
mitted to the cabinet by the B.C. Federation of Labor would

that labor participation on such
a Board would be equivilant to
concurrance in its own persecu-
tion. Hence the need of assur-
ances that amendments will be
forthcoming before labor partici-
pation on the board is possible.

Charging that the labor depart-
ment had certified a company-
union set-up at the Dominion
Rustproofing Co. plant while a
bona fide union contract with a
CCL union.was still in force, the
VLC placed the company’s pro-
ducts on the ‘unfair list.’

Other important decisions adop-
ted by the VLC session include the
demand for a federal investigation
into the excess. profits being
made dy the baking industry, and
that the proceedings and results
of such an investigation be made
available to the public. Legaliza-
tion of the manufacture and sale
of oleomargerine by the Dominion

government was also urged.

tions spearheaded by U.S. imperi-
alism.

“Underlying this grave develop-
ment,” said Morgan, “are two spe-
cially significant factors — the
acute sharpening of the monopo-
list drive towards fascism at
home, and ‘imperialist domination
abroad. The King government has

integrated Canada with the ‘Tru-

Fallacy of ‘high wages’ as cause
_ of skyrocketting prices exposed

By TRADE UNION RESEARCH BUREAU

For years now the apologists for profite
great majority of their hired press

Slogan: “Increased prices are

formed public takes strong exception to

there are many enemies of labor
Only too anxious to believe this;
there are others who take their
Opinions ready-made from the
Newspapers, radio and other . or-
Sans of propaganda. And there
are others who are inclined . to
believe that wage increases cause
price increases, not because of
wilfulness, but becaus the true
facts are not made available to
them.

If, indeed,. price increases were
mainly due to increased labor
costs, why then is it that the
Department of National Revenue
shows that Canadian corporation
‘Profits are 225 percent higher in

have

ers, the paid stooges of big business and the
been bombarding the public with the hysterical

a result of increased wages.” Organized labor and the in-

this slogan. It is

an outright lie. Unforunately

1945 than they were in the 1936-
39 period, while wages were only
up to 42 percent in this period?
In the present IWA arbitration
proceedings on pehalf of the
shingle workers of B.G., the
Trade Union Research Bureau has

prepared an exhibit which pro-|

vides a startling example of how
prices (and consequently profits)
have increased out of all propor-
tion to the increase in wages (and
consequently purchasing power) of
the workers. ;

This exhibit shows that during
the period 1939 to 1947 the whole-
sale price of No. 1 grade red

Elspeth Munro, who was called

«

in the Street

movement.

Form law partnership |

John Stanton, well-known labor attorney, announced this
week that he has entered into a

on October 18. The firm maintains its head office in the
Holder Building, Vancouver, and has opened a branch office
in the Palace Building at Nanaimo.

Miss Munro, a brilliant graduate of UBC in 1942, became
articled as a law student in Stanton’s offices in 1944. She
distinguished herself in the three year law course by passing
at the top of her class each year.

She is well-known in labor eircles as having outstanding

P. C. Munro, has been active fur
oratorical ability. Her See cs cearats Union, and is now a

many
member of its strike committee. a ‘
Her sister, Estalla Munro, is prominent in the credit uniom:

law partnership with Miss
to the bar of British. Columbia

_ FRAY, OCTOBER 31, 1947

cedar shingles increased from
$2.30 per square to $8.00 per
square—an increase of $5.70 or
247 percent per square. During
that same time the wages of all
shingle mill labor increased by
52 cents per square. The labor
cost of the cedar logs bought by
the shingle manufacturers also
increased by 44 cents per square.

Thus, during the 8-year peri-
od, 1989 to 1947, for every $5.70
more per square received by
shingle manufacturers, all labor
involved in the manufacture re-
‘ceived an additional 96 cents
per square,

In other words, for every dol-
lar increase received by shingle
‘manufacturers, workers received
18 cents increase.

Remember that the profits in
the lumber industry have reached
unprecedented new highs; at the
same time veterans and workers
lack the purchasing power with
which to build sorely needed
housing.

This is not an isolated example;
a parallel can be found in virtu-
ally every field of industry.

High prices are not a result of
labor’s modest wage gains. Wage
increases lag far behind price
increases. Wages can and must
be increased if the present inade-
quate standard of living is to be

‘maintained, let alone bettered. At

the. same time price controls must
be reimposed; subsidies restored
where necessary and profits kept
down to a decent level.

Wage increases do not cause
price increases.

LPP committee session
plans Morgan election

The B.C.-Yukon committee of the Labor-Progressive
Party at last week’s quarterly session heard provincial party
leader Nigel Morgan outline in detail the sharpening economic
crisis and the dangerous reactionary trends in world rela-

man Doctrine’ and it cannot be
denied that Canadian foreign poli-
cies and military plans dovetail
with those of the US imperialist
warmongers.”

On the domestic scene Morgan
dealt in detail with all the evi-
dence of the maturing crisis; the
scrapping of price controls and its
consequent inflation which has re-
sulted in all-time high profits for
the monopolists and lower stan-
dards of living
for the masses
of wage earners,

farmers and
4 small business
4 people. Labor

has been obstruc-
ted by vicious
anti-labor legisla-
tion (Bill 39) in
its struggle for
higher wage stan-
dards to meet
rising living
costs.

The fight to
roll back prices
and reinstitute price controls will
highlight the work of the LPP
during the coming months accord-
ing to the decisions of the provin-
cial committee. :

The LPP provincial body also
decided to begin concentration
on a given constituency to as-
sure the election of Nigel Mor-
gan in the next provincial elec:
tions.

The two-day session placed con-
siderable emphasis on the need
to achieve labor -unity for the
defeat of Bill 39 and its CMA-
inspired sponsors. A four-point
program aimed at strengthening
labor’s fight for increased wages
to meet rising costs and for the
defeat of Bill 39 was unanimously
adopted. These include the demand
that all charges .against strikers
now before the courts under Bill
39 be dropped; that an early ses-
sion of the legislature be con-
vened to bring labor legislation
into line with democratic prin-
ciples, and to revise the unfair
and inequitable school tax legisla-
tion. ; :

Highlight of the provincial com-
mittee session was a report by
B.C. delegates to the World Youth
Festival in Prague this summer.
Homer Stevens and Glyn Thomas
outlined the work done by the
Canadian youth delegation while
in Europe and the great struggle
for peace undertaken by the
‘World Federation of Democratic
Youth. An abridged text of this
report is featured on page 9 of

Nigel Morgan

this issue.

OTTAWA—Sales in three retail
trades—jewelry, women’s clothing
and hardware stores fell below
last year’s sales for the month of
August, according to the Dominion
Bureau of Statistics.

Jewelry sales dropped 12 percent

continuing a trend of earlier
months. The drop for the first
eight months of 1947 is 11 percent.
Decrease in hardware sales were
slightly less than one percent com-
pared with a January to August
increase of six percent over 1946.
The drop in women’s clothing sales
was particularly heavy in Ontario,
where the August index fell 15
percent below last year.

August retail sales as a whole
showed “the smallest increase in
any month of 1947 over the corres-
ponding month of last year,” ac-
cording to the report. They were
four percent above the 1946 August:

Restaurant sales were up three
and one-half percent compared to
August 1946. However the increasc
for the eight momth 1947 period
was up one-half of one percent
over the similar period in 1947.
Sales in food stores were seven
percent above last year as com-
pared with a ten percent increase
in the January-August period.

Department store sales were re-
ported as showing “a distinct ten-
dency” toward levelling off despite
a combined country general and
department store increase of four
percent in sales for August 1947
over the same month im 1946.

Goons in union dispute

MONTREAL—The CIO Handbag
union charged “stormtrooper dres-
sed in white caps, brown shirts
and brown slacks” have been “im-
ported” from the USA, by Maurice
Silcoff, Paul Fournier and Roger
Provost, all organizers for the

break their strike. :

lines of the handbag shops to in-

the extent of stopping people on
their way home at&night and
threatening them.” J. A. Pat Sul-
livan, it was alleged, is lending
assistance to the Millinery Union.

Plastic ‘specs’ coming

spectacle lenses have been placed

British firm, a Toronto optical
company
nounced.

The plastic lenses, made of clear
transparent’ plastic ;

able are less than half the weight
of ordinary glass lenses. They
also have greater light transmis-
sion than glass and are much less

said.

the famous “Igard”

onto optical company has stock-
ed up with its first shipment of

To contest Alta. riding

EDMONTON —

riding of Pincher Creek-Crow’s
Nest will be held in Blairmore,
November 2, it was announced by
Roe captonr cent Party officials
ere. :

convention and delegates are ex-
pected from all parts of the con-
stituency. The seat at present is
held by E. O. Dukes, Social Credit,
who won over Enoch Williams,
popular labor mayor of Blairmore
by a small margin in 1944 with
the CCF running third. ‘

election will be called next

probably in mid-summer. ‘ :

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—PAGE 3_

timidate the workers. They go to —

on the Canadian market by a
in London,

England, besides being unbreak-

liable to misting, the spokesman

It is expected that a provincial —

e

AFL Millinery Workers Union, to

They claimed that “professional _
gangsters were sent on the picket

TORONTO—Unbreakabie plastic _

spokesman has an ~

The British plastic lenses are _

The spokesman said the Tor-

A nominat- a
ing convention for the provincial

B. R. Swankey, provincial lead-
er of the party, will attend the