Media
Issue Date
1941-04-08
Volume
3
Issue Number
7
Plaintext
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EASTERN GRANTS PAY BOOSTl
Savannah Line
Signs for $7.50
Monthly Raise
Ocean Steamship Company
of Savannah (Savannah Line)
joined the parade of coast
wise operators this week,
agreeing to a $7.50 increase
in monthly pay to its SIU
crews.
Five (ioinpaiiie.s liacl iirovl
ously signed i'ln Ihe raise,
and now willi Eastern and
Savannah falling into line,
the .$15.00 rate above basic
pa3' is expeeleil to beeoni(>
the inininuini on all Sll' .ships
operating eoastwi.se.
SIU Men Sent to Man Alcoa Pioneer
SlUfirewSentto
Coast to Sail
New Alcoa Ship
A fidl engine and .steward
department ('Oinpleinent of
SIU inen Ava.s sejit by the
Union overland to San Fran
ei.sco to .start the Alcoa
Pioneer .off on her maiden
voyage to the Atlantic Coa.st.
The new Alcoa ship Was
docked at the Union Iron
Works in Hunter's Point
after coming otf the ways.
The men report that the Plon
eer tops just about everything
afloat In respect to comfoifablc
crew's quarter.s and living condi
tibns, what with plugs for electric
razors, messroms with four men
to a table, automatic dishwashing
machines, electric toasters, etc.,
etc.
The men's tiansport'ation—first
class—from New York to San
Francisco was paid by the com
pany. Upon arriving in Frisco
they were, greeted by Blackie Pre,
vest. Assistant Secretary of the
,SUP and a delegation of West
Coast Sailors was on hand to
show them aroundt With an SUP . v
deck gang, the SIU crew Iramedi man the Pioneer is shown above.)
Bill In Congress Calls for
25 Years Jail for Strikers
After a declaration on the floor of Congress % Repre
sentative'Snmners, chairman of the powerful House jndiciap
Committee, to the effect that he is ready to go as far hs legis
lating the "electric chair" for "saboteurs" in strikes hold
' ing np "defense production" the antilabor liy.stcria m Wash
"^/ijngtpn reached a new climax when Representative Lelaud M.
Ford of California actually introduced a Bill calling for 25
{Continued on Page 2)
The above ineiiiliei'S of the Seafapers' International Union of North Aineiica were
sent iiverlaiid to man the AIco^ Pioneer, latest of the Aiumiinini Line shjp.s on her
maiden voyage to tlie East Coa.st. Tlie man seeomi fioiii the riglit is Biackle Prevost,
.SUP .Assistant Secretary, who was on liand to greet them.
Montanan Suit
Vs. SUP Fizzles
SAN FRANCISCO. —In the de
cision doiivpicd in the American
Hawaiian Co.'s suit against the
.Sailors Union of the Pacific for
tlie alleged tying up of the Mon
tanan, Judge Roclie has ruled that
the Union was not. liable for dam
ages but would have to bear the
costs of the suit.
ately. boarded the Pioneer, wliicii
is now reported well on her way
towards tiie canal.
Despite all kinds of tlireals em
anating from the Communist
Party waterfront section," there
was no bitcli in sailing the
Pioneer with a full SIUSUP crew.
It was a real demonstration ot
East CoastWest Coast seamen's
solidarity.
(Picture , of SIU men sent to
"Top Fraction"
Never Misses
Chance to Fink
True to themselves, the
"Top Fraction" that con
trols the NMU never misses
a chance to fink on the
SIU. The latest opportun
ity for the Stalin boys to
show their colors came this
week. While the SIU was
negotiating with the Alcoa
Steamship Company re
garding the war bonus
question, one Jack Law
renson, alias the "Black
Monk," called up the
company and informed
them that the NMU was
ready to supply them with
any number of men they
needed!
And these are the boys
who blab in the "Pilot"
about the need for "Unity"
in order to get an ade
quate bonus! What they
mean actually is shown by
their actions. They are for
UNITY WITH THE SHIP
OWNERS! As for an ade
quate bonus for the sea
men, the SIU has shown
the way IN ACTION.
Towboatmen Win
Wage Raise
Prepared to hit the bricks
last Thursday morning, with
the prospect of all harbor
traffic being brought to a
standstill. 2,500 New York
towboatmen got a raise of $5
for the. licensed officers and
$7.50 for the Unlicensed Per
sonnel on Wednesday night,
when the operators came
across with this compromise
proposal to the demands of
the men.
AUhougli tlic Union. Local 333
of tlie United Marine Division of
the I.L.A. had originally asked
for"a $20 raise, the settlement was
nevertheless, regarded as a victory
for tlie towboatmen, since the
owners had originally refused to
talk terms at all, declaring that
(he contract, which expires next
December, provides for arbitra
tion of all disputes. This false
claim was quickly exploded by the
action of the Union and its swift
success.
Attention !
EDWARD EARL SCHOW
Local Board No. 2 .it Aus
tin, Texas is trying to get in
touch with you. Communi
cate with them immediately.
ijfrj'i
• . VA •
Joins Other Lines
in Monthly Raise
For S.i.U. Crews
Concedes 80c
OvertlmeToo
Eastern Steamship Lines
Inc. came across with a $10
increase in pay over last
year's rate on all coastwise
vessels this week. On the
Evangeline, operating off
shore, the Company granted a
$7.50 raise. Thus, at last,
wages on the Eastern have
been brought in line with
SIU standards on all other
lines I
Last yiar I lie Company
(inly coneeded a .$5.00 month
ly inereasp, Avliilo most of tho
othor eomitanii's boosted
wages $10 and $7.50 a
month. With most of the
Companies agreeing to bring
wages up to .$17.50 above
basic [lay this year, tlie
owners were faced with a.
sitnation in which the men on
the Eastern scows were pay
ing off in order to take 'ad
vantage of the better pay on
other Lines, what with jobs
being plentiful and a general
.shortage of trained seameii
making itself felt.
NMU "Organizer" Rats
Not unexpectedly, the ratty
officials of the NMU tried to
take advantage of this situa
tion in order to stage a fink
herding raid on the Eastern
and to take their ships
away from the Seafarers' In
ternational Union. Behind
the backs of the NMU mem
bership, Jack Lawrenson, dis
"organizer" for the NMU,
offered the Company "as
many men as it needed" in an
effort to dislodge the SIU
from the Eastern.
Company Won't Bite
Knowing that there would bo
hell to pay if any such scheme,
were attempted, the Company prer.
ferred to come to terms with the
SIU rather than take advantage
of Lawrenson's flnky offer. Busi
ness is apparently too lucrative
for the shipowners to court labor
trouble.
On Friday, April 4, the Com
pany signed on the dotted line for
the $10 increase. The next day
they informed the SIU that they
would also grant the 80 cents an
hour rate for overtime, another
Union demand on which the Com
pany had held out while other
lines were conceding it last year.
In spite of the longstanding
maneuvers of the shipowners, and
(Continued on Page 2)
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THE SEAFARERS' LOG Tuesday, April 8, i94i
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Published hy the
ATLANTIC & GULF DISTRICT
of the
Seafarers* International Union
of North America
Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor
HARRY LUNDEBERG, Acting International President
110 Market Street, Room 402, San Francisco, Calif.
ADDRESS ALL CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING} THIS
'PDBIJICATION W:~~ ~ ~
"THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. O. Box 522, Oiurch St. Annex, New York, N. Y.
Phone'. BOwling Green 93437
More About
Bill in Congress
For 25 Years Jail
Strike Penalty
t'
U Sietit** for Strikers?
, AiitilHlior li.vstei'ia hit the high heaveii.s last Me<'k as working
stitts tlirouglMnit, the tamntry acted tt> keep wage.s ami conditions
• up to the level ot' the sleadlly rising cost of living.
, Tlie very idea that tUe Bgthlehem .St«'el slaves or McCoinii«d4
' Jlai'vester serfs or tlie Foidautoinohile robots should take matters
into tlieir own hands and square off to settle their long beef
against Ixnidage with their profltladen inasteis .seemed to, strike
terror int<» the hearts of the legislative coterie that serves these
plutocrats.
Whjh? the Ke.vstone Ko.ssacks were sent in by tiove^'uoi'. .iames
to teach a le.s.son in democracy to strikers at Bethlelieip, Ihinisyl
fvania, with the aid of threefoot riot clubs, the, Solqns in (iqngress
propo.sed to implement such instrucUon witli the electric cliair
ffor smli "enemies of the nafion in the factor.v or elsewtiere!"
To a qm^tion from a Kepre.sentative Boiren of Oklahoma as
to whether the House Judiciary CommitteeTvas iWdy, Since ,man
agemeht . and. labor were "too hardheaded to .declare a luorato
iium oh strikes," to report out pending legislation to <mtlaw
strikes «ir enf<»rce "cooloff" periods, theChairman of that commit
tee; Kepresentalive Siiinners, replied;
. "Wlien the time comes that it is necessary to deal .with the ene
mies ot" tlie natioq in the factory or elsewhere,, I believe I can .sneak
for every member of the committee. If it is necessary to pre.serve this
bountry, they would not hesitate for one .spilt .second to qnact leghs
lation to send them to the ela^tric chair."
The New York Times, big business spokesman, appropriately
headlined the repoit of Mr. Sumner's remarks a.s tiiHhws; "De
fense Strikes Stir Talk In House of Death Penalty.'' .fusf to leave
iio room for mistaking the import of the Congressman's words, it
is to he presumed.
So the wave of patriotic hy.steria has conie to the point wlicrc
the vast majorit.v of the nation—the *vorkers in mill, faciory,
plant, ship or doi^k^lias to be intimidated to desist, from strikes
hy the threat of the "Hot Seat"! .Nnd all in the name of "de
fense," all in the name of tlie necessity "to preserve this country"!
' If working .stiffs insist on their right to be fepresented by
Unions of their own choice and show tliat they mean business
When the.v re.sorl to the strik< weapon after no other icouisc is
left open to them hy tlie finkherding openslioppers—thai is to he
eon.sidered trea.son pniiistiahle by the Pllectric Cliair!
if lalior is to hack up with action demands for a tew evtra
ctents an hour to meet rising costs at a time when their cinployers'
coffers bmsl ivitli superprofits—that is to be regarded as a crime
punishable hy the "hot seat"!
What will thei'e be left for the niillioulicaded mass of toilers
to defend as "democracy" after that? How will their "way of.
life" b<^ in any wa.^, superior to that of the workers transformed
into helots by Hitler and his bloody Nazi regime in Germany?
i Hitler has long ago enforced Mr. Sumner's sngge.stion, only
with a slight modification in methods: strikers are subject to tlic
axe rather than tlie cliair in Naziland—and that's a pretty slim
choice, indeed! .
No, American labor will not go tor that kind of a "defense/'
"To pre.serve tliis country" for labor's hosts that means pieserv
ing, the right to a dei^ent living, the right to Unions of their own
choice, the right to .strike when no other course helps.
Tjabor hates Hitl(>r and Hitlerism and Nazi oppression with all
its hearl anil soul and is quite willing to die in the struggle
against it. But labor will never accept Bethlehem Steel's or Henry
Ford's or Bepresentative Suinners' version of "national th^ffdise"
as a means of "preserving the country." That version smacks
too imuh of tlw! Nazi bpitression they are out to flglit and destroy.
Tlie "Hot. Sent" fn, ctnnrer.a^> The"Hot Seat" for .strikers?
The venal Congressmen who propose it had bettiw estahlish
some "coolingofl" periods for themselves before they come out
with new proclamations for it. They are giving the whole show
away. The working stiffs of this country will only learn from
suc^h self.exposures that the fight against Hitlerism and Nazism
hegiiis on the picket line right here, and that's the way , to pre
/^rvd the country for the people who live and work in tfie Uiuled
States. X
(Continued Jroni Page 1)
yejii'.s' impivisonnieiit for nil
tliose piiilicipating in ".slrikes
a gainst the United Stales or
its defense pvograiul" and the
deal!), penally in ease casual
ties residf J'roni siicli strikes.
