A ‘Sit-Down’ strike. Or again, America’s new strike tech John L. Homer Martin of the United have started the sit-down music. as fostered by impressarios also light in spirit. Take a about a plant. in the typical scene striking automobile Parked along the « street outside the pl of cars containing with the workers or sin curious. Have they c« body urbs and ant are scores ply the idly yme in No. They riot, perhaps? And as the closing strains of Heaven' or "It's o1 ut th e win there chorus of hon kin g applause the audience. This is not an indication the strikers are a bunch of loafers, bent on having a good time. It is actually one of the “big business’ met! ing. If organized re« happier industrial workers, so it makes strikers happier—and more effective. Concerts are a part of an efficiently-administered program of discipline and tra! “Pennies From De-Lovely” float from appiica wds to strik- of the past. Long Known in Mines. It is also a far cry liest “‘sit-down’’ strikes, mis-named, for the strikers do not actually sit down very much. only remain the plant in which they worked, guarding the property against invasion by “scabs’’ until their demands are met. Perhaps John L. known in mine labor circles, this idea from a practice of mi over many years past. inside Lewis, long adapted place would load any coal The superin- to ‘‘shore’’ his and refuse to the timber arrived. tendent usually lost no time ting it to him. The first stay-in or sit-down strike to gain wide attention was that in the mines of Pecs, Hungary, in 1934. Miners down in the shafts re- fused to come up and even threat- ened to commit suicide en masse if their working conditions and pay were not improved. A year later the same idea was adopted by work- ers in colleries of Wales. The sit-down strike became so widely applied in France last year it produced a crisis which was re- lieved only when the government, in a great hurry, passed a new col- lective bargaining measure and sev- eral other labor laws. Strikers “Protect” Property. In the United States it first re- ceived wide attention when em- ployes of art and theater projects of the WPA “‘stayed-in” but refused to work until their demands were met. Workers claim that when they strike inside a plant, they actually protect the property. But while they are there, the company cannot put anyone else on their jobs. Company officials claim this is trespassing and illegal. First act of the union when a sit- down strike is called is to choose groups of pickets and captains, to police the plant of and grounds advantage if located on the street, back from the gate, considerable plant is and the upon the workers’ trances and exits. The way Workers protest dis- John L. Lewis, leader Below: Inset: - ————— —& and other supplies to come in. If you can say an army marches its stomach, you can say a modern in without the necessity tering through one of the gates. Women Are Chaperoned. the sympathy of must remain orderly. an axe to grind do they with the public Mobs not are occupied, unless there are means provided for expending the natural some duty. He may be given a tain ‘“‘watch’ to patrol or a ‘‘shift” on messenger duty. If there are women among the strikers they may be charged with information desks, with preparing food, mending clothing, or even running impromptu beauty parlors to keep up the appearance of their agues. Chaperonage is usually of the strictest order, and there lar plant matrons stayed the strikers to administer this portant job. The information clerks are often as not the liaison between the strik- ers and their families or friends out- Wives often call at windows Often ruses the men out and home for a few wife has had a baby, that son is stricken with Pickets soon learn to before giving a striker a pass-out check. Strikers are not nearly so uncom- fortable as might be imagined. In the automobile plants there are usu- ally enough rear seat cushions at hand to provide plenty of soft beds, while flcor coverings make good blankets. Wives Cook the Meals. Barrels, kegs and boxes serve for chairs and are fairly comfortable, at that. On steel tables the strikers play such games as checkers, mon- opoly and poker. Washers can serve as either checkers or chips; a checkerboard can easily be fash- ioned from a piece of cardboard, and where can you find a few hun- dred men without a deck of cards among them? Food usually is cooked in a hall near the plant. Sometimes a chef from a restaurant in the town su- pervises the work. The wives and sweethearts of the strikers do most of the actual cooking, and pack the many tubs and baskets which offi cial union messengers transport through the gates or hoist up to the windows. There is no liquor for anyone For, while there is no objection to the strikers’ having a good time during their siege, the objective is too precious to risk what even one lone striker might do if he were “not himself" Discipline in some plants military standards self- sed, are the few infractions ished swiftly and se fraternity house m the majority of cases; formist is made to ‘assume the an- gle’ over a table or box, after which his fellows vigorously apply barrel staves upon the strategic spot. The offense is seldom repeat- ed. The orderly conduct of the strik- ers is aptly illustrated by one plant, Men Do Own Washings. A bugle call arouses the men from their slumbers at 7 a. m. Some take advantage of the