A< tlie same time, the
House of Kepresentatives
voted d24 1o 1 Id direet its
MiliUiry and Xaval Affairs
r'ommiltees to eonduet "in
quiries" into the dcrense jno
grain, witli the demand thai
they go thoroughly into the
si rike silual ion,
"Too Extreme," But ...
Aithongh Reprc.semafive Ford's
Bill is regarded as (oo extiemo
even by the li.vsteiical laborbait
ers to obi a ii^ i)as.sago, t he fgmper
of tlie emjdoyermimied cougre.s.4
men. as .shown by the vote for the;
"inquirie.s," indicates that .some
kind of stringent aiijistrike legis
hition is in (lie air. Reji. Ford's
bill contains ilie following jiass
age wbicli is il.s .siibsiance:
Verliatim Contents
"U 7/oeccr • nuitrn. udroratcs.
(• uUs. fiarticiijates in „r an.sists
any .vtrike against the tlni'ted
States or at any /dace where ai^
tides, materials, snmdies, rc.v.ve/.v.
building structiires or fucilitie.s
for wtc, directly, or indirectly. JiX
THE LAND OH NAVAL FORCES
of file United State.s or by tlie
tinited .Stafeii in the iiroseciitioii
of the national defense program
are being produced, repaired, con
structed,. reconstructed, installed,
trannnortcd or id/irrwivc hdndlcd
or worked on. shall be uniily of
treason and on conviction tliereof
shatl 1)e iin/wisoned for iihenly
five yeiirs without /larole or re
duction of sentence foi' good be
havior, or if resulting, directly or
indireeUy, in the death of any
person, shall Jiiins(df he /xtnished
hy death."
Affects Seamen Directly
The Khipowners have been cry
ing for months now tliat every
tieup "sabotages" national de
fen.se. Under the Ford Bill, as
noted above, tlie tieup of a ve.ssel
these day.s—when every vessel
is considered necessary to "lui
tional defense"—would result in
twentyfive year.s' imjirisonnienl, to
the seamen involved, with a pos
sible deatli penalty in case a .scab
is killed indirectly in the course
of tlie strike!'
New Threat to Labor
Tlie very fact lhat siidi a Bill
can even be proposed shows to
what lengtii tlie shi|)owners and
other employers and llieir a,gents
are ready to go in order to pre
vent hihor'.s demands for a just
participation in tlie tremendous
profits tliey are heaping up.
Urges Local Boards to Giv^ *
Serious Cbhsiderafion to Seamen 5r" 1
'.'At
More About
to SfU Members!
The deadlino for paying the 1941 Hospital, Bpria)
j and .Shipwreck Asse.ssrnent was March 31, 1941. Any
inemhcr vvfjp has iidt paUi it is therefore in bad standing,
npt enfcitJecl to griy benefits nor to the right to vote at
Union meetings.
— Sydney Gretcher, Sec.Trea,s.
EasterniSrantsSlO
Coastwise Raise
(Continued from Page 1)
the scabby tactics of the NMU
officialdoni, the SIU has come
through once more with an im
portant victory for tlie seamen on
the East Coast! By militant ac
tion and hardwon Improvements
the SIU has gained conditions
secontl to none for its member,
ship. Nothing can prevent.it from;
fast taking its place as the Union
of the seumeii iii the Tast! "
In a circnlar issuctl to all State Directors on March Ifi,
1941 over the .signature of Col. Lewis D. Hersiiey, Deputy
Director, Nalionai Headquarters of the Selective Service
.System asks that local draft boai'ds give serious eonside.ra
tiqii to tlie (letiq'hunit of .smuneii. c.xnpe
tenl (Jovernmeiit aiilliority as saying: \
"It is anticipated tbat national shortages will occur in
the engine department of merchant vessels, in the. grades of
firemen and higher ratings; in the deck depSirtment, in the
grades involving able seamen and higher ratings, which in
eludes boatswains and quarternaasters; in t^ stewards de
partment, it is anticipated also that a shortage of chief
stewairds, marine cooks and bakers may result. ..."
NCAV .jersey Sjiitc Heaclqiiartors. supplementing the.se in
stnietioii.s in a eircular issued on Slareii 27, 1941, over the
signal lire of William !>. Higgiiis, Stale Direetor, lists the fol
lowing ratings speeifieully:
"Men witk seagoing experience and holding, any of the
following certificates should be carefully considered for de
ferment in Class II—A; seamen, firemen, water
tenders, oilers, pumpmen, machinists, marine electricians.
Deck Engineers, Chief Stewards, marine cooks, bakers."
The circnlar has llic following to say about other ratings:
"(Ordinary scaiuon, Avipors, coal passers, ine.ss inen and
iiic.ss lioys arc at present pleiiliinl. These are beginners and
iiiiiess near tlie jmint, of getting eortifieales, do not normally
mecl the rmpiiremeiits, of paragraph ilbl (b) and (c) of the
regtilalions. (These regulations deal with the qne.stion as to
AvIiielL oeenpal ioiis arc ueeessiiiy to luilioiial defense). Men
who will soon be ready for certificates, as indicated by the
length oT service shown op the questionnaire, can properly
be put in Class IIA as 'MEN IN TRAINING' for becoming ^
necessary men."
ill other Avords, iiisirnelions cited here are to the effect
lhat A.]!., FOW, SteAA'ard and Coffh ratings should he de
ferred on oeenpalional grounds Avlthont any'qqe.stion. Qn the
oilier hand, ordinary seaineiL Avipers, me.ssmeii, etc., may be
deferred as "MEX'IN TRAINING" if they have enough .
seiitime in so tliat it is reasojiable to expect them to get an
endorsement or ecrtifieate For one of the liiglier ratings.
Sir men should hear these facts in mind at all times
Avlieii dealing Avitli the Local Draft Boards, AVIIO are often
ignorant of the information and rulings issued by higher
bodies. Although these rulings do not constitute general de
ferment for'.seamen, Ihey are st eiks in the right direction and
sliouhl he taken adA'antage of.
Union seamen naturally Avant In maintain union wages
and conditions Avlieii .suh.iect to national defense work. Such
Avork is .inst as iiiqiorlant in the merchant marine as in the
army. It is not a matter of shirking at all. It is a matter of
acting in the job Avliere you are most fit and where you can
maintain Aonr .standintr as a union man.
SEAFARERS' LOG
I-
,S.S. KENMAR
• S.S. LA HALLE
Fred Hartori
E. .Toiiiisun
,S,S. DELRTO . ...........
J." Stiekney
S.S. RUTH
Deck Dept.
Eiigine Dept.
J. F. Slusai'czyk
S.S. MART (Deck. Dept.) .
E. John.son
R. Vargas .....
J. Correa
J. Santiago .
S.S. CUBA (Engine Dept.)
S.S. oAoiAR .r..
S.S. LAFAYETTE ;....,.,..;..'...... .r
Chief Etigineer (La:fayctte) ..,,,.
Capt, Heller (Lafayete) ...............,..,.......
W; P. Corrigan ............
Total
$1.00
6.0Q
l.OQ
:50
3.00
2.00
' : '' • • .t
5.00
. 2:25
, 1.00
i.do
.50
1.00
3.00
3.06.
9.16,
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• M
Tuesday, April 8, 1941 T H E S EA F A R £ R S • LOG
W,hat*8 Doing —
PUERTO RICO
March ]8,' 1941
Editor, SeaCurors Loa
Dear .Sir and Biollier:
Sure liad a busy week of Jiead
aclies, and, if siiipping continues
as it is, we wiil Imve to import a
few sliiploads of A.B.'s from
soniewiiere. Tin; Miilinockot iiad
to come around to San Juan from
Huinaoao for a crew witli only
one A.B. aboaril and tiien laid
over a day until we could round
up and "siiangliai" a few of tiie
gastiounds aboard.
We are sure liavirig a little trou
ble with conditions at I iie ho.spital
bore. Tlie doctors liy to do the
best tliey can and are good jnen,
but are so seiioiisly handicapped
by a lack of competent nurses
and competent assistants that the
patients in tlie Marine ward don't
get the attention tiiey should get.
There is only one trained nurse
lor the Marine division, wiiii a
fifteenyearold kid i' u n n i n g
around taking pui.se ami tompora
tures.
There seem to be a lot of mates
and engineers breaking oui' shli)
ping lules by promoting men to
key positions aboard tlie ship
witliout letting tlie job come
fhroiigli tlie hall. If tliis irraiitice
continues, we are going.to have a
lot of company stiffs spoiling ail
the advantages we have gained.
More next week.
Full, speed ahead, Broiliers,
Daniel Butts, Agent.
Over 85 men shipped last week,
with 25 Permit Card men ship
ping out. We'll have to go back
to the days of shahghaing men to
place crews on the ships.
EveryHiiiig is ninniiig siiiooth
here in New Orleans. No big
beefs iiave shown mi yei, only mi
nor beefs tiiat are .settled to tlie
'.satisfaction of the crews invoivcd.
Tiie new oiiicials are really in
earnest down liere; liiey even
make tiie N.VllI .scows liy mislake.
So tiiat siiows lliev are reall.v
making tlie waterfront regiihiriy.
Believe it or not, but the Neyv.
Orleans Branch of the SlU has
set some sort of a • • ecord in the
last week as regards this ship
ping business. We shipped a man
on a permit as cattle tender. The
S.S. Deisud, sailing for the South,
is taking a flock of sheep and cat
tle down there, all pure bred
stuff. So the little dears must
have a nurse. A registered vet
was the solution. Result; a perI
mit was issued a cattle tender.!
SAVAmAH
Miirch 21, 1941
Edilor, Hcafiirer.s Log
Dear ;jir and Brofiicr:
Aclivifics in .^avannaii liave
lit'cii normal nndcr llie present,
conditions. T li i s morning we
siiipped out tlie last available
A.B. on the S..H. City of Montgom
ery. Tlie S.K. Ca.ssimir is to ar
rive tills afleriinon and if siie
needs any A.B.'s, we will liave to
go out scout ing.
Hadi^a conference with three of
the Selective Service Boards of
Savannah and was successful in
getting three of our members de
ferred for six months, on account
of the shortage of seamen around
Savannah. Also had the local
Steamboat inspector and the U.
S. Shipping. Commissioner call on
us in regards to shortage of sea
men in this district, and I was
able to convince them that a
INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Atlantic & Gulf District
• vA
HEADQUARTERS
Room 918, Washington Loan & Trust Co Building
9th and F Street, N.W.. Washington, D. C. '
P. O. Box 6180 Phone: District 5963
DIRECTORY OF BRANCHES
BRANCH ADDRESS PHONE
^ stone St. BOwIing Green 93437
BOSTON 330 Atlantic Ave. ...LIBerty 4057
PROVIDENCE .. 465 South Main St. ..Manning 3572
BALTIMORE ... 14 ^Jorth Gay St. ...Calvert 4539
PHILADELPHIA ,6 North 6th St Lombard 7651
NORFOLK ......60 Commercial PI. ..Norfolk 41083
NEW ORLEANS o09 Chartrea St MAgnolia 3962
SAVANNAH ....218 East Bay St. .... Savannah 31728
JACKSONVILLE ,136 East Bay St Jacksonville 59724
TAMPA 206 So. Fiaukliu St. .Tampa M1323
MOBILE 55 So. Conception St. Dexter 1449
TEXAS CITY ... 105 4th St., N. ...'..Texas Citv 722
MIAMI 1348 N.E. First Ave.. Miami 22950
SANJUAN 8 Covadonga St San Juan 1885
shortage of seamen, existed in
Next will be a gardener to take j this locality, so that they can
care of" some skipper's flower ! make recommendations to Wash
Pot! I ington, so as to get the seamen
Philadelphia
Facts and Features
Beachcombings Gathered by the. Four
Horsemen in the City of Brotherly Lave
NEW ORLEANS
Maich 22, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
The main squawk of live week
is the .shortage of men to fill the
ships. U'ewed the EI Dia during
tlie week, with tlie El Valie due to
crew up tlie first of tlie week
Talk aliout .ships! Tlieso scows
are the lierries! If tliey are any
model of the coiuiitions umk
which the NMU sail, they sure
iiave our sympatiiy for being so
dumb as to let sucii be tlie.ii
standard.
The laugh of the week was on
the Northern Sword. Brothers
Terrlngton and Jason made the
ship as she was listed under .the
Alcoa Line. Upon boarding the
scow and asking for the books, of
the crew, they were somewhat
surprised to find that they were
looking at NMU books. About
this time the iNMU patrolman
showed up with an armload of
papers and made the remark that
he must be aboard the wrong
ship. At any rate the boys on the
' scow have some LOGS to
brighten them up.
The Ruritan in and out for the
Capal Zone for the army, and the
usual number of squawks make
up the week. The shortage qf men
is due in part to the action of the
Draft Boards around the country.
Wlicn an arniycliartered scow is
held up for, a crew, it seems, to me
that is getting home with tlie
beefs to where they belong. Nat
urally, the defense program must
go through, but' it will be slowed
up, somewlvat unless some uni
form program is adopted in re
gards to seamen under tlie Selec
tive Service.
The, seamen have at last got
into what we call the "Class of
the jnrtependent/' They have bad
jobs on ithe board around here
every: day of the week..and no
jkers.,The,next thing vye'll have
do.ie,b(!iO0 the. scqyvs MP toAhe
lall, so the men can look them
iver before they take the Jobs.
Tiie Maritime Conimis.sion, (if
all milfits, can't afford to iiay flie
going scale of staiidliy IIIIKM .Af
ter all tills doiigii lioiiig tiirowii
around, you would lliiiik tliat, tin!
M. C, could afford lo pay tiie
fi'eigiil. Received a call for five
men for .slaiidiiy work and wiieii
file men were dispai.ch(>d lo I lie
job, tliey were told (he. rale was
$6,22 instead of tlie $6.80 wliich
all onr agreements call for.
Tiie. Engine iiatrolnian is call
ing out about 30 jolis and getting
lire usual resfilts: si'veii iiK^n
fiiiippcd.
Yours I ill Hie lioard's clean,
A. W. Armstrong, Agent, G136
P. P. Jason, Deck Patrolman, G11
PROVIDENCE
17, 1!,41
Brotiier Jo.sejiii E. Laidiani, SlU
No. 247, was installed as .Provi
dence Ageni tills week, iiaviiig
vacated his joli as Serang of tin
Socony Tanker "Magnolia."
The Selective Service Head
quarters here, as well as all the
Local Draft Boards, are giving us
good coojaeration in the deferring
of seamen. They advise us that
if merchant seamen apply for de
ferment as soon as they receive
their, questionnaire, It will be of
help to them.
Tiio S.S. "Naiisli.on" will go to
Bosl.oii next Tuesday .for tier an
nual ovmliaul. Siio wiil relieve
Hie S.S. Naiitiicket on Hie Island
run as noon as Hie overiiaiil is
conipletini. Tiie Island line is still
on Hie Winter Scliediile of one
boat.
Shipping has been very good
here this past week with very
few men available. Quite a few
men who are at present working
ashore have called in this week.
The fact that seamen's wages are
going up Is of Interest to them.
Fraiornally,
Joseph E. Lapham, Agent.
deferred in the future.
Also, Hi(> labor niovciiK^m in
gciiorai was siicccssfiil in defeat
ing a bill in tiic State of Georgia,
wliereiiy Hie oil companies were
I l ying to get . Hie riglit of way for
laying a jiipe line Hiroiigli Hie
.slate. 'Jf tills bill liad passed, it
would naliiraliy eliniinal'e all Hie
iankers in Ilriinswick and .Sa
vannaii.
Sleady as siie ^oes.
Charles Waid, Agent.
MOBILE
Ala
JOHN HENRY FERGERSON
Get ill loiif'li, Avillt your
dhug'liter at 102 Etisl iWtli
Street or by eallitip 22222,
Savaunali, Ga. *
In Memoriam
PETEllAiaHS
Died,.in, Mobiiej. Ala., ,
March 23, 1941
.Mold I.
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and BroHier:
Shipping continues to be very
good in Mobile with quite a few
ships touching this port and tak
ing replacements. A few weeks
ago we had a ship in here from
the Bauxite country with a'load
of Bauxite which was none other
than the S.S. Rarltan. The skip
per in command was a man by
the name of Captain Roupe. Now
yours truly has seen very near
all the Bucco Neros since the
days of "Revolver Hansen" of the
Barkantine Kremlin out of Bos
ton, but this bird tops them all
without a doubt. Any one com
ing in contact with this bird, be
careful!
liicidmitiiliy, i'licro was a round
a iiiindrod iioiirs ovmlinip in dis
piiio on Hiis tub and I mi.giit add,
il was coll(4ct<Mi. I was of tlic
opinion Hial. get I ing dniiik at, pay
off time was a iirivilogii iudonging
lo HIP sailors, init lj(r! ami Be
hold! wiipii Hie time came to pay
off it was the skipper who was
(iriiiik and Hie crew was sober.
The S.S. Fiourspar came in
last week from an , intercoastai
voyage with no disputes as far as
overtime was concerned. The
crew requested a clock for the
mess room and a water cooler for
the crews quarters aft. The
patrolman took the matter up
with the Marine Superintendent
and the requests were granted.
She signed articles yesterday for
another trip to the coast.
TIiP Alcoa S.S. Company has at.
HiP present time two more ship.s
in tiie drydock for extensive over
liaiiling and recoiiditiouing and,
one wiil be crewing up in a few
weeks.
Last week Brother Reter Aries,
No. 6149A. passed away at the
Marine Hospital here and was
buried by the Union. There were
Marcli 24. 1941
Editor, .Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and BroHiPr:
Slipping iias slowed down sonie
wliat, but it's on a par with r.iie
average siiipiiing of otiier ports.
At present', tiiere are enougli full
book menihers around, so tliat
Pliiliy can hold regular mecting.s.
It's great to attend tlieru, and tlie
Brothors are beginning to realize
Hiat union meetings are Hie place
to iron out their differences and
diHiculties. Keep the ball rolling,
right along, BroHier.s.
Here's ilie scooii (ii Hie week:
After four radiators liad been
caved in on BroHier JoJo Flana
gan's crate (limousine to liim),
lie finally ' jiuiled a "Slierlock
Holnn^s" and eauglit a truck driv
er hacking into his iieap (pardon
—limousine) JUKI after a lengthy
disciissloii between Hicni, Brotiier
JoJo finally averred: "Brother
Triicii Driver, it is damned lucky
for you tiiat you iire afiiiiated
witli Hie American Federation of
Lalior, otiierwiso I'd sue you for
eveiytliliig that you own. includ
ing your long red underwear!"
And so, being a gootl brother, Jo
Jo simply allowed tlie truckdriv
ing brotiier to pay for a new radi
atoi and siieli.
As all olUcials are now inducted
into ollice, let's settle down to
business, and go down the line
Willi Hiem and assist them in ev
ery way possilile to continue tlie
good work of tiie RIU in Hie past.
Congratulatioiits to ail of the duly
elected oiiicials, and may your
terTure of otiice be a pleasant, hap.
py and suecess.ful one.
Tlie following steanisiiips ar
rived during tlie week and were
lakiiig care of accordingly: Mar
garet, Calniar, Beauregard, Oak
mar, Marsodak, Ariyn, Plow
City, Ponce De Leon and Mary.
Ail came, looked and departei!
witli smiles upon tlie crew's coun
t'enance.s. There were quite a few
beefs—mostly overtime, but otie
of tlie Calmar Line scows had'a
hungry beef. Tiie agent amf pa
trolman adjusted same to Huj. gen
uine satisfaction of the crew'
One bnckaioo mate called
Brotiier Harry Collins everytliing
from soqp to beans, frying to gfit
liini mad and even accused the
broHier of being a .SABOTEUR,
(lie was always a stewaid, biit I
didn't know Hie Frencb.name be
fore this), Commi.ssar, etc. Very
coolheaded (for a change), tlie
brother politely and with a tint
of .sarcasm in his foghorn, voice,
merely staled: ilr. Mate, Mr.
Port Skipper and Mr. Chiseling.
Port .Steward: tliere's a list of
vegetables, milk, meat, spices aqd
other necessities that Hie UNLI
CENSED PERSONNEI. want, apd
.so be it. , . ,
A.fter obtaining all concessions
asked, the brother then tohlthe
liardboiled buckaroo: Tlieye's, a
big dock out there wiiere yoii and
I cgn settle our personal differ
ences. The buckaroo Hieii fell
back on his socalled "dignity"
and refused to sign tor a bout.
• r
We are calling attention to, ail
brothers who liave ever sliippcd
out of Philiy. Li^en to this:
BroHiers Buckman, Wilson, L,ew
is, A r r e r a (coasfwlsii) and
Wriglit. ail shipped out. on, the
same ship and in Hie same depart
ment. Ye Gods, .someone better
send ten pounds of aspirin aiioard
the said vessel.
Fraternally,
The Four Horsemen,
quite a few of the men on the
beach in attendance at his fun
eral. Ail in ail, it was a fine send
off for Brother Aries on his last
voyage.
• « «
If John Linn., No. 44G, and
.lolin Link will communicati^ with
Hie Mobile Agent tliey can coileet
wages due them from, the Alcoa
Shipper on her voyage ending on
or about January 14. This is due
them for the Absent seamen's
wages. That's all for this week.
Fraternally yours,
Ciden Banks
NOTICE TO ALL
SIU MEN !
I
Canadian Branches of tlis
Seafarers' /nternational.
Union i
When in Canadian ports,
insit the halls of the following
organizations, affiliated to the
Seafarers' International Union
of North Americg: .
CANADIAN, ,
SEAMEN'B UNjON
406 St. Lawrence Boulevard
Montreal, Canada
BRITISH COLUMBIA
SEAMEN'S UNION
310B Cambie Street
"Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: TRinitv 22..1
i'
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V
if..
id
.l:.A
W. A,
'AJtJ:
A ' • •
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i • • • • "J'.'.'r'
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T HE SEAFAk EES' LOG Tuesday, April S, I'M!
I„.{;.
• I'
jV. .^jx
^yh
. !:JV/• •
It• t;
Attention All SlU Men:
Beware of UnionBusters I
With the SIU getting tops in war bonus
pay and wages and conditions Becond to
none on both coastwise and ott'slioro ships,
the Union lias proA'ed and continues to
proA'e that the interests of the seamen on
this Coast can lie fought for it^H^stullv in i to tmU a protest tor stojipin^'^to the
picture, sJioiitiiig ".sabotage" of "national de
fense" and working up sentinient f«»r tlie regi
mentation of the seamen.
2. Wildcat actions give Joe Stalin's liatchet
men in the leadership of lite XMV an oppor
tunity to move ill and raid the lines ajlected,
ottering themselves as a more "responsible" or
ganization to do bnsiness witli.
3. Thougbtless actions help tln^ tio^o'uiient
an organized, responsible and di.sciplined
fashion. The SIU will continue to make
hcadAvay towards ever bigger and better
improvements along the same road and with
the same methods. We need fear no outside
forces to .stop us if we continue to act as in
the past—all for one and one for all: as a
disciplined army of organized labor.
There is, however, a danger that we must
openly face. That is the danger of dis
rupters and TTuionbnster.s v/orking from
within our own ranks—individuals who pull
off unauthorized actions, who agitate, for
hanging the pin without consulting the
Union office, wlio undermine the regularly
elected officers of the SIT^ and urge each
crew to take matters into its own hands on
beefs, regardie.ss of the welfare of the
Union as a whole.
Whom do such unanthorizod actions
help? Whom do such disruptive individuals
serve? Think it over yourself:
1. TTnaiitlioiizcd beefs give tlie sliipownei's a
cluince to holler "breaeli of coiitraet" ami to
drag the Union into eoiirt in an eftort to bank
nipt it flnaneially and to break it up as an
etfective organization.
Beware of Unionhusters in our own
ranks! Beware of individuals who urge un
authorized, wildcat actions on tlie .ships—
Ihey lielp only the shipowners, the Stalin
stooges and the reactionary lahorbaitcvs in
(he Government agencies!
Don't go off the deep end. To preserve
and continue to achieve improvements in
wages and working conditions which sea
men are entitled to and in wliich tlie SIU
has led and contimies to lead—KEEP A
STEADY COURSE! Act with the SIU and
tlirongli the SIU! Observe the Union rules
and regulalioiis. Consult with the regularly
elected offices of the SIU chosen by the
majority in democratic iiroce^ss. Get author
ization from the regularly comstiluted Ibiiou
bodies before taking action. In oilier wnrd.s,
act as Union men—for the STU and throii'sili
the SJU.
Remember: the Union is the source op all
our strength! Guard the SIU against at
tack from tlie outside and disniiitiuii from
wiliiiii!
Out of the Mailbag
mw YORK
About a Real^ Honest
toGoodness NMU
Rider
I March 31, 1941
bear Sir and Brother;
For once, the .superefflcienl offi
cials of tlie NMU have slipped up
and a copy of the rider that is at
tached to all articles signed by
NMU members aboard ships of
the U.S. Lnies fell into our hands,
i While aboard the Acadia, for
merly of the Eastern and just
signing her first crew under the
Alcoa flag, I found a rider at
Relied to the articles. As there
ts never a rider on the Alcoa ar
Ijicles except perliaps a Bonus or
Transportation rider, no attention
was paid tn^it by the men. But
When it was pointed out to them,
the hoys of course would not sigu
Anything as phoney as that.
i! Who Wrote the Bider?
^The Company was contacted
and denied all knowledge of any
such rider and it was removed
and then the boys signed on.
On investigation it was found
that the rider had been put on
the articles by a member of the
newly acquired Pursers' Depart
ment, who had previously been
.employed by the U.S. Lines. When
4]uestioned he stated that this
same rider went on all articles
of U.S. Line ships (under contract
with the NMU). This man then
asked: "What Union crews these
ships?" I informed him that the
SIU was the Union on the ships
of this company and he just
shrugged his shoulders and said
that he did not want to get mixed
tup in any union business.
Text of Bider
The rider reads as. follows (An
oiiiginal copy la on file at the SIU
office fame);
AND BE IT FURTHER
AGREED THAT:
1. CREW TO BE ON B0.4LRD
AT A.M.—P.M. 19 . IT
IS AGREED THAT ANY MEM
BER OF THE CREW WHO
FAILS TO BE ON BOARD AT
THE ABOVE HOUR, OR FAILS
TO BE IN A SOBER CONDITION
AT ALL TIMES PRIOR TO
SAILING, OR FAILS TO AP
PEAR AT CREW MUSTER, OR
IF AFTER JOINING SHALL
LEAVE THE VESSEL WITHOUT
PERMISSION OF THE MASTER,
SHALL BE CLASSED AS
"FAILED TO JOIN" AND A
SUBSTITUTE MAY BE SIGNED
ON IN HIS STEAD AT ONCE.
2. CREW TO WORK ON DAY
OF ARRIVAL AT PORT OF DIS
CHARGE UNTIL 5 P.M. IP RE
QUIRED.
BOSTON
.3. CREW TO PROVIDE
THEMSELVES AT OWN EX
PENSE WITH COMPANY UNI
FORM FOR RATINGS SIGNED |'""T,
ON FOR. AND TO APPEAR IN
SAME WHEN REQUIRED BY
MASTER.
March 31, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
A.S in other ports, there la
shortage of trained seamen in the
Port of Boston. So far we have
managed to crew all ships, hut.
liave very few reserves. A,ccord
lug to the old system of supply
and demand, the seamen can do
light well for themselves in the
form of higher wages.
<*! « 0
I see by the papers that the
Navy is going to convoy ships to
England. Well, I doubt very much
if seamen will go there for $50
per month. They iiave certainly
put a higher value on human life
since the last war and, besides,
tlie seamen in the last war are
not eligible for a pension.
» « •
What we want is to reap our
harvest and every trip should be
harvest time to us. We may not
sow but we sure do plow, and
those furrows are by no means
4. CREW WTTL BE .SUPPLIED
WITH MATTRESS. PILLOW,
BLANKET AND UTENSILS FOR
EATING THEIR FOOD WHICH,
IF NOT RETURNED AT TIME
OF DISCHARGE OR BEFORE
LEAVING VESSEL, VALUE OF
SAME WILL BE DEDUCTED
FROM WAGES EARNED BE
FORE BEING PAID OFF.
Read it and weep!" Now if we
can get some good officials from
the NMU to guide us, we might
be able to get more of such real
nice company stooge riders of this
sort. So take your pick, boys!
Quite a blessing. What do you
think?
Fraternally,
D. Muncacter, Patrolman
We can expect it any time now,
and I believe we should prepare
to demand our worth. Someone
will get it, so it may just as well
be us. We can use it and we sure
do circulate It. What do you
think?
Fraternally.
Your Boston Reporter
Facts on the Bonus Beefs
.Tulning In tlie general uproar against strike.s and tor curbs
on labor that would piivent justified action for wage liurease.s,
the sliiiH»wtiei?s' voice; krumii an the "Journal of Coiiiniewe", lias
been e,ngaged in a bit tif particular sniping at the organized .sea
men. The .question involved here Is action for a lilglieir bonus in'
tilo war zone nuts, i The attack conies in the form of comment by
the shipping editor, Mr. Clinton L. Doggett, in bis coltinui, '(The
Shipping OutkioK", of March 31, 1941.
Mr. Doggct refers.to the fact that two Robin 1 fine ships and
one Alcoa. vc.ssel have, had their sailings dela.ved hecanstr of Union
deitiaiuls for a war iMiniis on the African and CanadianWest
indies run, mspectivelj. Taking" up the line aod cry ahoift tli®
"national deefiise" aspect of the work involved, Mr. Doggett says:
"We have a feeling that the public is tired of it (the Union
action) anyway. . . . This same public has been and still is oply
too willing to give labor its due, but nevertheless cannot reconcile
wholesale stoppages of vital defense production until all other
means of settieiuent have been exhausted. . .
Now what are the facts in the. situation?
In the first place, there has not been any "whole.sale stoppage"
on either the Koliin ships or on , the Alcoa. After giving duo
not ice, accoiding to legal reqiiirrntents, the crew of (he Re,bin
Locksley, simply asked to be paid oil'. Shipping was too good on
.safe runs for them to risk their necks on the dangeroiis African
run without an increase in the bonus, they declared.
And that is a hard fact and cannot be elialleiiged. If Hie .ship
owner wants to remedy Ibis kind of a situation, it is only neccs
.sary for him to reconcile himself with this fact, which is con
trolled by the old law of supply and demand.
Now, a.s to exhausting "other means of settlement"—the men
have had too much experience with arbitration to trust to that
.sort of phoney "settlement." They have only to refer to their
,sad experience with the Robin Line itself In the case of the S.S.
.Algic of last .snmnier. A demand for 80 cents overtime and a
lioiuis increase was simply .stiuashed in the proceedings. On the
AVest Indian run, inmimerahle conferences have been held since,
last June—when Preiich possessions in the islands were subjected
to a virtual Rritish blockade—in order to obtain a war bonus there.
• All, to no avail.
What the men on the Roliin lane and on (he Alcoa are doing
i.s siiiqtly exerting (heir econoniic power. They have not oven re
sorteil to picket lines or to other forms of strike activity. They
lia\e merely gone along with the drift of the law of .supply and
deiiiand to ask for a honns that would make a lisky trip worth
their while. If the "public"—behind which pseudonym Mr. Doggett
liides the shipowners, in wliose interests he writ.i's—are "tired"
of tliis, what would such a "public" propose? The institution of
press gang method.s?
After all, tlie seainen are only exerting their rights as Ameri
can citizens not to take a job they don't want. What would be
left for them to defend against Hitler, if such an eleinentmy right
viere taken from tliem?
To top off his distorted view of the picture, Mr. Doggett throxvs
some flowers at "No Coffee Time" Joe.
"On this score," he says, "the N.M.U., which has heeu freely
assailed for its leanings, showed much better judgment recently."
It is only, necessaiy to round out the real pictni'e to see why.
Joe Cnrran is in sncli good graces with the "Journal of Commerce"
and Its sponsors. N.M.U. .ships are still sailing on a $30 a month
bonus (which the Seafarer.s got FOR them, by the way, last fall)
while S.I.U. .ships are getting $.'50 a month.
Ohvlously, no matter whom Mr." Dogget. may have tried to
convince by a comparison of methods used on the Robin Line
with those used by the N.M.U., for seamen (he comparison is
odious.
For, the end result Is wliat. counts: Curran's N.M.U. iiietluHls
leave the seamen with a scandalously low honus—^which is, in the
last analysis, why the shipowners and their paper are so en
thusiastic about Ids "judgment^' The action on the Robin ships,
on the other hand, gives the seamen .$50 a month as a war honns
—which is wliy the sipowners and their paper are "tired" <»f our
method.s.
JOSEPH W. TILLOTSON
Get in touch with Local
Board No. 79, Essex County,
Mass.
SIUMan Thanks Grew
For Brotherly Action
On board S.S. Cuba
Tampa, March 31, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Lag
Dear Sir and Brother:
I wiah to express my sincere
appreciation for the great favor
of the crew of the S.S. Cuba in
making it possible for me to go
by plane from Havana to Tampa
so that it was possible to attend
the funeral of my Mother. Also
a very nice floral piece, was pro
vided with the amount that re
mained.
Sincerely yours,
H. W. Bradley, 1670
Bosses Gain $2 for Every $1
Wage Raise Given to Labor
The American Federation of Labor this week released figures
which demonstrate eloquently why American woiking stiffs are on
the move throughout the country to boost wages. The A. F. (<1 L.
economists show that since 1929, hourly rates Oif pay have gone up
20 per cent, while,in that same period output of workers per hour
vaulted by 40 per cent!
In other words, employers gained $3 in increased prodnctiqn
for every $1 increase In hourly wages.
Replying to those reactionary forces who would "stabilize" wages
by putting an end to Increases in pay through the outlawing of
strikes, etc., the A. F. of L. "Labor's Monthly Survey" says ou thb
basis of these figures: , &
""If the eniployer's labor cost does not increase when wages rj^i
do prices have to be raised? Certainly not. Those who claim tjiMt
wage increases must bring price increases have overlooked the mean
ing of the machine in modern industry: Labor's production per hour
(productivity). means wage increases without price increases."
Thus exploding tho employerinspired propaganda that tvoffe
raises boost the cost of living, the A. F. of L. goes on to say: .
"To stop wage increases when indnstry is able to pay more
robs the underprlvll^ed and raises profits which are already high.
. , , If wage increases are stopped while companies go on making .
higher profits, can workers help feeling they are bearing an in
justice which destroys the democracy they want to defend?"
(Labor's J^onthli/ Stirvei/, Marclt 25, 1941)^
All that the wave of strikes in the "defense" industries actually
means—when you bear these facts and fibres in mind—is this: the
American workers are just as determhted not to let the profltgree
bosses destroy their democracy atthe point of production as th®
are to prevent Hitler from doing thatby thrusts from abroad.'
..i. . k. ilGi ""
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EASTERN GRANTS PAY BOOSTl
Savannah Line
Signs for $7.50
Monthly Raise
Ocean Steamship Company
of Savannah (Savannah Line)
joined the parade of coast
wise operators this week,
agreeing to a $7.50 increase
in monthly pay to its SIU
crews.
Five (ioinpaiiie.s liacl iirovl
ously signed i'ln Ihe raise,
and now willi Eastern and
Savannah falling into line,
the .$15.00 rate above basic
pa3' is expeeleil to beeoni(>
the inininuini on all Sll' .ships
operating eoastwi.se.
SIU Men Sent to Man Alcoa Pioneer
SlUfirewSentto
Coast to Sail
New Alcoa Ship
A fidl engine and .steward
department ('Oinpleinent of
SIU inen Ava.s sejit by the
Union overland to San Fran
ei.sco to .start the Alcoa
Pioneer .off on her maiden
voyage to the Atlantic Coa.st.
The new Alcoa ship Was
docked at the Union Iron
Works in Hunter's Point
after coming otf the ways.
The men report that the Plon
eer tops just about everything
afloat In respect to comfoifablc
crew's quarter.s and living condi
tibns, what with plugs for electric
razors, messroms with four men
to a table, automatic dishwashing
machines, electric toasters, etc.,
etc.
The men's tiansport'ation—first
class—from New York to San
Francisco was paid by the com
pany. Upon arriving in Frisco
they were, greeted by Blackie Pre,
vest. Assistant Secretary of the
,SUP and a delegation of West
Coast Sailors was on hand to
show them aroundt With an SUP . v
deck gang, the SIU crew Iramedi man the Pioneer is shown above.)
Bill In Congress Calls for
25 Years Jail for Strikers
After a declaration on the floor of Congress % Repre
sentative'Snmners, chairman of the powerful House jndiciap
Committee, to the effect that he is ready to go as far hs legis
lating the "electric chair" for "saboteurs" in strikes hold
' ing np "defense production" the antilabor liy.stcria m Wash
"^/ijngtpn reached a new climax when Representative Lelaud M.
Ford of California actually introduced a Bill calling for 25
{Continued on Page 2)
The above ineiiiliei'S of the Seafapers' International Union of North Aineiica were
sent iiverlaiid to man the AIco^ Pioneer, latest of the Aiumiinini Line shjp.s on her
maiden voyage to tlie East Coa.st. Tlie man seeomi fioiii the riglit is Biackle Prevost,
.SUP .Assistant Secretary, who was on liand to greet them.
Montanan Suit
Vs. SUP Fizzles
SAN FRANCISCO. —In the de
cision doiivpicd in the American
Hawaiian Co.'s suit against the
.Sailors Union of the Pacific for
tlie alleged tying up of the Mon
tanan, Judge Roclie has ruled that
the Union was not. liable for dam
ages but would have to bear the
costs of the suit.
ately. boarded the Pioneer, wliicii
is now reported well on her way
towards tiie canal.
Despite all kinds of tlireals em
anating from the Communist
Party waterfront section," there
was no bitcli in sailing the
Pioneer with a full SIUSUP crew.
It was a real demonstration ot
East CoastWest Coast seamen's
solidarity.
(Picture , of SIU men sent to
"Top Fraction"
Never Misses
Chance to Fink
True to themselves, the
"Top Fraction" that con
trols the NMU never misses
a chance to fink on the
SIU. The latest opportun
ity for the Stalin boys to
show their colors came this
week. While the SIU was
negotiating with the Alcoa
Steamship Company re
garding the war bonus
question, one Jack Law
renson, alias the "Black
Monk," called up the
company and informed
them that the NMU was
ready to supply them with
any number of men they
needed!
And these are the boys
who blab in the "Pilot"
about the need for "Unity"
in order to get an ade
quate bonus! What they
mean actually is shown by
their actions. They are for
UNITY WITH THE SHIP
OWNERS! As for an ade
quate bonus for the sea
men, the SIU has shown
the way IN ACTION.
Towboatmen Win
Wage Raise
Prepared to hit the bricks
last Thursday morning, with
the prospect of all harbor
traffic being brought to a
standstill. 2,500 New York
towboatmen got a raise of $5
for the. licensed officers and
$7.50 for the Unlicensed Per
sonnel on Wednesday night,
when the operators came
across with this compromise
proposal to the demands of
the men.
AUhougli tlic Union. Local 333
of tlie United Marine Division of
the I.L.A. had originally asked
for"a $20 raise, the settlement was
nevertheless, regarded as a victory
for tlie towboatmen, since the
owners had originally refused to
talk terms at all, declaring that
(he contract, which expires next
December, provides for arbitra
tion of all disputes. This false
claim was quickly exploded by the
action of the Union and its swift
success.
Attention !
EDWARD EARL SCHOW
Local Board No. 2 .it Aus
tin, Texas is trying to get in
touch with you. Communi
cate with them immediately.
ijfrj'i
• . VA •
Joins Other Lines
in Monthly Raise
For S.i.U. Crews
Concedes 80c
OvertlmeToo
Eastern Steamship Lines
Inc. came across with a $10
increase in pay over last
year's rate on all coastwise
vessels this week. On the
Evangeline, operating off
shore, the Company granted a
$7.50 raise. Thus, at last,
wages on the Eastern have
been brought in line with
SIU standards on all other
lines I
Last yiar I lie Company
(inly coneeded a .$5.00 month
ly inereasp, Avliilo most of tho
othor eomitanii's boosted
wages $10 and $7.50 a
month. With most of the
Companies agreeing to bring
wages up to .$17.50 above
basic [lay this year, tlie
owners were faced with a.
sitnation in which the men on
the Eastern scows were pay
ing off in order to take 'ad
vantage of the better pay on
other Lines, what with jobs
being plentiful and a general
.shortage of trained seameii
making itself felt.
NMU "Organizer" Rats
Not unexpectedly, the ratty
officials of the NMU tried to
take advantage of this situa
tion in order to stage a fink
herding raid on the Eastern
and to take their ships
away from the Seafarers' In
ternational Union. Behind
the backs of the NMU mem
bership, Jack Lawrenson, dis
"organizer" for the NMU,
offered the Company "as
many men as it needed" in an
effort to dislodge the SIU
from the Eastern.
Company Won't Bite
Knowing that there would bo
hell to pay if any such scheme,
were attempted, the Company prer.
ferred to come to terms with the
SIU rather than take advantage
of Lawrenson's flnky offer. Busi
ness is apparently too lucrative
for the shipowners to court labor
trouble.
On Friday, April 4, the Com
pany signed on the dotted line for
the $10 increase. The next day
they informed the SIU that they
would also grant the 80 cents an
hour rate for overtime, another
Union demand on which the Com
pany had held out while other
lines were conceding it last year.
In spite of the longstanding
maneuvers of the shipowners, and
(Continued on Page 2)
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http://www.pdfcompressor.org/buy.html
THE SEAFARERS' LOG Tuesday, April 8, i94i
1^/ 51.
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Published hy the
ATLANTIC & GULF DISTRICT
of the
Seafarers* International Union
of North America
Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor
HARRY LUNDEBERG, Acting International President
110 Market Street, Room 402, San Francisco, Calif.
ADDRESS ALL CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING} THIS
'PDBIJICATION W:~~ ~ ~
"THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. O. Box 522, Oiurch St. Annex, New York, N. Y.
Phone'. BOwling Green 93437
More About
Bill in Congress
For 25 Years Jail
Strike Penalty
t'
U Sietit** for Strikers?
, AiitilHlior li.vstei'ia hit the high heaveii.s last Me<'k as working
stitts tlirouglMnit, the tamntry acted tt> keep wage.s ami conditions
• up to the level ot' the sleadlly rising cost of living.
, Tlie very idea that tUe Bgthlehem .St«'el slaves or McCoinii«d4
' Jlai'vester serfs or tlie Foidautoinohile robots should take matters
into tlieir own hands and square off to settle their long beef
against Ixnidage with their profltladen inasteis .seemed to, strike
terror int<» the hearts of the legislative coterie that serves these
plutocrats.
Whjh? the Ke.vstone Ko.ssacks were sent in by tiove^'uoi'. .iames
to teach a le.s.son in democracy to strikers at Bethlelieip, Ihinisyl
fvania, with the aid of threefoot riot clubs, the, Solqns in (iqngress
propo.sed to implement such instrucUon witli the electric cliair
ffor smli "enemies of the nafion in the factor.v or elsewtiere!"
To a qm^tion from a Kepre.sentative Boiren of Oklahoma as
to whether the House Judiciary CommitteeTvas iWdy, Since ,man
agemeht . and. labor were "too hardheaded to .declare a luorato
iium oh strikes," to report out pending legislation to <mtlaw
strikes «ir enf<»rce "cooloff" periods, theChairman of that commit
tee; Kepresentalive Siiinners, replied;
. "Wlien the time comes that it is necessary to deal .with the ene
mies ot" tlie natioq in the factory or elsewhere,, I believe I can .sneak
for every member of the committee. If it is necessary to pre.serve this
bountry, they would not hesitate for one .spilt .second to qnact leghs
lation to send them to the ela^tric chair."
The New York Times, big business spokesman, appropriately
headlined the repoit of Mr. Sumner's remarks a.s tiiHhws; "De
fense Strikes Stir Talk In House of Death Penalty.'' .fusf to leave
iio room for mistaking the import of the Congressman's words, it
is to he presumed.
So the wave of patriotic hy.steria has conie to the point wlicrc
the vast majorit.v of the nation—the *vorkers in mill, faciory,
plant, ship or doi^k^lias to be intimidated to desist, from strikes
hy the threat of the "Hot Seat"! .Nnd all in the name of "de
fense," all in the name of tlie necessity "to preserve this country"!
' If working .stiffs insist on their right to be fepresented by
Unions of their own choice and show tliat they mean business
When the.v re.sorl to the strik< weapon after no other icouisc is
left open to them hy tlie finkherding openslioppers—thai is to he
eon.sidered trea.son pniiistiahle by the Pllectric Cliair!
if lalior is to hack up with action demands for a tew evtra
ctents an hour to meet rising costs at a time when their cinployers'
coffers bmsl ivitli superprofits—that is to be regarded as a crime
punishable hy the "hot seat"!
What will thei'e be left for the niillioulicaded mass of toilers
to defend as "democracy" after that? How will their "way of.
life" b<^ in any wa.^, superior to that of the workers transformed
into helots by Hitler and his bloody Nazi regime in Germany?
i Hitler has long ago enforced Mr. Sumner's sngge.stion, only
with a slight modification in methods: strikers are subject to tlic
axe rather than tlie cliair in Naziland—and that's a pretty slim
choice, indeed! .
No, American labor will not go tor that kind of a "defense/'
"To pre.serve tliis country" for labor's hosts that means pieserv
ing, the right to a dei^ent living, the right to Unions of their own
choice, the right to .strike when no other course helps.
Tjabor hates Hitl(>r and Hitlerism and Nazi oppression with all
its hearl anil soul and is quite willing to die in the struggle
against it. But labor will never accept Bethlehem Steel's or Henry
Ford's or Bepresentative Suinners' version of "national th^ffdise"
as a means of "preserving the country." That version smacks
too imuh of tlw! Nazi bpitression they are out to flglit and destroy.
Tlie "Hot. Sent" fn, ctnnrer.a^> The"Hot Seat" for .strikers?
The venal Congressmen who propose it had bettiw estahlish
some "coolingofl" periods for themselves before they come out
with new proclamations for it. They are giving the whole show
away. The working stiffs of this country will only learn from
suc^h self.exposures that the fight against Hitlerism and Nazism
hegiiis on the picket line right here, and that's the way , to pre
/^rvd the country for the people who live and work in tfie Uiuled
States. X
(Continued Jroni Page 1)
yejii'.s' impivisonnieiit for nil
tliose piiilicipating in ".slrikes
a gainst the United Stales or
its defense pvograiul" and the
deal!), penally in ease casual
ties residf J'roni siicli strikes.
A< tlie same time, the
House of Kepresentatives
voted d24 1o 1 Id direet its
MiliUiry and Xaval Affairs
r'ommiltees to eonduet "in
quiries" into the dcrense jno
grain, witli the demand thai
they go thoroughly into the
si rike silual ion,
"Too Extreme," But ...
Aithongh Reprc.semafive Ford's
Bill is regarded as (oo extiemo
even by the li.vsteiical laborbait
ers to obi a ii^ i)as.sago, t he fgmper
of tlie emjdoyermimied cougre.s.4
men. as .shown by the vote for the;
"inquirie.s," indicates that .some
kind of stringent aiijistrike legis
hition is in (lie air. Reji. Ford's
bill contains ilie following jiass
age wbicli is il.s .siibsiance:
Verliatim Contents
"U 7/oeccr • nuitrn. udroratcs.
(• uUs. fiarticiijates in „r an.sists
any .vtrike against the tlni'ted
States or at any /dace where ai^
tides, materials, snmdies, rc.v.ve/.v.
building structiires or fucilitie.s
for wtc, directly, or indirectly. JiX
THE LAND OH NAVAL FORCES
of file United State.s or by tlie
tinited .Stafeii in the iiroseciitioii
of the national defense program
are being produced, repaired, con
structed,. reconstructed, installed,
trannnortcd or id/irrwivc hdndlcd
or worked on. shall be uniily of
treason and on conviction tliereof
shatl 1)e iin/wisoned for iihenly
five yeiirs without /larole or re
duction of sentence foi' good be
havior, or if resulting, directly or
indireeUy, in the death of any
person, shall Jiiins(df he /xtnished
hy death."
Affects Seamen Directly
The Khipowners have been cry
ing for months now tliat every
tieup "sabotages" national de
fen.se. Under the Ford Bill, as
noted above, tlie tieup of a ve.ssel
these day.s—when every vessel
is considered necessary to "lui
tional defense"—would result in
twentyfive year.s' imjirisonnienl, to
the seamen involved, with a pos
sible deatli penalty in case a .scab
is killed indirectly in the course
of tlie strike!'
New Threat to Labor
Tlie very fact lhat siidi a Bill
can even be proposed shows to
what lengtii tlie shi|)owners and
other employers and llieir a,gents
are ready to go in order to pre
vent hihor'.s demands for a just
participation in tlie tremendous
profits tliey are heaping up.
Urges Local Boards to Giv^ *
Serious Cbhsiderafion to Seamen 5r" 1
'.'At
More About
to SfU Members!
The deadlino for paying the 1941 Hospital, Bpria)
j and .Shipwreck Asse.ssrnent was March 31, 1941. Any
inemhcr vvfjp has iidt paUi it is therefore in bad standing,
npt enfcitJecl to griy benefits nor to the right to vote at
Union meetings.
— Sydney Gretcher, Sec.Trea,s.
EasterniSrantsSlO
Coastwise Raise
(Continued from Page 1)
the scabby tactics of the NMU
officialdoni, the SIU has come
through once more with an im
portant victory for tlie seamen on
the East Coast! By militant ac
tion and hardwon Improvements
the SIU has gained conditions
secontl to none for its member,
ship. Nothing can prevent.it from;
fast taking its place as the Union
of the seumeii iii the Tast! "
In a circnlar issuctl to all State Directors on March Ifi,
1941 over the .signature of Col. Lewis D. Hersiiey, Deputy
Director, Nalionai Headquarters of the Selective Service
.System asks that local draft boai'ds give serious eonside.ra
tiqii to tlie (letiq'hunit of .smuneii. c.xnpe
tenl (Jovernmeiit aiilliority as saying: \
"It is anticipated tbat national shortages will occur in
the engine department of merchant vessels, in the. grades of
firemen and higher ratings; in the deck depSirtment, in the
grades involving able seamen and higher ratings, which in
eludes boatswains and quarternaasters; in t^ stewards de
partment, it is anticipated also that a shortage of chief
stewairds, marine cooks and bakers may result. ..."
NCAV .jersey Sjiitc Heaclqiiartors. supplementing the.se in
stnietioii.s in a eircular issued on Slareii 27, 1941, over the
signal lire of William !>. Higgiiis, Stale Direetor, lists the fol
lowing ratings speeifieully:
"Men witk seagoing experience and holding, any of the
following certificates should be carefully considered for de
ferment in Class II—A; seamen, firemen, water
tenders, oilers, pumpmen, machinists, marine electricians.
Deck Engineers, Chief Stewards, marine cooks, bakers."
The circnlar has llic following to say about other ratings:
"(Ordinary scaiuon, Avipors, coal passers, ine.ss inen and
iiic.ss lioys arc at present pleiiliinl. These are beginners and
iiiiiess near tlie jmint, of getting eortifieales, do not normally
mecl the rmpiiremeiits, of paragraph ilbl (b) and (c) of the
regtilalions. (These regulations deal with the qne.stion as to
AvIiielL oeenpal ioiis arc ueeessiiiy to luilioiial defense). Men
who will soon be ready for certificates, as indicated by the
length oT service shown op the questionnaire, can properly
be put in Class IIA as 'MEN IN TRAINING' for becoming ^
necessary men."
ill other Avords, iiisirnelions cited here are to the effect
lhat A.]!., FOW, SteAA'ard and Coffh ratings should he de
ferred on oeenpalional grounds Avlthont any'qqe.stion. Qn the
oilier hand, ordinary seaineiL Avipers, me.ssmeii, etc., may be
deferred as "MEX'IN TRAINING" if they have enough .
seiitime in so tliat it is reasojiable to expect them to get an
endorsement or ecrtifieate For one of the liiglier ratings.
Sir men should hear these facts in mind at all times
Avlieii dealing Avitli the Local Draft Boards, AVIIO are often
ignorant of the information and rulings issued by higher
bodies. Although these rulings do not constitute general de
ferment for'.seamen, Ihey are st eiks in the right direction and
sliouhl he taken adA'antage of.
Union seamen naturally Avant In maintain union wages
and conditions Avlieii .suh.iect to national defense work. Such
Avork is .inst as iiiqiorlant in the merchant marine as in the
army. It is not a matter of shirking at all. It is a matter of
acting in the job Avliere you are most fit and where you can
maintain Aonr .standintr as a union man.
SEAFARERS' LOG
I-
,S.S. KENMAR
• S.S. LA HALLE
Fred Hartori
E. .Toiiiisun
,S,S. DELRTO . ...........
J." Stiekney
S.S. RUTH
Deck Dept.
Eiigine Dept.
J. F. Slusai'czyk
S.S. MART (Deck. Dept.) .
E. John.son
R. Vargas .....
J. Correa
J. Santiago .
S.S. CUBA (Engine Dept.)
S.S. oAoiAR .r..
S.S. LAFAYETTE ;....,.,..;..'...... .r
Chief Etigineer (La:fayctte) ..,,,.
Capt, Heller (Lafayete) ...............,..,.......
W; P. Corrigan ............
Total
$1.00
6.0Q
l.OQ
:50
3.00
2.00
' : '' • • .t
5.00
. 2:25
, 1.00
i.do
.50
1.00
3.00
3.06.
9.16,
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http://www.pdfcompressor.org/buy.html
• M
Tuesday, April 8, 1941 T H E S EA F A R £ R S • LOG
W,hat*8 Doing —
PUERTO RICO
March ]8,' 1941
Editor, SeaCurors Loa
Dear .Sir and Biollier:
Sure liad a busy week of Jiead
aclies, and, if siiipping continues
as it is, we wiil Imve to import a
few sliiploads of A.B.'s from
soniewiiere. Tin; Miilinockot iiad
to come around to San Juan from
Huinaoao for a crew witli only
one A.B. aboaril and tiien laid
over a day until we could round
up and "siiangliai" a few of tiie
gastiounds aboard.
We are sure liavirig a little trou
ble with conditions at I iie ho.spital
bore. Tlie doctors liy to do the
best tliey can and are good jnen,
but are so seiioiisly handicapped
by a lack of competent nurses
and competent assistants that the
patients in tlie Marine ward don't
get the attention tiiey should get.
There is only one trained nurse
lor the Marine division, wiiii a
fifteenyearold kid i' u n n i n g
around taking pui.se ami tompora
tures.
There seem to be a lot of mates
and engineers breaking oui' shli)
ping lules by promoting men to
key positions aboard tlie ship
witliout letting tlie job come
fhroiigli tlie hall. If tliis irraiitice
continues, we are going.to have a
lot of company stiffs spoiling ail
the advantages we have gained.
More next week.
Full, speed ahead, Broiliers,
Daniel Butts, Agent.
Over 85 men shipped last week,
with 25 Permit Card men ship
ping out. We'll have to go back
to the days of shahghaing men to
place crews on the ships.
EveryHiiiig is ninniiig siiiooth
here in New Orleans. No big
beefs iiave shown mi yei, only mi
nor beefs tiiat are .settled to tlie
'.satisfaction of the crews invoivcd.
Tiie new oiiicials are really in
earnest down liere; liiey even
make tiie N.VllI .scows liy mislake.
So tiiat siiows lliev are reall.v
making tlie waterfront regiihiriy.
Believe it or not, but the Neyv.
Orleans Branch of the SlU has
set some sort of a • • ecord in the
last week as regards this ship
ping business. We shipped a man
on a permit as cattle tender. The
S.S. Deisud, sailing for the South,
is taking a flock of sheep and cat
tle down there, all pure bred
stuff. So the little dears must
have a nurse. A registered vet
was the solution. Result; a perI
mit was issued a cattle tender.!
SAVAmAH
Miirch 21, 1941
Edilor, Hcafiirer.s Log
Dear ;jir and Brofiicr:
Aclivifics in .^avannaii liave
lit'cii normal nndcr llie present,
conditions. T li i s morning we
siiipped out tlie last available
A.B. on the S..H. City of Montgom
ery. Tlie S.K. Ca.ssimir is to ar
rive tills afleriinon and if siie
needs any A.B.'s, we will liave to
go out scout ing.
Hadi^a conference with three of
the Selective Service Boards of
Savannah and was successful in
getting three of our members de
ferred for six months, on account
of the shortage of seamen around
Savannah. Also had the local
Steamboat inspector and the U.
S. Shipping. Commissioner call on
us in regards to shortage of sea
men in this district, and I was
able to convince them that a
INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Atlantic & Gulf District
• vA
HEADQUARTERS
Room 918, Washington Loan & Trust Co Building
9th and F Street, N.W.. Washington, D. C. '
P. O. Box 6180 Phone: District 5963
DIRECTORY OF BRANCHES
BRANCH ADDRESS PHONE
^ stone St. BOwIing Green 93437
BOSTON 330 Atlantic Ave. ...LIBerty 4057
PROVIDENCE .. 465 South Main St. ..Manning 3572
BALTIMORE ... 14 ^Jorth Gay St. ...Calvert 4539
PHILADELPHIA ,6 North 6th St Lombard 7651
NORFOLK ......60 Commercial PI. ..Norfolk 41083
NEW ORLEANS o09 Chartrea St MAgnolia 3962
SAVANNAH ....218 East Bay St. .... Savannah 31728
JACKSONVILLE ,136 East Bay St Jacksonville 59724
TAMPA 206 So. Fiaukliu St. .Tampa M1323
MOBILE 55 So. Conception St. Dexter 1449
TEXAS CITY ... 105 4th St., N. ...'..Texas Citv 722
MIAMI 1348 N.E. First Ave.. Miami 22950
SANJUAN 8 Covadonga St San Juan 1885
shortage of seamen, existed in
Next will be a gardener to take j this locality, so that they can
care of" some skipper's flower ! make recommendations to Wash
Pot! I ington, so as to get the seamen
Philadelphia
Facts and Features
Beachcombings Gathered by the. Four
Horsemen in the City of Brotherly Lave
NEW ORLEANS
Maich 22, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
The main squawk of live week
is the .shortage of men to fill the
ships. U'ewed the EI Dia during
tlie week, with tlie El Valie due to
crew up tlie first of tlie week
Talk aliout .ships! Tlieso scows
are the lierries! If tliey are any
model of the coiuiitions umk
which the NMU sail, they sure
iiave our sympatiiy for being so
dumb as to let sucii be tlie.ii
standard.
The laugh of the week was on
the Northern Sword. Brothers
Terrlngton and Jason made the
ship as she was listed under .the
Alcoa Line. Upon boarding the
scow and asking for the books, of
the crew, they were somewhat
surprised to find that they were
looking at NMU books. About
this time the iNMU patrolman
showed up with an armload of
papers and made the remark that
he must be aboard the wrong
ship. At any rate the boys on the
' scow have some LOGS to
brighten them up.
The Ruritan in and out for the
Capal Zone for the army, and the
usual number of squawks make
up the week. The shortage qf men
is due in part to the action of the
Draft Boards around the country.
Wlicn an arniycliartered scow is
held up for, a crew, it seems, to me
that is getting home with tlie
beefs to where they belong. Nat
urally, the defense program must
go through, but' it will be slowed
up, somewlvat unless some uni
form program is adopted in re
gards to seamen under tlie Selec
tive Service.
The, seamen have at last got
into what we call the "Class of
the jnrtependent/' They have bad
jobs on ithe board around here
every: day of the week..and no
jkers.,The,next thing vye'll have
do.ie,b(!iO0 the. scqyvs MP toAhe
lall, so the men can look them
iver before they take the Jobs.
Tiie Maritime Conimis.sion, (if
all milfits, can't afford to iiay flie
going scale of staiidliy IIIIKM .Af
ter all tills doiigii lioiiig tiirowii
around, you would lliiiik tliat, tin!
M. C, could afford lo pay tiie
fi'eigiil. Received a call for five
men for .slaiidiiy work and wiieii
file men were dispai.ch(>d lo I lie
job, tliey were told (he. rale was
$6,22 instead of tlie $6.80 wliich
all onr agreements call for.
Tiie. Engine iiatrolnian is call
ing out about 30 jolis and getting
lire usual resfilts: si'veii iiK^n
fiiiippcd.
Yours I ill Hie lioard's clean,
A. W. Armstrong, Agent, G136
P. P. Jason, Deck Patrolman, G11
PROVIDENCE
17, 1!,41
Brotiier Jo.sejiii E. Laidiani, SlU
No. 247, was installed as .Provi
dence Ageni tills week, iiaviiig
vacated his joli as Serang of tin
Socony Tanker "Magnolia."
The Selective Service Head
quarters here, as well as all the
Local Draft Boards, are giving us
good coojaeration in the deferring
of seamen. They advise us that
if merchant seamen apply for de
ferment as soon as they receive
their, questionnaire, It will be of
help to them.
Tiio S.S. "Naiisli.on" will go to
Bosl.oii next Tuesday .for tier an
nual ovmliaul. Siio wiil relieve
Hie S.S. Naiitiicket on Hie Island
run as noon as Hie overiiaiil is
conipletini. Tiie Island line is still
on Hie Winter Scliediile of one
boat.
Shipping has been very good
here this past week with very
few men available. Quite a few
men who are at present working
ashore have called in this week.
The fact that seamen's wages are
going up Is of Interest to them.
Fraiornally,
Joseph E. Lapham, Agent.
deferred in the future.
Also, Hi(> labor niovciiK^m in
gciiorai was siicccssfiil in defeat
ing a bill in tiic State of Georgia,
wliereiiy Hie oil companies were
I l ying to get . Hie riglit of way for
laying a jiipe line Hiroiigli Hie
.slate. 'Jf tills bill liad passed, it
would naliiraliy eliniinal'e all Hie
iankers in Ilriinswick and .Sa
vannaii.
Sleady as siie ^oes.
Charles Waid, Agent.
MOBILE
Ala
JOHN HENRY FERGERSON
Get ill loiif'li, Avillt your
dhug'liter at 102 Etisl iWtli
Street or by eallitip 22222,
Savaunali, Ga. *
In Memoriam
PETEllAiaHS
Died,.in, Mobiiej. Ala., ,
March 23, 1941
.Mold I.
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and BroHier:
Shipping continues to be very
good in Mobile with quite a few
ships touching this port and tak
ing replacements. A few weeks
ago we had a ship in here from
the Bauxite country with a'load
of Bauxite which was none other
than the S.S. Rarltan. The skip
per in command was a man by
the name of Captain Roupe. Now
yours truly has seen very near
all the Bucco Neros since the
days of "Revolver Hansen" of the
Barkantine Kremlin out of Bos
ton, but this bird tops them all
without a doubt. Any one com
ing in contact with this bird, be
careful!
liicidmitiiliy, i'licro was a round
a iiiindrod iioiirs ovmlinip in dis
piiio on Hiis tub and I mi.giit add,
il was coll(4ct<Mi. I was of tlic
opinion Hial. get I ing dniiik at, pay
off time was a iirivilogii iudonging
lo HIP sailors, init lj(r! ami Be
hold! wiipii Hie time came to pay
off it was the skipper who was
(iriiiik and Hie crew was sober.
The S.S. Fiourspar came in
last week from an , intercoastai
voyage with no disputes as far as
overtime was concerned. The
crew requested a clock for the
mess room and a water cooler for
the crews quarters aft. The
patrolman took the matter up
with the Marine Superintendent
and the requests were granted.
She signed articles yesterday for
another trip to the coast.
TIiP Alcoa S.S. Company has at.
HiP present time two more ship.s
in tiie drydock for extensive over
liaiiling and recoiiditiouing and,
one wiil be crewing up in a few
weeks.
Last week Brother Reter Aries,
No. 6149A. passed away at the
Marine Hospital here and was
buried by the Union. There were
Marcli 24. 1941
Editor, .Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and BroHiPr:
Slipping iias slowed down sonie
wliat, but it's on a par with r.iie
average siiipiiing of otiier ports.
At present', tiiere are enougli full
book menihers around, so tliat
Pliiliy can hold regular mecting.s.
It's great to attend tlieru, and tlie
Brothors are beginning to realize
Hiat union meetings are Hie place
to iron out their differences and
diHiculties. Keep the ball rolling,
right along, BroHier.s.
Here's ilie scooii (ii Hie week:
After four radiators liad been
caved in on BroHier JoJo Flana
gan's crate (limousine to liim),
lie finally ' jiuiled a "Slierlock
Holnn^s" and eauglit a truck driv
er hacking into his iieap (pardon
—limousine) JUKI after a lengthy
disciissloii between Hicni, Brotiier
JoJo finally averred: "Brother
Triicii Driver, it is damned lucky
for you tiiat you iire afiiiiated
witli Hie American Federation of
Lalior, otiierwiso I'd sue you for
eveiytliliig that you own. includ
ing your long red underwear!"
And so, being a gootl brother, Jo
Jo simply allowed tlie truckdriv
ing brotiier to pay for a new radi
atoi and siieli.
As all olUcials are now inducted
into ollice, let's settle down to
business, and go down the line
Willi Hiem and assist them in ev
ery way possilile to continue tlie
good work of tiie RIU in Hie past.
Congratulatioiits to ail of the duly
elected oiiicials, and may your
terTure of otiice be a pleasant, hap.
py and suecess.ful one.
Tlie following steanisiiips ar
rived during tlie week and were
lakiiig care of accordingly: Mar
garet, Calniar, Beauregard, Oak
mar, Marsodak, Ariyn, Plow
City, Ponce De Leon and Mary.
Ail came, looked and departei!
witli smiles upon tlie crew's coun
t'enance.s. There were quite a few
beefs—mostly overtime, but otie
of tlie Calmar Line scows had'a
hungry beef. Tiie agent amf pa
trolman adjusted same to Huj. gen
uine satisfaction of the crew'
One bnckaioo mate called
Brotiier Harry Collins everytliing
from soqp to beans, frying to gfit
liini mad and even accused the
broHier of being a .SABOTEUR,
(lie was always a stewaid, biit I
didn't know Hie Frencb.name be
fore this), Commi.ssar, etc. Very
coolheaded (for a change), tlie
brother politely and with a tint
of .sarcasm in his foghorn, voice,
merely staled: ilr. Mate, Mr.
Port Skipper and Mr. Chiseling.
Port .Steward: tliere's a list of
vegetables, milk, meat, spices aqd
other necessities that Hie UNLI
CENSED PERSONNEI. want, apd
.so be it. , . ,
A.fter obtaining all concessions
asked, the brother then tohlthe
liardboiled buckaroo: Tlieye's, a
big dock out there wiiere yoii and
I cgn settle our personal differ
ences. The buckaroo Hieii fell
back on his socalled "dignity"
and refused to sign tor a bout.
• r
We are calling attention to, ail
brothers who liave ever sliippcd
out of Philiy. Li^en to this:
BroHiers Buckman, Wilson, L,ew
is, A r r e r a (coasfwlsii) and
Wriglit. ail shipped out. on, the
same ship and in Hie same depart
ment. Ye Gods, .someone better
send ten pounds of aspirin aiioard
the said vessel.
Fraternally,
The Four Horsemen,
quite a few of the men on the
beach in attendance at his fun
eral. Ail in ail, it was a fine send
off for Brother Aries on his last
voyage.
• « «
If John Linn., No. 44G, and
.lolin Link will communicati^ with
Hie Mobile Agent tliey can coileet
wages due them from, the Alcoa
Shipper on her voyage ending on
or about January 14. This is due
them for the Absent seamen's
wages. That's all for this week.
Fraternally yours,
Ciden Banks
NOTICE TO ALL
SIU MEN !
I
Canadian Branches of tlis
Seafarers' /nternational.
Union i
When in Canadian ports,
insit the halls of the following
organizations, affiliated to the
Seafarers' International Union
of North Americg: .
CANADIAN, ,
SEAMEN'B UNjON
406 St. Lawrence Boulevard
Montreal, Canada
BRITISH COLUMBIA
SEAMEN'S UNION
310B Cambie Street
"Vancouver, B.C.
Phone: TRinitv 22..1
i'
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T HE SEAFAk EES' LOG Tuesday, April S, I'M!
I„.{;.
• I'
jV. .^jx
^yh
. !:JV/• •
It• t;
Attention All SlU Men:
Beware of UnionBusters I
With the SIU getting tops in war bonus
pay and wages and conditions Becond to
none on both coastwise and ott'slioro ships,
the Union lias proA'ed and continues to
proA'e that the interests of the seamen on
this Coast can lie fought for it^H^stullv in i to tmU a protest tor stojipin^'^to the
picture, sJioiitiiig ".sabotage" of "national de
fense" and working up sentinient f«»r tlie regi
mentation of the seamen.
2. Wildcat actions give Joe Stalin's liatchet
men in the leadership of lite XMV an oppor
tunity to move ill and raid the lines ajlected,
ottering themselves as a more "responsible" or
ganization to do bnsiness witli.
3. Thougbtless actions help tln^ tio^o'uiient
an organized, responsible and di.sciplined
fashion. The SIU will continue to make
hcadAvay towards ever bigger and better
improvements along the same road and with
the same methods. We need fear no outside
forces to .stop us if we continue to act as in
the past—all for one and one for all: as a
disciplined army of organized labor.
There is, however, a danger that we must
openly face. That is the danger of dis
rupters and TTuionbnster.s v/orking from
within our own ranks—individuals who pull
off unauthorized actions, who agitate, for
hanging the pin without consulting the
Union office, wlio undermine the regularly
elected officers of the SIT^ and urge each
crew to take matters into its own hands on
beefs, regardie.ss of the welfare of the
Union as a whole.
Whom do such unanthorizod actions
help? Whom do such disruptive individuals
serve? Think it over yourself:
1. TTnaiitlioiizcd beefs give tlie sliipownei's a
cluince to holler "breaeli of coiitraet" ami to
drag the Union into eoiirt in an eftort to bank
nipt it flnaneially and to break it up as an
etfective organization.
Beware of Unionhusters in our own
ranks! Beware of individuals who urge un
authorized, wildcat actions on tlie .ships—
Ihey lielp only the shipowners, the Stalin
stooges and the reactionary lahorbaitcvs in
(he Government agencies!
Don't go off the deep end. To preserve
and continue to achieve improvements in
wages and working conditions which sea
men are entitled to and in wliich tlie SIU
has led and contimies to lead—KEEP A
STEADY COURSE! Act with the SIU and
tlirongli the SIU! Observe the Union rules
and regulalioiis. Consult with the regularly
elected offices of the SIU chosen by the
majority in democratic iiroce^ss. Get author
ization from the regularly comstiluted Ibiiou
bodies before taking action. In oilier wnrd.s,
act as Union men—for the STU and throii'sili
the SJU.
Remember: the Union is the source op all
our strength! Guard the SIU against at
tack from tlie outside and disniiitiuii from
wiliiiii!
Out of the Mailbag
mw YORK
About a Real^ Honest
toGoodness NMU
Rider
I March 31, 1941
bear Sir and Brother;
For once, the .superefflcienl offi
cials of tlie NMU have slipped up
and a copy of the rider that is at
tached to all articles signed by
NMU members aboard ships of
the U.S. Lnies fell into our hands,
i While aboard the Acadia, for
merly of the Eastern and just
signing her first crew under the
Alcoa flag, I found a rider at
Relied to the articles. As there
ts never a rider on the Alcoa ar
Ijicles except perliaps a Bonus or
Transportation rider, no attention
was paid tn^it by the men. But
When it was pointed out to them,
the hoys of course would not sigu
Anything as phoney as that.
i! Who Wrote the Bider?
^The Company was contacted
and denied all knowledge of any
such rider and it was removed
and then the boys signed on.
On investigation it was found
that the rider had been put on
the articles by a member of the
newly acquired Pursers' Depart
ment, who had previously been
.employed by the U.S. Lines. When
4]uestioned he stated that this
same rider went on all articles
of U.S. Line ships (under contract
with the NMU). This man then
asked: "What Union crews these
ships?" I informed him that the
SIU was the Union on the ships
of this company and he just
shrugged his shoulders and said
that he did not want to get mixed
tup in any union business.
Text of Bider
The rider reads as. follows (An
oiiiginal copy la on file at the SIU
office fame);
AND BE IT FURTHER
AGREED THAT:
1. CREW TO BE ON B0.4LRD
AT A.M.—P.M. 19 . IT
IS AGREED THAT ANY MEM
BER OF THE CREW WHO
FAILS TO BE ON BOARD AT
THE ABOVE HOUR, OR FAILS
TO BE IN A SOBER CONDITION
AT ALL TIMES PRIOR TO
SAILING, OR FAILS TO AP
PEAR AT CREW MUSTER, OR
IF AFTER JOINING SHALL
LEAVE THE VESSEL WITHOUT
PERMISSION OF THE MASTER,
SHALL BE CLASSED AS
"FAILED TO JOIN" AND A
SUBSTITUTE MAY BE SIGNED
ON IN HIS STEAD AT ONCE.
2. CREW TO WORK ON DAY
OF ARRIVAL AT PORT OF DIS
CHARGE UNTIL 5 P.M. IP RE
QUIRED.
BOSTON
.3. CREW TO PROVIDE
THEMSELVES AT OWN EX
PENSE WITH COMPANY UNI
FORM FOR RATINGS SIGNED |'""T,
ON FOR. AND TO APPEAR IN
SAME WHEN REQUIRED BY
MASTER.
March 31, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
A.S in other ports, there la
shortage of trained seamen in the
Port of Boston. So far we have
managed to crew all ships, hut.
liave very few reserves. A,ccord
lug to the old system of supply
and demand, the seamen can do
light well for themselves in the
form of higher wages.
<*! « 0
I see by the papers that the
Navy is going to convoy ships to
England. Well, I doubt very much
if seamen will go there for $50
per month. They iiave certainly
put a higher value on human life
since the last war and, besides,
tlie seamen in the last war are
not eligible for a pension.
» « •
What we want is to reap our
harvest and every trip should be
harvest time to us. We may not
sow but we sure do plow, and
those furrows are by no means
4. CREW WTTL BE .SUPPLIED
WITH MATTRESS. PILLOW,
BLANKET AND UTENSILS FOR
EATING THEIR FOOD WHICH,
IF NOT RETURNED AT TIME
OF DISCHARGE OR BEFORE
LEAVING VESSEL, VALUE OF
SAME WILL BE DEDUCTED
FROM WAGES EARNED BE
FORE BEING PAID OFF.
Read it and weep!" Now if we
can get some good officials from
the NMU to guide us, we might
be able to get more of such real
nice company stooge riders of this
sort. So take your pick, boys!
Quite a blessing. What do you
think?
Fraternally,
D. Muncacter, Patrolman
We can expect it any time now,
and I believe we should prepare
to demand our worth. Someone
will get it, so it may just as well
be us. We can use it and we sure
do circulate It. What do you
think?
Fraternally.
Your Boston Reporter
Facts on the Bonus Beefs
.Tulning In tlie general uproar against strike.s and tor curbs
on labor that would piivent justified action for wage liurease.s,
the sliiiH»wtiei?s' voice; krumii an the "Journal of Coiiiniewe", lias
been e,ngaged in a bit tif particular sniping at the organized .sea
men. The .question involved here Is action for a lilglieir bonus in'
tilo war zone nuts, i The attack conies in the form of comment by
the shipping editor, Mr. Clinton L. Doggett, in bis coltinui, '(The
Shipping OutkioK", of March 31, 1941.
Mr. Doggct refers.to the fact that two Robin 1 fine ships and
one Alcoa. vc.ssel have, had their sailings dela.ved hecanstr of Union
deitiaiuls for a war iMiniis on the African and CanadianWest
indies run, mspectivelj. Taking" up the line aod cry ahoift tli®
"national deefiise" aspect of the work involved, Mr. Doggett says:
"We have a feeling that the public is tired of it (the Union
action) anyway. . . . This same public has been and still is oply
too willing to give labor its due, but nevertheless cannot reconcile
wholesale stoppages of vital defense production until all other
means of settieiuent have been exhausted. . .
Now what are the facts in the. situation?
In the first place, there has not been any "whole.sale stoppage"
on either the Koliin ships or on , the Alcoa. After giving duo
not ice, accoiding to legal reqiiirrntents, the crew of (he Re,bin
Locksley, simply asked to be paid oil'. Shipping was too good on
.safe runs for them to risk their necks on the dangeroiis African
run without an increase in the bonus, they declared.
And that is a hard fact and cannot be elialleiiged. If Hie .ship
owner wants to remedy Ibis kind of a situation, it is only neccs
.sary for him to reconcile himself with this fact, which is con
trolled by the old law of supply and demand.
Now, a.s to exhausting "other means of settlement"—the men
have had too much experience with arbitration to trust to that
.sort of phoney "settlement." They have only to refer to their
,sad experience with the Robin Line itself In the case of the S.S.
.Algic of last .snmnier. A demand for 80 cents overtime and a
lioiuis increase was simply .stiuashed in the proceedings. On the
AVest Indian run, inmimerahle conferences have been held since,
last June—when Preiich possessions in the islands were subjected
to a virtual Rritish blockade—in order to obtain a war bonus there.
• All, to no avail.
What the men on the Roliin lane and on (he Alcoa are doing
i.s siiiqtly exerting (heir econoniic power. They have not oven re
sorteil to picket lines or to other forms of strike activity. They
lia\e merely gone along with the drift of the law of .supply and
deiiiand to ask for a honns that would make a lisky trip worth
their while. If the "public"—behind which pseudonym Mr. Doggett
liides the shipowners, in wliose interests he writ.i's—are "tired"
of tliis, what would such a "public" propose? The institution of
press gang method.s?
After all, tlie seainen are only exerting their rights as Ameri
can citizens not to take a job they don't want. What would be
left for them to defend against Hitler, if such an eleinentmy right
viere taken from tliem?
To top off his distorted view of the picture, Mr. Doggett throxvs
some flowers at "No Coffee Time" Joe.
"On this score," he says, "the N.M.U., which has heeu freely
assailed for its leanings, showed much better judgment recently."
It is only, necessaiy to round out the real pictni'e to see why.
Joe Cnrran is in sncli good graces with the "Journal of Commerce"
and Its sponsors. N.M.U. .ships are still sailing on a $30 a month
bonus (which the Seafarer.s got FOR them, by the way, last fall)
while S.I.U. .ships are getting $.'50 a month.
Ohvlously, no matter whom Mr." Dogget. may have tried to
convince by a comparison of methods used on the Robin Line
with those used by the N.M.U., for seamen (he comparison is
odious.
For, the end result Is wliat. counts: Curran's N.M.U. iiietluHls
leave the seamen with a scandalously low honus—^which is, in the
last analysis, why the shipowners and their paper are so en
thusiastic about Ids "judgment^' The action on the Robin ships,
on the other hand, gives the seamen .$50 a month as a war honns
—which is wliy the sipowners and their paper are "tired" <»f our
method.s.
JOSEPH W. TILLOTSON
Get in touch with Local
Board No. 79, Essex County,
Mass.
SIUMan Thanks Grew
For Brotherly Action
On board S.S. Cuba
Tampa, March 31, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Lag
Dear Sir and Brother:
I wiah to express my sincere
appreciation for the great favor
of the crew of the S.S. Cuba in
making it possible for me to go
by plane from Havana to Tampa
so that it was possible to attend
the funeral of my Mother. Also
a very nice floral piece, was pro
vided with the amount that re
mained.
Sincerely yours,
H. W. Bradley, 1670
Bosses Gain $2 for Every $1
Wage Raise Given to Labor
The American Federation of Labor this week released figures
which demonstrate eloquently why American woiking stiffs are on
the move throughout the country to boost wages. The A. F. (<1 L.
economists show that since 1929, hourly rates Oif pay have gone up
20 per cent, while,in that same period output of workers per hour
vaulted by 40 per cent!
In other words, employers gained $3 in increased prodnctiqn
for every $1 increase In hourly wages.
Replying to those reactionary forces who would "stabilize" wages
by putting an end to Increases in pay through the outlawing of
strikes, etc., the A. F. of L. "Labor's Monthly Survey" says ou thb
basis of these figures: , &
""If the eniployer's labor cost does not increase when wages rj^i
do prices have to be raised? Certainly not. Those who claim tjiMt
wage increases must bring price increases have overlooked the mean
ing of the machine in modern industry: Labor's production per hour
(productivity). means wage increases without price increases."
Thus exploding tho employerinspired propaganda that tvoffe
raises boost the cost of living, the A. F. of L. goes on to say: .
"To stop wage increases when indnstry is able to pay more
robs the underprlvll^ed and raises profits which are already high.
. , , If wage increases are stopped while companies go on making .
higher profits, can workers help feeling they are bearing an in
justice which destroys the democracy they want to defend?"
(Labor's J^onthli/ Stirvei/, Marclt 25, 1941)^
All that the wave of strikes in the "defense" industries actually
means—when you bear these facts and fibres in mind—is this: the
American workers are just as determhted not to let the profltgree
bosses destroy their democracy atthe point of production as th®
are to prevent Hitler from doing thatby thrusts from abroad.'
..i. . k. ilGi ""
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