shower baths pro- vided in the plant, everybody washes well, the ears and all. Forty-five minutes later in th company cafeteria the breakfast sent in by the women folks is served cereal, milk, coffee, rolls nd doughnuts. For lunch there will be stew, dessert and coffee At meat, potatoes, vegetables, coffee and dessert. When they have finished break- the men patrol their assign- ments. The plant is kept almost as clean as it is when there is no strike on. They do their own laun- dry in some cases; the conveyor lines resemble back yards on wash day. Some of the men, of course, send their laundry home. Time is not allowed to drag. When the work is done the strikers may, if they wish, attend classes which are conducted under the auspices of the union officials. Here they may be instructed in public speak- ing, economics, physical culture and, to be sure, labor problems. Propaganda With Entertainment. There are generally two im- portant meetings every day. The executive committee rules, obeyed: impo i) are pun- verely. The old ethod is used in the non-con- ~fruit fruit, later on there is a general mecting at which all the strikers are advjsed as to what is going on. After dinner at night there is in- variably community entertainment, such as might be found in a boys’ camp. Radios provide music for community singing part of the time. In addition, a not-half-bad orches- tra can usually be rounded up from the ranks of the strikers. In the regular employes’ meet- ings and "‘parties’’ when there is no strike on, the company seldom fails to include propaganda designed to promote happier relations between employer and employe. And in the parties of the strikers there is plen- ty of propaganda supplied by the leaders to keep up enthusiasm for the strike. Mixed in with the “swing” music and hill-billy songs is an occasional paraphrase of a familiar ballad—a new lyric re- minding the strikers of the advan- tages to be gained if they will con- tinue to be persistently patient. Perhaps the importance of the sit- down strike as a weapon of labor depends upon the very discipline which has been developed and main- tained. It is not hard to see that an idle mob, banded constantly to- gether for days, ht get out of hand, act rashly by some act of violence defeat its own ends. © Western Newspaper Union, what ind iG b about: Making 1937 A Safe Year. KANTA MONICA, CALIF. — v.J This time last year we were all dedicating ourselves to a crusading campaign to make 1936 a safer year for motorists. We were going to cut down the volume of traffic disasters, going to reduce the appalling mortality toll which had marked the pre- ceding year. So what? Well, here's what. The end of 1936 showed an all - time top for deaths on the public highways roughly 37,450, or approximately 450 more than in 1935. So now we'll pious- ly resolve, all over again, to do something about this hideous destroyer which kills by the thousands and maims by the hun- dreds of thousands and makes our fatalities and casualties in the world war seem, by comparison, puny. And what will come of the re- newed agitation? The National Safety Council will wage a gallant, hopeless fight, various local organi- zations and civic bodies will do what they newspapers will rail and statesmen will deplore the ghastly record of slaugl hier wil right on mounting Irvin 8. Cobb can, | keep The Value of “Experts” ae ARD a supposed ising a director, boun to _— a big game picture, that practically everything about his kit Was WIong exc ept po ssibly his rear collar button It remin pampered millionaire's son wi was heading for the C alled in a veteran and pert ex} ad- i for ot A : ir Africa ded me of the 8 parxa. nt ¢ “ul Oi SCA ged with i the profes. surface of the y “The fur is and the exposed, thus wind." The youngster burst out laughing. “Have 1 said ing to excite your mirth?’ demanded the special- ist *“‘Oh, not the someth said the amateur, ‘I was jt nking what a darned fool a buffalo is.” Americans in England REN NEWED exci tement has been aroused in the British isles by the discovery that yet another mem- ber of the roval family-—this time it's the young duke of Kent--not only shows a regrettable tendency tc enjoy himself as any al nat ural, healthy youngster might, but, what is even more distressing, has lately been in the company of an American woman. Oh, pestiferous Yankee women! In si ite of all that can be done, it's almost certain some of them will witness the coronation, and several thousands of them will break their girlish necks trying to do so. norm seen these Militarizing the C. C. C. EPRESENTATIVE NICHOLS of Oklahoma is trying to accom- plish something which should have been done long ago. He's preparing a bill to make military reserve units of the C. C. C. boys, which would mean discipline and morale Rr thousands of young Americans and, if needed, would provide the nucleus of a trained citizen-army. Seems to me there is every reason why congress should enact the leg- islation, not as a warlike gesture, but as a peacetime move for na- tional defense and national protec- tion. But watch the professional pacifists fight it—professional paci- fists being well-meaning folks who believe in Santa Claus, turning the other cheek, and the beautiful, if slightly impractical theory, that a white rabbit will be perfectly safe among a pack of greedy coyotes. LJ - * Actors Trading Careers. ALF-WAY across the continent, actors who have succeeded in Hollywood and are headed east, hop- ing to break into the legitimate stage on Broadway, pass actors who, having succeeded on Broad- way, are heading west, hoping to break into the movies in Hollywood. It is a two-way traffic which grows heavier all the time. Thus we see how human hopes are uplifted and how curious a thing is human nature, not to mention human ambition. Also it’s good for railroad travel. But if the jaybirds suddenly de- cided to trade their nests for wood- pecker holes and the woodpeckers fell in heartily with the idea, we superior creatures could laugh be feathered friends for being such idiots. IRVIN 8. COBB. ©--WNU Service, N00 2 2 0 2 0 0 0 00 0% fede de de de de fe fe ok fe ke i ke ok kok kk STAR DUST Movie « Radio 00 20 20 2 2 0 00 2 2 2 2 NE of the trade magazines of the motion picture in- ity of the screen stars. For months, people had been told that Robert Taylor had climbed to the very top: that he got more fan mail than Clark Gable did, that his name above a thea- ter was magic, because it drew 50 many paying customers; that, in short, Mr. Taylor was tops. But according to this Clark Gable is the popular actor! Last year Shirley that position. This ond. Fred Ast: ers as a team Taylor fourth, fifth In case you're er leading stars order; Mj a Loy, Clauc bert, Norm a Shearer, Fredric March, Je ald and Nels . Lionel report, screen's most Temple held year she is and Ginger Rog- come third, Robert and William Powell ECC. aire the oth- listed in thi Col- Cooper, interested, are lette Gary Jarrymore fee is nice Cagney's new is one of his best It had to be. He made it for Grand National you know, a new organizatic and ; report that James ’ “Great G1 uy, icture, that new “Do You Want to Be an Actor?” If vou haven't, do! It's very entertaining. People who are in the audience are given roles in scenes that are done before the microphone, and after each per- formance the best woman perform- er and the best man are given movie tests by Warner Brothers. It's quite possible that some of our future stars will be developed in this way. Have vou listened to radio program, an Wren If the radio pwograms given by “Myrt and Marge” for so long were among your favorites, you'll be glad to know that a new series done by that popular couple has started. It's a family affair, for COAL. son is now on the pro- Myrt's” gram, and “Marge” is her daugh- werel, used > Ges rge Dan to go to the University of Southern California, but he left college to tour with his mother and sister when they went on the stage. Looks as if “Myrt"” had built up a pretty good business for the family by writing those sketches, doesn’t it? pine Grace Moore has had to abandon her career on the concert stage and on the air, temporarily, in ter The son She has been working hard in pic- tures—in fact, she has turned into a real trouper, and the tempera- ment that used to cause so much trouble is well under control. ane you'll see Shirley of Eddie Jo lson and doing funny thing about ild star never has seen either of them; just worked the imitations up from what she she was told about the two gentle- men's work. In *4 towaway Temple doing Cantor and Al them well. The it is that the ch ons onset Hollywood is still shocked over the suicide of Ross Alexander, al- though his friends knew that he had never ceased to grieve over his first wife, Aleta than a year before. It was said that she killed herself cause, coming Hollywood from the New York stage, she Ross could not seem to Alexander £et ahead in pic- tures. Young Alex- ander was doing very well with his career, and his second wife, Anne Nagel, is one of the screen's pret- tiest young actresses. ani oi ODDS AND ENDS . . . Remember “The Shick,” with V. alentino? Nino Mar. llouseliold ® @ Questions The clothes so young people will der easily, if washed in mild soap and plenty of warm water. Rinse well, and hang up to dry. * » * Salted peanuts, fres heating in oven, are very served with vanilla ice people like this cially well. corduroy POPU iaune hened by peod § auc e on cream. The young combination ¢ chocolate a soap and an y and appi powdered way ng to boil- smooth Quickest Way to Ease a COLD 1 Take £2 Bayer Aspirin tablets with » full glass of waler. If throat is sore also, pargle with 8 Bayer tablets in M glam of water to ease a cold is Two Bayer Aspirin tablets the ng on. ours. If a sult lve. 3 Bayer tablets in : ater and gargle with this twice. “The Toe Asg 3 internally will act to combat Ti aches, pains which usually accompany a cold. The gargle will provide almost instant relief from and raw- ness of your throat. Your doctor, we feel sure, will approve this modern way. Ask your druggist for genuine Bayer Aspirin by its full name — not by the name “aspirin” alone. The modern way this ou feel : a sore thro: soreness Kindliness Wears Well Kindliness wears well, looks well and will be remembered long after the prism of politeness or the complexion of courtesy has faded away.—Van Amburgh. CHECK THAT COUGH BEFORE IT GETS WORSE Check it before it gets you down. Check it before others, maybe the children, osteh it Check it with FOLEYS HONEY & TAR This double-scting compound gives quick relief and speeds recovery. Boothes raw, irri tissues; quickly allays tickling, backing, Spoop- {sl on retiring makes for a cough-4 rec sie. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers