Issue Date
1941-10-22
Volume
3
Issue Number
21
Plaintext
JOQ
OFltetikli Ctf THfi ATtAKTIC AND GULF DISTMCT,
OF NORTH AMERICA
NEW YORK, N. Y., WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1941 No. 21
\
§;•
I#:
I I'm • '• • i'tiv:! • • •
1::
ANOTHER SELLOUT ?
Today the seamen belonging to the NMU are sailing their
. ships without the protection of a signed unioh contract. The
. shipowners can shanghai or dump them, can work them 50
or 60 hours a week, can leave them stranded in foreign ports
or cam even cut their wages—all without violating any agree
ment. Nothing the operators pull will violate a imioh agree
ment—because there is none!
The NMUJeadership has been negotiating with the oper
ators for over a month, to no avail. The old contracts ex
pired on the drst of October. Today the NMU men ssil the
ships at their own risk—^UNPROTTJCTED !
. This is a criminal situation. The entire wage scale and
working conditions of the men are in jeopardy. They have
beeubetrayed and doublecrossed many times in the past,
, but there is a sellout in the ofSng that wi!l make ine past
crossups look like small change. r
STALIN GIVES THE LINE
What's the real score here? What's the reason for all
this back alley maneuvering which leaves^the rank and file
seamen holding the bag? It's a long story^^tliat starts with
an editorial which appeared the first; of this month in the
Daily Worker—oflBoial organ of the Communist Party.
"Anything that interferes with production of needed war
• 'b.'/'l
I
if
I
1
^plies/' v^ote the Daily Worker, "whether as a result of
%ikeg or of delays by the employers—can only help Hitler."
There's the line! Labor must not strike!; ̂
Unfortunately, however, the shipowners who deal with
the NMU also read the Daily Worker. They'd be fools not to.
When negotiations were proceeding, the operators knew
thfe uhion wouldn't strike. They knew that Stalin had for
bidden the tying Up t)f any ships that might be tised to bring
him guns. The operators knew the whole score—and when
ft boss knows ahc.ftd of time that his workers are just beating
their gums and have no intention of striking, he becomes a
pretty tough guy. That's just what happened here.
STRANdE TRADE UNIONISM
We can be sure^ that Ourran didn't ask for much from
the t^Mpowners. He would have taken anything
that would have saved his face with the rank and file. But
the operators Imew they had him with his pants down.
So, Hamhead Gurran was up the creek. What did he do
then? He couldn't threaten the operators with a strike. No,
he sat down and wrote aIpng and fancy telegram to the:
Presidentofthe United States (poor FipBr—he receives so
many telegrams every day). *
Hamhead whined and sniveled about what bad hoys the
shipowners were and what a good boy he was. He told how
he wanted to do his duty by "Democracy," but the ship
owners, wouldn't let him.
If Gurran thinks he is defending "Democracy" by sell
ing dutto the shipowners, then his brand of "Democracy"
is thesame as that used by "Banana" Robson.
Men that sail the ships are for Democracy—industrial as
well as political. Under the heading of industrial democracy
• eomes the right to bargain collectively and the right to en
force that bargaining with a strike—if necessary.
II WHEN DEMO(HIAOY ENDiS
. When the right, to strike is taken awfty, whether by em
' ployers or socalled labor leaders, at thkt mbment democracy
ends for the seamen. All the fine phrases abCut blows against
Fascismabroad will not cover dp such a victory for Fascism
at home. ' " ;
As to what is going to happen to the NMU and its ne
gotiations witii the operators—vre can't say. Ofie thing is
certain, however^ Gurran will try desperately to reach some
compromise that will save his face. Whether or not the op
erators will allow him to do this isproblematical. But fhee
saving or not—Stalin has spoken and Gurran will jump
through 10,000 hoops before he'll tie up the ships. The, rank
f/i \ and file seamen will receive just what the operators are will
5?; ? V ing to give them. No more^o less.
\ Again Gurran proves himself an agile follower of the
CommunlBt Party line. Again the rank and file seamen will
T it in the neck. Gooid conditions are only won by militant
5. trade unionism—not by slippery political ifianenvers.
F.D.R. PLANS TO ARM
U.S. MERCHANT SHIPS
BONUS MONEY
The crew that made the
last complete voyage on the
S.S, Pan Gulf, elgning on
May27th at Baltimore and
sighing off Oct 10th, 1941 at
Borton, hay^ approximately
$40 retroactive bonus money
that Is due them. Collect at
any Waterman Line Office,
The crew that payed off the
Robin Sherwood Sept. 30,
1941 have $.30 retroactive
bonus money due them. Col
lect at Robin Line, 39 Cort
land St., New York City,
signed
JOHN HAWK
H}.;
Marine Cpoks Demand
Officials Open Contracts
and Ale membej:s..jDf the. Marine Gooks and
Stewards of thARaoific Goast (GIO) are in full revolt against
their Stalinistdominated leaders and are angrily demanding
that these leaders quit crawfishing before the shipowners
or else go back to sea.
The Secretary and Assistant Secretary of the MCS re
cently notified the shipowners that, the Union did not desire to open
the agreements for revision. These sellout artists assured the oper
ators that wages and working conditions were entirely satlsfactoiy
a far as they were concerned. The only trouble was that they fig
ured without the membership. O
In the Voice qi the Members, a
rankandfile paper started a
AntiAircraft and AntiSub
Cuns to be Manned by Navy
Crew of Eleven Men per Ship
Jks President Roosevelt presses bis denand in Gongress
for revision of the Neutrality Act, the U. S. Navy and the
Maritime Gommission are laying plans for the arming of
merchant ships with antisubmarine and antiaircraft gfuna
when that revision becomes reality.
According to Navy sources, guns are not available to fit
out all these vessels, but sufficient are in stock to arm the
ships sailing the more dangerous routes. Another hitch is
the fact that not all merchantmen have the structural
strength needed to carry the weight of guns and the shock
of recoil when fired. Only the cream of the Maritime Gom
mission built ships will he used. It is estimated that ulti
mately sixtben hhhdred slups will he amed.
Some
month ago, the members of the
union express, by telegrdm and
lettei', their dissatisfaction with
present conditions and their dis
trust of a leadership that finds
things on board so rosey.
The following is a frontpage
editorial published in the Oct. 4
issue of the Fofce 0/ the Members.
It sums up the case of the men
who actually work aboard the
ships.
(TEXT OF EDITORIAL)
"Bros. Burke and O'Donneil
have taken the liberty of notify-
ing the Shipowners that we, .the
membership of the Marine Cooks
and Stewards, are not in favor of
opening our agreements. These
olBcials liave the unmitigated gall
to tell the Companies that you
and I are content in continuing
to work another year for nine
hours a day, Saturday afternoons
(Continued on Page 2)
New Phone Number
The telephone uhmher of
the National Sec'yTreas.
has been changed. The
new number is BOwling
Green 98346 in New York
City. The office of the
New Yoi^ Agent has been
transfered from the second
floor to the fifth floor —
Room 6iD2,
BULLETIN
The Committee on Candidates
of the SlU has recommended to
the membership that the period
for nominations to 1942 Union
offices, be extended for 30 days.
If accepted, this would extend
the deadline for nominations to
Nov. 19th and would mean that
the new officers would be in
ducted Into their posts on the
first Monday In February.
The New York Branch has
acted favorably on the recom
mendation. The other branches
up and down the coast will vote
on the question on Monday, Oct.
27th.
The Committee on Candidates
accompanied Its request for an
extension of time, with the ex
planation that many of the can
didates already nominated had
not submitted all the required
papers to make them eligible
under the constitution of the
Union. Such extension would af
ford these Brothers ample time
to establish their eligibility as
well as giving the membership
an opportunity to make further
nominations.
It was stressed In the Corntnlt
tee's report that anV Brother
that has already accepted nomi
nation for office, can NOT switch
his candidacy to a different of
fice. New nominations may be
made, but only those that have
not already accepted, are en
titled to this privilege.
i.lv'v'
156 vessels completed
since the outbreak of the war ar©
already fitted , with brackets to
carry the deGaussIng equip
ment which protects against
magnetic mines by nullifying the
magnetic field of the ship.
Most experts admit that th«
contemplated n&fr armament will
not furnish really effective pro^
fection for these ships and the
men who sail them. This is par
ticularly true as far as subma
rines are concerned. It is difficult
to hit a submarine from the un
steady platform of a freighter
poop. Such a sub gun will serve
only to keep the attacker sub
merged. Since submarines dis
charge their torpedoes from ,43iis
position anyway, the guns will
have little effect.
As far as antiaircraft guns are
concerned, the story is pretty
much the same. The record of
antiaircraft fire on land is poor
enough. Place one of these guns
on the bobbing deck of a ship
and try and hit a dive bomberl
Furthermore, German bombers
are skilled at using cloud cover
to swoop low over merchant ships
at "zero altitude" and thus mak
ing the high angle antiaircraft
guns all but useless.
Indications are that fhe men to
fire these guns will be drawn di
rectly from tlie Navy. It will re
quire about eleven gunners for
each armed merchantman.
These Navy gunners will prob
ably have had little merchant
marine experience. They will
have been accustomed to the ship
shape and efficient quarters
aboard modern battleships. Their
new assignments will be difficult
and dangerous for bojth them and
the union men they. will work
with.
These Navy men will find that
the merchant seamen will wel
come them aboard and will stand
unfiinchingly by their side
through all dangertius actions.
The shipowners will find, how
ever. that the seamen will not al
low the presence of Navy mqn to
be need as an excuse to break
down union wages and working
conditions,
iS.
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I.JEXU.1
;r M E S E A F A R E R S ' hO Q Wednesday, October 22, 1^41
• ii '
|sSw;
15.
Published by the
ATIANTIC & GULF MSTRICT
of the .
Seafarers' International Union.,
of North America
Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor
^RRY XiUNDEBERG, Acting Interne^tional president
no .Market'Street, pooini 402, San Fi^ahclsdo, Calif.
' • <: J ' • I \
ABDmsH AfjL CjORRESJP.QNDENCE CONCERNINO THIS
PUBLICATION TO:
"THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. p. Box 25, Station F, New Vorlc, N. Y.
P/io«e; BOwiing Green 93437
More About:
The Stomt Comes Closer
Marine Cooks
(Continued from Page 1)
or Sundays' at sea and In port,'
without any Improvements in the
underpaid claasiflcations, and no
fui\,aamehtai revision of the lousy
conditions existing aboard many
of our larger ships.
"We state to Bros. Burke and
O'Donn^ll that this impression
they have given the Shipowners
not only violates the best inter
ests of the membership but is a
deliberate falsification pf tjhe ref
erendum ballot taken on the ques
tion of opening the agreement.
"We state to Bros, purke and!
O'Donnell that' the membership is
ready and willing to reintroduce;
the fundamental demands proj
posed at our last' negotiations,
last September, and enlist the'
support of all organized' labor for.
WrHiam Cre^ |5leelected
For Eiqhteentli Term
si.m
i;
s
IS
p)evelopuie|its in both ̂ lie Pacitic and Atlantic this week gave
the lloosoveitadministration fresh aniniuniilon to'fire at tlioso
members of Congress who still oppose Aiiierican participatioh in
in the Atlantic tliree ships were torpedoed, one a war ship. I their achievement. And we fur
The U.S.S. Kearney, a new destroyer, was attacked 300 miles off ther contesnd that,the major rec'
the coast of Iceland by a submarine which the Kavy pepartmcnt 1 oinrnendgt,ipns maijie hy ,the vuri:
qliarged was' "undoubtedly Germaii." ous ships published from time to'
Two jVIaritime .Commission freigliters were sunk. Tlie S.S. Bold Pupoc, must be glveni
.yenture went down about 400 miies west olf Ireland, and tbe S.S. every consideration in the com
Lehigh was sunk .just south of Dakar, ,<>n tlie west coast o# Africa, negotiations.
In the Pacific the increasing tension between Japan aii^ the "Pros. Bur^ke and .CTDonnelli
ITnited States resulted in a Navy order to all m'erahant ships to ha,ye plainly denionstrated their
geek /'friendly ports." Henceforth no U.S/ship will be allowed unwilliiigii^s to fight for a bet:
ofport unless her course and destination Jiave plliciai Navy Ltei' agreement. We are no lohgei'!
^approval. placing either bur'conddcnce ori
" President Roosevelt seems determined to force a s^owdovv^ ltriist in their decision. j
with both Germany and Japan, The week's developments brought "jf our Secretary and Assistant
closer the actual ̂ shooting'stage of the undeclared war between Secretary in their support of thci
America and the Axis povyers; In liiie with war preparations is kjjviu's drive to equalize wages
the story, from authoritative jpiuarters, ,tliat the JMaritiine Com and conditions on both Coasts,
mission has notified the shipowners tliat the Army may at any that they are going to bring
• taoment issue an emergency call for all available ships for service about that condition by sacrifc
to the Phflippint Islands. It is reported that merchant shipping. • }„„ QUR wages OUR conditions,
as btring: assembled for sendee to Vladivostok. ' • arfd' O£R^ militancy, they kre
sadly mistaken.
msS, m% A • ."The membership is willing fo
f flO 'dOOflCfS higkt for its conditions even
. though the OJficials are not. The
No seaman yiiee^s mucli convincing as to iLe eprmpt^ess of
.the cmployerrun press after the • • faif.play" dished out to'the:
Seafarers International Union in tlie cour.se of i^e h.istoric bonus J stronger arid more militant Ma
beef. rine Cooke and .Stewards.
In every port the story has been the same. In every branch! The Associate Editors."
the SlU.the anger of the striking seamen was kindled .anew
every day, as they read the slimy attacks against their Union.
The antilabor yawp of the penprostitutes could be dismissed
as jibberish were it not for the fact tliat they exploit the real
ha.tred of the common people against the Nazi oppressors and
distort the genuine desire of helping fhe oppressed, to achieve
their aim. By such trickery they create fiysteria directed, not so
much against Hitler, as against RitlM's fiercest enemies in the
country, the proud and freedomloving American working stiffs.
One of the most shameless examples of this crookefi jfiand
wringing was an editorial which appeared iii tJie N. y. flerald]
.Tribune'on September 2.5th. Its title—V.Gost : One ,Thousand SIU has concluded a collectiyG
A^plapes'—dnly indicated demagogic contents. bargainiug agreement with .the
'^" 'NOW, everybody knows that airplanes are vital to modem Cedent Transit. Company which
warfare. And everybody wants to see Hitler licked. So, if working conditions and
strike comes lip" which involves this important weapon, the wages which have seldom been
i'r'ibune hns a simple formula:" Paint the strikers up as Hitler's .e'l^aled in the Great Lakes area,
helpers! Smear labor and holler "Nationa.1 Defense." The principal provisions of the
Fourteen of the struck Alcoa ships, tJhe editorial points out,. agreement are: a base pay of
were carrieis of "bauxite pre. for ^le manufacture pf pei month for A.D.'s and
Auin." Then.it goes on: two and onehalf
days paid vacation fpr eyqry 30
days work,, 35 cents an hour for
Tin « . . J b., ^ t I • n 1 vT overtime, unloading pay Increase
, Who estimated f Un what statistics is the figure based r No .
1 I.' £ 1.1 XT ii. T '/TA/T 1' < J • ' TV li of 50 per cent, and seniority conliint of that! No matter, 1,000 planes sounds impre.ssive. It will M ' : • ,
T1' V J M ' Ti. h i'" ' ' fi' • I. • • TV ditions tfiat include accumulated
help to dramatize the tssue. It will, put over a point. . Here it . , • ^
t tr. v ,;v • • ' c ji 1 ' seniority for men serving in the
is, right in tlie next sentence 01 the editorial: .
"And there was no . . . excuse for the strike," which was
"activated by aii arrogant impatience with the decisions of
government agencies."
Army bases are held up in the West Indies and the strike
lias cost the country 1,000 airplanes. Who is responsible/? Not
Ajicpa, the' steamship subsidiary of the powerful Aluminum trust,
wipcA ,i^ fpr "defepse'' bidy on .condffipns that .it pays huge diyi;
dends.. No, e.ii% Blame the seamep lybp .want a few .more, dollajrs,
in war bonus and risk insHrar,"e! They only stake their lives, for
Cciiix^tipn |4ear.s-Demand for Creation
Of a Marine Trades Depjrtmejnt
The sixtyfirst annual convention of the American Fed
eration of Labor reelected William Green as President for
his eighteenth consecutive term. Brother ̂ Qreen faced no
opposition for the office arid was returned to Ms post hy
a unanimous vote.
On tfte secopd day of the cqnvention, which was held last
week in Seattle, Wash., the assembled delegated turned their
> attention to the question of the
organiz^iloin of maritime work
ers. Deleaate Wendell j. Phillips
of the Labor .Council of Sqn
Francisco introduced a resolution
calling for the establishment of
a Marine Trades Department to
supervise the activities of the
various AFL maritime unionp.
Brother Phillips based his reso
lution on the need of meeting
the long trumpeted NMU drive
to take oyer ,all segmenfs unions.
Apparently Brother Phillips js
unaware of Just how Joe Gnrranls
plans .have blown iip In his face.
The resolution, which follows,
was not acted upon by the con.
ventiqn but was referred to the
Gommitfee on Organization.
Text 'of Resolution ifo. tfii
I
JHfy SA Ii 'lM
UNTI L THf Y
APART
CoflGituy On
The S.S. Essex, a 3,000 ton
freighter, was biiilt In Phila
delphia fiftyone years ago.
She was built as g coastwise
ship.: ,
This spring the White
Pearl Shipping Corporation
bought the antique vessel and
put her into degpraea service
,be,tyyeen. ,Pal.Ump,re and ,Li8.
.faon, Spain.
On her first trip she man
aged to woljow Into Lisbon,
but on her return .trip she
foundered in a heavy sea and
on ^ept. 26th 'was driyien onto
Sbuth'easl Light' shoals off the
coast of Block island. Thirty
feet of water flooded her en
gine rooms anoi jthe crew was
rescued by the Coast Guard
Cutter" Argo.
When the operators were
informed of w;hpt happened,
Lincoln T. Judd, president of
the company, remari;ed that
the Eeseex had' made a "re
markable recQrdV for a ship
of h.er age.
(Only.remarkable ffiipg was
thai the crew got op,alive!)
Of Racket In
"WHEREAS, There now exie/!)
within the American Federation
of Labor several unintegrated ma
rine groups,, and
WHEREAS, This lack of coor L
diriatlon capses dissatiqffictlqp I .
and defections in the ranks of ; 5
marine workers, and .
"WHEREAS, This lack of coop ''i
eratipn among marine groups ' i
causes confusion, .duplication . of
effort and ignores fhe real eco
nomic problems of marine work
ers, and ' " ' • '
WHERE"AS, Certain rival' iha
rine groups are now planning a
colossally intensified membersBlp
drlye yvhich .aims at a verticpJ
uuion to contain all these
crhfts and promises direct Action • (, 1
for nuii'ine workers sd organized,! ) |!
and i"1
• t:
f"
The Great Lakes district of the
"It is estiniated that , the interiuiption of tlus coinnie|:ce for
a fortnight, aside from the delay it lias caiisgAJn the eonstruq,.
jtioft 6f the bases, hsis cost hie country 1,6^00 airpiap^s,','
army or cqnpdripted jfidr; vital de
fense industries. d u r 1 n g the
emergency.',' ,
"Bcfehs'e."
'f'.seam.en.did,not even haye an "excuse" for the strike, ft
was just "impatience" antf "arrogance" on their pajff, Fine yionths
(Continued on Page 4) '
LP ST
pne apk , pyepi. fiag
was taken', by piis.tjake from
jhe sixth floor, .hall In jfie,
"y.ork Branch of tfie ̂ lU,
It contains a C.P..p. cap, one
stamp set and toilet prtlci.eB.
; Please return at once.
JF.ro,m .time Jto Jimp petty port
officials rig MP rackets deisignefi
to line their pockets at the ex
pense of visiting seamen. The
Seafarers' international Union
has beep unreJenting. in its war
upon such rackets,
The crew sailing .a.n .Alcoa ship
recently enc.ountred such
squeeze. The' following letter,
vwitten to the editor'of the "Sea
farers Log", gives ,the story of
what appears fp bp a. n^w .Jwist
in gouging seame.n put of .some
of their hard earned money."This
case, is novy .being..investigated
by the ynipn.
jESditor, Seafei:e.is Log
i?ear Sir and Bro.thier,:
"In a meeting helAon board the
S.S. Alco^ Pioneei: on Oct. 12,
h94l we', the^ entire membership
Of the cfewirwent 6n record t'd
copipiaip, pnd tp ask you to'pub
iisji in the Lop, jtfie story Qf wfia.t
we cdnsi.d.er a yacjket. ,on the
island of "Paramaribo, Djuteh Gui
afia in the Wert Indies.
;/'Ori arriving at Pfiramarifeo we
wdre given a pas^ to go ashord.
When we got ashoaie we were
checked in apd told H wp did
not. phepk. ! flut,,.,whep,. th^ , Jart
launch left for the ship at' 11:3,0
we would be put in Jail and
fined, • '
"Wellr several theboys
"WHEREAS, The mar^ifle unions
within the American FedeVatibp
of Labor regard this threat fA \ f
their membership as ominou's and
imminent to .their craift unions •
and are alarmed at the full im
plicatipns .of so sweeping a ma Y
rine movement, and
WHEREAS, It is the opinion
of all qualified marine leaders
that a similar movement within
tfie American Federation of La
.bor.can forestall the action de
scribed above, and
WHER^ASj Mpst maripG units
would piofer to keep their auto
nomy but appreciate the need for
concerted piariue act'iou by a com .
bination of all pariue crafts act
ing unison; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Anjef
ican Federation of I^bor, in con
vention assembled, go on record
ffi! favor p.f .establishing a mari
time cojincil within the American .
'Federation of Labor similar Jo
the units now functioning for tile
metal trades, building trades alid
railroad departments., J : • • ;
s''iv V ..'. v!
stayed oyernigbt ap.d .wfien they
capie. back in fhe mprfilug they;;
were told by Ab.
be' checking out that tfiey 'were
filled from 16 to 26 "GuildotS
I Dutch , money) . It seems that •
these fines fio not aPPly'A.P'
pensefi peponnel ' ' " •
;'Nq"w, none of the bqyp Whq. /' ''
stayed over night were arrested!,' j' :
put in Jail Or even tried by a ' '®
judge, ft seems that if the che^er »• ^ i
liked y,P"''f i.PPks he woj^d fiat y.ou • * |
on .the shouider and ,8)ay, . 'AnierJ
caiio, Americano," only' 15 .Guilfir , J u
erk' But if he'didn't like you'i •
(Continued on Faye'4)' . « J
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^ednesday, October 22, 1941 T H E S E A F A E E E »* tL O G
^ fe a t' 8
T
, ' (^f. 3, 1941..
Dear Sir and Brother:
Shipping in this port continues
only fair," The Jump in the beach
lists, however, is to be expected
at thia time of the year. Many
memberSfr especially the oldtimi
ers, sit tight at the approach of
the winter (and according to the
weatherman! this winter promises
to be oneof the long> hard type).
Shipping conditions have
changed materially during the
paat six months due to the rapid
decline In the coastwise and ih
terdbastar trades. Figuring as
closely as' possible; we fihd that
the length of the average Voyage,
from' signon to • payoff; ^atk Hi'
1939 was 33 days. Today the av
erage voyage hae increased to" 71
days. This figure will increase as
more khd more coastal and inter
coastal'vessels head for the'long
offshore fuhsi
;• The" daye. Of the seaman short
age are definiteiy over, Fresident
Roosevelt affixed his signature
last week to the bill' providing
that ai Ship may carry fifty per
cent BlueTicket AB's on deck
and the continuous streams of
Governrneut school graduates en
sures that there will be crews to
spare for the rteW llOOishlp' mer
, chant fleet'. One aspect of the
.'• present situation that the average
. seaman overlooks is the. end of
!?the.>: coastwise trade. The Marl
tSjipeGommission hasbids out for
a largo'; fleet of the socalled
"Cewtera" designed primarily to
release ships of the. Bull Line
type i for the offshore trades.
These small; selfpowered vessels
handled'adequately by half
a do^n men and it is more than
probable that their economy of op
eration will find high favor with
friend shipowner.
;. Joei Curran's rosy dream of one
big: union (• controlled by Joe, of
course) , is: fading rapidly. The
MFOW voted the merger down
fasti The Marine Cooks and Stew
ards also voted against the NMU
tieup by U' vote of 1254 to 9841
That must have been a big disap
pointipen.t to the .NMU master
minds, for they had really count
cd on theMC&S. Now it is the
turn, of the ACA . ( radio opera
tors)'to, cast a ballot onthe ques
tion., Party leaders are working
hard on the operators, but, AGA
ofBclaJs are uneasy. A Jaige per
centage of the AGA membevslxip
have signed their intention of
quitting ACA and joining up with
the CTU (A.F. of L. operators)
if the_ Commies pushover the
merger, in a phony ballot.
NMU mernbers who never, did
like the idea of the merger, since
it threatened to jam already
crowded East Coast beach lists,
are jubilant over the MS&S vote.
That the NMU rank and file are
getting wise to their bigshots was
evident during the recent strikes
when action on their, part forced
Curran to wire Washington, pfo
festing against Maritime Comihis
sion, interference with normal ne
gotiations between Union and the
shipowner. :The. recent strike did
a lot to clear the air down Wash
ington way and we doubt if the
Maritime Commission' wHl do
much more nosepoking into our
affairs. The • Gommiasion's idea of
pulUng the NMU,. and .every, other
.maritime union in the United
States, into, a dispute between the
SIU and a couple of the offshore
linos, was pretty raw but it didn't
Work. SIU' membership showed
good judgftieiit in' Holding off a
general strike hild agreeing to the
dertiflcation of the dispute to the
Mediatioh Board. A general strike
at' this time would have been
playing right into" the Maritime
Commission's hand' and would
have given it all the excuse it
wanted to man everything afloat
!Wlth their school graduates.
A localpaper tbpk the oeca'sion
recently to'pan thd'hell out' of us
and wanted to know what wei
meant by rtriking at this time.
We could have answered the ques
'tlon by giving the answer another
Amertcah gave back in 1776:
"OUR IJVE& ARE AT YOUR
SERVICE; BUT OUR LIBER
TIES WERE RECEIVED' PROM
GOD: ̂ WE SURRENDER' THEM
TO NO MAN."
• Wm: MbKay, Agent
SMmSAH
• 0«t. 6, 1941.
Editor. Seafarers' Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
Shipping in the last two weeks
has been very lively in this sec
tion of the coast. We are still
looking for AB's.
Since calling off th,e? strike, the
|M.S. Melvih H; Baker got Away
jfrom here the next day mlntis orio
iAB. As usual., Brq. W. Bfotlge.s
got left behind again. Collected
46 hours overtime for painting in
• the Chart I'oom. i ,
i pot a call from'Charleston the
jOther day; The S;S, Alcoaf Patriot,
inew edition to the Alcoa ®eam
isliipCo., was in from Frisc^ via
Chile and she was loaded doWn
two feet below the pimsoll mark
with overtime beefs in the St'ew
ards department. A f t e r the
,smoke cleared away, 146 hours
iovcrtime in the Deck department
!was in dispute and collected. The
• blackgang had' 18 hours' overtime
in dispute, and this Was colle'cted
iand everybody received' ?125A0
tilfnsport'atibn' back to the coast.
Had the S.S. Cornfelia of the
Bull Steamship Line in here the
other day and: oolleoted for all
three watches . for heaving out
mooring lines and also for men
going in the chainlockers for
stowing chain; Everybody, was
happy when this was accom
plished.
Collected 48~hourB overtime on
the City of Montgomery but
sailed her two eoalpassers short
and 36 hours overtime on, the
City of Savannah. Outside of
this, the rest of the Mates and
Engineers feel that it is no use
to chisel anymore, because it
causes a lot of decension and de
lay in paying off. As for instance,
on the S;S. Alcoa PbtrlOt the Cap
tain had to change the payroll
three different titties before h^
could start to pay off. She final
ly finished paying off at P o'clbck
that night. So if . these ehiselers
would quit chiseling it would not
take them dH day to pay off.
, Shipping is still, good down this
way and everything is running
smooth;
Steady as she goes,
Charles Waid, Agent
In Memory of
Brother
dARtoB" LOWE
Diecl in Eienqh Hospital,
New: York ,,,
September 30, 1941
FmtAimLPBlA
A once famous humorist said,
"All r know is what 1 read in the
' papers and hear over the radio."
He also went on to state that
after reading arid lisfening, he
still wondered if he knew any
thing; 'After that piece of logic
he was asked to explain what
he meant. This was his reply:
''Did you ever hear an an
' nouncer or a commentator
KNOCK the pro;duct they were
being' hired to tell the public
' about? They get" paid to do
what they are told to do by the
Boss that hires them."
Then he went on to state that
that is the reason that everything
Is so onesided in the press and
oh the radio. You hear just ex
actly what the Boss and tlie spon
sor want you to hear, The aver
age seamen do not' have enough
money to biuadcast over the ra
dio, 'scf therefore they are not" in
a position to be heard by the, gen
eral public. Some '.vise person
may say: "Why doiFt'you seamen
write an article and send 11 to the
papers?'': That in itSelf sounds
like good: logic, but' can you pic
ture the stupidity of an editoi: al
lowing a seaman to knock' the
Jshipowners that advertise and
ikeep the paper going?
' So you sere my rfear 'brother
seamen, when you pick up the
i papers or turH on your radio,
don't expect to see or hear any
thing that is in your favor. Just
remember that the writers and
announcers are paid tb tell you
j Just What the boss wants; There
1 really IS method in ail this rnad
: ness.
Now let us dwell oM law and
[contracts. The law,'in mjrhunible
opinion, is something that we sea
imen are supposed to abide by, but
ican easily be broken by the ones
• that have enough money to do so.
The writeis came across an
A.B. who stated that lie had taken
a course in Hoffman Island and
in seven months without actual
experience his course was com
pleted and he was awarded an
Able Bodied : Seaman's certificate.
The government, through its
agencies and Maritime Commis
.sion tmining schools and vessels
is favoring a chosen; few and in
so doing they are twisting the in
terpretation of laws that they
have made and which have been
carried out so efficiently and dili
gently in the past years. It used
to take three years to make a
qualified seagoing A.B. and then
the government agencies found a
loophole to give men such a rat
ing after nine months training.
An oldtimer told us a story
once and it went like this:
"I was on a sailing ship a long
time ago and we had a mate that
had a mite of book larnin'. I
reckon that His: Was on one of
them government training bug
gies. Well, air, the old man took
down with the D T'ees and the
mate took oven We run into one
of them thar t'yfoons around off
the Chinnie coast. And as I live
and breathe thar he wuHwiUi his
book, and a bellerin' out the or
ders ferl" sail .lower the jib, and
about that time the wind caught
a\ couple of tRe pages from outen
his book and blew them over the
side. Lo and: behold, the next or
der; was, let goboth anchors. I
could hardly believe my ears. I
Was aft and I looked over his
shoulder and sure enough there it
• wias at the top of the page. So I
don't know, mebbee the consarn
SEAFARERS' INTERNATIONAL UNION
. OF NORTH AMERICA
Atlantic & Gulf District^
JO. .9,
VW
Secretary^re&mrer'8 Office
• • BOoim 213 — 2 stone street. New YOrk City
J P. <X BOX 25, Station P Phone; BOwling Green' E3437*
DlkECTORY OP BRANCHES
BRANCH
NBW' YORK ...
BOSTON
PROVIDENCE .
BALTIMORE ..
PHILADELPHIA
NORFOLK .....
NEW ORLEANS
SAVANNAH ...
JACKSONVILLE
TA'MPA • * • .
MOBILE
TEXAS CITY ..
MIAMI
SAN JUAN ....
ADDRESS
..2 Stone St, ...........
Dispatcher's Office .
. 330 Atlantic Ave; ..
. 465 South Main S.t. .
. 14 North Gay St.
.6 North 6th St
. 25 Commercial PI. .
309 Cbartreg St, ...
. 218 East Bay St. ...
.136 East Bay St. ...
. 206 So. Franklin St:
. 65 So. Conception St.
. 105 4th St., N. ....
.1348 N.B. First Ave.
. 8 Covadonga St. ....
PHONE
. BOwling Green 994S7
.BOwling Green 93430
.LIBerty 4057
.Manning 3572
.Calvert 4539
.Lombard 7651
.Norfolk 410S3
.MAgnolia 3962
Savannah 31728
. Jacksonville 51791
Tampa M1323
. Dexter 1449
• Texas City 722
• Miami 2 2950
.San Juan 1885
orlttfer wae right. At' least' the
boolr said so."
Next' time Til have a few words
to say on the subject of contracts
and how the shipowners and
their battery of lawyers can chi
sell Oil'them. But I guess we have
said! enough for this time; so
here's hoping that out of this
shuffie we emerge bigger and bet
ter than ever. Might never was
fightV but we can' still' hold fast
and fight.
We remain fraternally,
The "Three Musketeers
WWB, NO. 1994
JJF, ,No. 542
HJC, No. 496
mw oKmAm
Dear Sir andBrother:
Due to the' jiresent situation
here in the dulf there is no time
to take off to run down the pres
ent rumors that are circulating
around here; One of these is to
the effect thaf the local Commies
are rather peevedabout the stand
taken by the Executive Board' of
the NMU, wlieu the members of
the SIU were pounding the bricks,
fighting for what all members
wanted — a substantial increase
for going into the war zone. Now,
the Mediation Board has met the
SIU and the operators and has
i endered a decision that was prac
tically an ultimatum, but still and
all did raise the bonus $20 per
month. 'Tis rumored that the
Chief Commissars are refusihg to
accept; this raise in bonus, as
they resigned the present agree
ment without any changes, as
long as the present "emergency"
exists.
'Tis furthei rumored around
these heie parts that the n!em
bers of the NMU (by this I mean
the ones that go to sea and re
spect picket lines) are rather up
set about the aforesaid rumor.
They seem to think that the
nienibers should have a little
something to say about the con
ditions under which they sail the
various rust bucket's. There are
a lot of lluiigs that the SIU col
lects that is still uncollectable un
der the NMU resigned agree
nients—and the rank and file
NMU boys wonder why.
Allout aid to the Allies is now
the Party slogan; Forget the
home folks! Allout aid for the
allies is OK and has received the
wholehearted support of all
American seamen. But this does
not mean the men that are real
ly making the profits for the
shipowners (the seamen) should
not ask for and receive enough
of those profits to insura the safe
ty and wellbeing of their wives
and dependents.
It's time for the members of
the NMU to wake up and start
asking que.stions that should
have been asked long ago. They
should' remember what happened
;tb the old ISU. 'TJiey sHouM:
member the struggle in 'SBr aod
'37. on this coast, '35 on the West
Coast. They should compare what
they have today trim what ttaeji
got rid of in those historic ntrugi
gles. When they, de ths^
will be some changes mst.)er
. Bo, until the rumorS " are
squelched or until seme definite
action is taken, I remain,
'' Yours wondering, '' 'I
• /frmy '
xk"
TAMPA
. A' • :
Oct. 3; 1041.
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother
Since I have been down here
in this port I have beenquite
busy hunting up men to 'sllit) (ftp
these scows, and believe me it is
a'hard job to find any one tb take
them.
This last week I had a call,
from the tug Naussa for three:
coal burning firemen and onff
oiler. Well; did you ever try to*
find any Banjo Pickers in an or
ange grove? I shook every palm
tree and orange tree and I final
ly found one about twenty miles
out in the country. The rest of
them came over from Jackson
ville.
The captain agreed to give
them first class transportation,
and subsistence from New York
to Tampa. $135 per month as,
wages and overtime for Saltirday
afternoons and Sundays. So that'
was not so bad.
Brothers, I have heard numer
ous beefs about different Agents
and Patrolmen. So if I were you
I would tVy and vote for the one (
I thought would" do the best for":
the union as a whole.
We are a progressive Union,
and to stay that way we must put
in brothers that will look to our
interests when we are at sea and
also in port.
D. L. Parken, Agent
NEW SIU PAPER
A new labor paper made its
bow last month. It ia called'
the GREAT LAKES SEA
FARER and is published by
the Great Lakes district of the
felU.
Th^ appearance of the
GREAT LAKES SEAFARER
is one of the many good omens
of militant trade union prog
ress being made on the Lakes
Congratulations! May the
GREAT LAKES SEAFARER
march beside the SEAFARERS
LOG for many years to come
in the cause of honest and pro
gressive trade unionism.
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T H
tcr-^\
• Wi
• i/v..'
MORE ABOUT
Tlie Pre» Sounds Oif
(Continued from Page 2)
of fruitless negotiations since the sinking of the Robin Moo:
tfait only shows the lack of pafience on the seamen's part.
Ofi the other hand, the decision of the Maritime Commission
to sail the struck ships with scabs two days after the strike was
called—is undoubtedly the supreme example of patience and cour
i , .tesy on the part of the Commission and the shipowners, like
Robson, who fiU its key posts.
I After this open and aboveboard presentation of the facts, an(
I after such an unbiased analysis, the Tribune can only offer a cor
j responding fair solution:
"We have repeatedly," says the editorial, "advocated the im
position of a 'coolingoif' period for defense labor." Then it rec
';«mmends a supplehientary solution which is purported to be in
jeifect in Canada: "After . . . conciliatory machinery has had
! <^anc^ to operate and a strike vote is in order, that vote shall be
; by secret bailloi: under the supervision of the Federal Labor De
partment."
>' Here is what the Tribune would have the seamen put up with
• in a dispute like the bonus beef: After voluntarily "coolingoff'
your heels for five mpnths, waiting for the operators to condescend
S and talk terms, you get a compulsory "coolingoff" period. Even
i,; when that is over, it will never do for jmu to conduct your own
f secret referendum, as'per your constitution. No, the government
I IS going to conduct the strike vote for you. You're too irrespon
lsible. $laYear man (alias "Banana") Robson will help you
; count the votes and tell you when to strike.
I ' "Neitiier of these regulations," says the Tribune, "challenges
' the right to strike." Hell, no. They only gag that right so that
iit can do no harm—to the shipowners, to the Aluminum trust, to
• the employers in general. In short, to practically all the Trih'a
best advertisers.
» What a? katzenjammer these great advocates of government
regulation of organized labor would have if it were proposed, for
instance, that a government agency composed, say, of the .deck,
engine and stewards department delegates of an SlUmahncd ship
sit in at Board Meeting of their trusts and tell them when to
yote dividends and how to allocate profits t
No, it's not, labor that needs "coolingoff." It's the jiroflteers
"who need curbing! No, it's not the seainen who have "cost the
leountry" 1,()00 planes. It's the greedy Aluminum trust which
bas cost the country thousands of planes J It's riot the seamen
who are impatient. It's the shipowners and the Maritime Com
f aaisai(A who are arrogant.
The HeraldTribune is barking up the wrong tree. The peo
;ple who are helping Hitler and holding up defense are the mon
' opolists who want to crush labor here as the Nazis crushed labor
• in Germany. LaBor is the mortal enemy of Nazism and Fascism.
But it realizes that defense agaist the foe from abroad must be
gin with protection of labor's rights at home. That's what the
seamen have done in the bonus beef.
E A P A R E R S * L O tJ Wednesday, October 22, 1941
^Mere Abont
25
(Continued from Page 2)
lookB he'd atlcK you with
Guilders.
"lYel!, anyway It
one big Joke as nothing more was
heard of this matter until we ar
rived at Mobile. Then the big sur
prise came: When the boys went
to make a draw from the Old
Man in Mobile, he informed those
that stayed ashore that some
were fined 25 Guilders and that
this money was paid by the agent
there and that it would be dieduct
ed from their wages.
"Well, all of this looks phoney
as hell. What we want to. know
is how in the hell can this sort
of racket stick when ypu are not
arrested, jailed, tried before a
judge, sentenced or fined or'even
asked to sign for the fines. '•
"It seeiris to us like it is high
time for someone, to stop this sort
of racket. The boys have agreed
to sign off under protest arid take
the entire thing up with the Com
irilsslorier through the Union. In
the meantime this ielter may tip
off some of the Brothers so they
won't fall for the same racket."
Fraternally yours,
Adolph Capote, 66G
IMewsRegulatroris Coaming
I Ul
Profits And
Patriatism
Longshoremen Get
New Wage Boost
The International Longshore
meri's Association has signed a
mew twoyear contract with the
operators of deepsea steamship
companies. Under the terms of
the agreement the hourly rate for
lon^horemen is increased from
Jl.i() to ?1.20. Checkers on the
piers receive an increase from
$8.50 to $9.25 per day. Overtime
rate for longshoremen is also
raised from $1.65 to $1.85 an
hour and will be paid after.ifive
P.M. on weekdays and one P.M.
on Saturdays.
m f '
Negotiations for increased pay
for longshoremen employer by
coastwise lines have not been
completed.
"More than usual Interest
was evidenced in ship line
stocks especially Atlantic Gulf
and West Indies, based on the
favorable earnings reports
coming to hand. The . . . op
erators :are understood to be
reaping considerable gain from
the increased shipping activity
incident to th^e defense pro
gram." .
—The Journdl of Commerce,
October 15,1941
A raise in yvages for sea
men? Hell, riel That's net
patriotic — according to the
profiteers.
... Ori Sept. 22, 1041, a resolution was submitted at the rectt
lar meetings at New York in reference to closing the Itooks
and to realBnn the policy that was adopted by the Union ̂ iar
to the Agents Conference tliat was held in lYashlngton, D.O.,
on April 30, 1941. This resolution was subsequently carried
in a coastwise referendum.
Please he advised that only thqse men that shipped on
vessels under contract to the SIU prior to Sept. 22, 1041
shall be eligible to Join this organization. In other words,
the hooks are definitely closed to all ratings that were
shipped AFTER Sept. 22, 1941.
Any man that Is eligible in accordance with the action
taken by the menthershlp as outlined above, shall show defln
' Ite proof tliat he shipped prior to Sept. 22, 1941. Such proof
shall h^ a diwhaige, from the vessel to which the man
/! • shipped. VfUtm the above, requirement is complied with, no
: committee shal! consider a man eligible for nieiabership In
• this^ Vnipn,
X In as much as we are compelled from time to time to dis
patch men to Jobs for which hook members are not avail
able, we must revert to the original permit card systeUi.
Members applying for permits, or those being dispatched to
shl^ under, the permit card i^stem, shall make out the
same white application that was used in applying Xmr W''
hook and the investigating committee's recouUttendations
shall he written thereon.
Only those men holding permit^ cards with SECOND
ISSUE stamped across the face of them, shall be eligible to
. register as .penult: card seamen.
Any man holding « pennit card without, the words SEC
OND ISSUE stamped thereon and has failed to Join thq/;
Union, shall not be dispatched to a vessel under any cir>. ;
enmstancris. '
Fraternally yours,
" Joftn ifOTHJfc,
• • SecretaryTreasurer" " "
%
\ f
PERSONALS
Vlaritime Officials
The Maritime Commission
Is under the thumb of the
operators today more than
ever before.
Oh September 28th, Ad
miral Emory S. Land an
nounced that Julius Bouslog
had been appointed manager
of the Middle Atlantic Dis
trict, and that John J. Brune
would be port agent.
1 .Oouslog came to the Com
Itnisslon from the position of
;Ch!cago general agent for the
United States Lines.
Brune was the Baltimore
representative of the Quaker
and CaliforniaEastern Lines.
DO NOT SHIP!
THOMAS WILHELM
93272 Call BOwlIng Green
• soon as possible.
Don McAlister A Lynners
17 State St., N. Y. C.
PERMITS REVOKED
J. A. B. Fontenette
S. L. Grice
INDEFINITELY
SUSPENDED
Antonio Avila, G93
BasU E. Hyde, 7081
Edelmiro Carpentero G222
Howard M. Hart, 136
William Waddell, 1584
MEMBERSHIP
REFUSED
Joseph Stewart
M. B. Mnckleroy
Julio P. Rey
Oiistaf Johnson ^
Joseph Corona
J. J.:Regan
Arthur Balton
Get in touch with your wife
at 320 Westover Ave., Norfolk,
Va.
* « *
Eddie Merrell .
Get in touch with your mo
ther at once. She is ill.
* * «
James M. Simpson, Jr.
J. D. Ross, Jr., of Asheboro,
N. C., is anxious to contact
you.
* * «
Lonnie Hendricks
Your birth certificate is with
the Agent in Jacksonville, Fla.
m * *
John Morris, A.B.
You have $19.10 coming to
you, which may be collected at
any office of the Waterman
S. S. Coiripany.
* « •
Alexander Idvingston
Formerly of Lykes Ripley
S. S. Co. Get in touch with
Mrs. Hugh MacLeod, Union
St., North Sydney, Cape Bre
ton, Nova Scotia, Canada. Im
portant.
• • •
Kenneth Raymond
Your mother is very ill.
Please get in touch with
Thelma.
• • •
Jack M. Foright
Get in touch with your wife
immediately by writing lit
. <are of General Delivery, Sa*..
vannab, Georgia; • ^ '
New SHJ Manned
SMp On Its
Maiden Voyage
The Alcoa Patriot, new ClB
cargo vessel,=sailed at noon Oc(o
ber from Pier K,'Weehawken
bounc^ for the West Indies with a
cargo of materials. and supplies
for imericata dcfonso bases. Tho
Alcba Patriot is the fifth ClB
type freighter to enter Alcoa
service and to he friknned by SIU
crews, , ' ,
The'sHIpr Is' 417 feet in length,
with a 60foot t^tri and 4s rated
at 9,300 tons deadweight. She is
propelled by st'eam turbine en
gines which develop 4,000 horse
power arid gives her a maxlmtwn
speed of 16 knots.
NOTICE
MAIL INNEW ORLEANS;
Joseph Barro#; .Paul Dixon,
George . Girard/ '©oty; ̂ Robert
Fisher, M<^5 Herano, Charles
Jones, Jack p.. King Lloyd Mc
Donnell, Harrey NelsoHi Frank
Friilmer, dark Hope, Richard
Rothrock, Homer Taylor, Ed
ward Yanal, Houston Cooper,
Harry Black.
MAIL IN MIAMI:
Herbert Gray, Dennis Ho
gan, Harry^ Rogers, Paul Art
hofer, L. O, Baker;
MONEY IN NEVAT ORLEANS:
M. Elks, N. De Long, G. Sau
cier, MUrry Elks, Geor^ Sau
(iier. • • " '
MONEY NEW YORK: .
Frank CampbeU, Ha rry
Black. • • ^ V
/
New York,
Sept. 23, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log,
Dear Sir and Brother
"• r .r V'i
• 1
• i
Men ̂ ot Properly Cleared
The following is a letter that
the undersigned sent to |he Tfeyrsv
paper PM, which was tinted In;
today's edition:
"Lindbergh's latest outburst of
bigotry is the straw that broke
the camel's back.. WheriA riian ia'
permitted to exploit the right of
"free speech" in a campaign of
racial hatred toward the Jewa
then he is starting the ̂ first.step
towards a Nazi. uprising,
country. . <
"Even though I despise the
Communist Party pTdgraifa;
never did extend itself ttf the'rii
tent of advocating racial hatred
In this Country. We teftts iehd
ers of the Communist Party in
Jail for less. What protects Lind
bergh from the governriienria
agents who claim they are orit'tri
stop saboteurs of our forttof of *ght
ernment? "
"Does a high government posi
tion give Senator Nyri'^hn ^rivr
lege of' violating the' "Bftf olP
"I'm against Americ^,g(gng;ift)
war, but I'll be damned jif f'^,use
a race of people to press home my
point." '
Joseph.
• v'
The fpllpwing,,.men; ^shipped
from Baltimore without ptoklng
up their..pipket: cards. i,y ' "
F. Anderson—S95ftA '
W. Barrett—1001; f;;j;
O. Barnes—2388A
F^Barilzo—74MA
" 9. Crosby^SG
IM. Epolqb«iit;rN«W Bipojc
• if. Gri«h^G''''® T'
ri Qalindex842dA
Ui:
F. Harbriarios—Ne^'kbdfc^^l
H. Lynoh_23660A;'''^^"
W. Roberts_4159Av,,
F. 8eller83026 ' 'n^^
A. VaIentine_7G trr fj"
R. Williams—6367A
M. Walker—6576A —
J. Weedan—New Book
F.Callanghan—6333A
Q. Horner—4994A
A. La Combe.;^1A
R. Woodford—3032A
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OFltetikli Ctf THfi ATtAKTIC AND GULF DISTMCT,
OF NORTH AMERICA
NEW YORK, N. Y., WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1941 No. 21
\
§;•
I#:
I I'm • '• • i'tiv:! • • •
1::
ANOTHER SELLOUT ?
Today the seamen belonging to the NMU are sailing their
. ships without the protection of a signed unioh contract. The
. shipowners can shanghai or dump them, can work them 50
or 60 hours a week, can leave them stranded in foreign ports
or cam even cut their wages—all without violating any agree
ment. Nothing the operators pull will violate a imioh agree
ment—because there is none!
The NMUJeadership has been negotiating with the oper
ators for over a month, to no avail. The old contracts ex
pired on the drst of October. Today the NMU men ssil the
ships at their own risk—^UNPROTTJCTED !
. This is a criminal situation. The entire wage scale and
working conditions of the men are in jeopardy. They have
beeubetrayed and doublecrossed many times in the past,
, but there is a sellout in the ofSng that wi!l make ine past
crossups look like small change. r
STALIN GIVES THE LINE
What's the real score here? What's the reason for all
this back alley maneuvering which leaves^the rank and file
seamen holding the bag? It's a long story^^tliat starts with
an editorial which appeared the first; of this month in the
Daily Worker—oflBoial organ of the Communist Party.
"Anything that interferes with production of needed war
• 'b.'/'l
I
if
I
1
^plies/' v^ote the Daily Worker, "whether as a result of
%ikeg or of delays by the employers—can only help Hitler."
There's the line! Labor must not strike!; ̂
Unfortunately, however, the shipowners who deal with
the NMU also read the Daily Worker. They'd be fools not to.
When negotiations were proceeding, the operators knew
thfe uhion wouldn't strike. They knew that Stalin had for
bidden the tying Up t)f any ships that might be tised to bring
him guns. The operators knew the whole score—and when
ft boss knows ahc.ftd of time that his workers are just beating
their gums and have no intention of striking, he becomes a
pretty tough guy. That's just what happened here.
STRANdE TRADE UNIONISM
We can be sure^ that Ourran didn't ask for much from
the t^Mpowners. He would have taken anything
that would have saved his face with the rank and file. But
the operators Imew they had him with his pants down.
So, Hamhead Gurran was up the creek. What did he do
then? He couldn't threaten the operators with a strike. No,
he sat down and wrote aIpng and fancy telegram to the:
Presidentofthe United States (poor FipBr—he receives so
many telegrams every day). *
Hamhead whined and sniveled about what bad hoys the
shipowners were and what a good boy he was. He told how
he wanted to do his duty by "Democracy," but the ship
owners, wouldn't let him.
If Gurran thinks he is defending "Democracy" by sell
ing dutto the shipowners, then his brand of "Democracy"
is thesame as that used by "Banana" Robson.
Men that sail the ships are for Democracy—industrial as
well as political. Under the heading of industrial democracy
• eomes the right to bargain collectively and the right to en
force that bargaining with a strike—if necessary.
II WHEN DEMO(HIAOY ENDiS
. When the right, to strike is taken awfty, whether by em
' ployers or socalled labor leaders, at thkt mbment democracy
ends for the seamen. All the fine phrases abCut blows against
Fascismabroad will not cover dp such a victory for Fascism
at home. ' " ;
As to what is going to happen to the NMU and its ne
gotiations witii the operators—vre can't say. Ofie thing is
certain, however^ Gurran will try desperately to reach some
compromise that will save his face. Whether or not the op
erators will allow him to do this isproblematical. But fhee
saving or not—Stalin has spoken and Gurran will jump
through 10,000 hoops before he'll tie up the ships. The, rank
f/i \ and file seamen will receive just what the operators are will
5?; ? V ing to give them. No more^o less.
\ Again Gurran proves himself an agile follower of the
CommunlBt Party line. Again the rank and file seamen will
T it in the neck. Gooid conditions are only won by militant
5. trade unionism—not by slippery political ifianenvers.
F.D.R. PLANS TO ARM
U.S. MERCHANT SHIPS
BONUS MONEY
The crew that made the
last complete voyage on the
S.S, Pan Gulf, elgning on
May27th at Baltimore and
sighing off Oct 10th, 1941 at
Borton, hay^ approximately
$40 retroactive bonus money
that Is due them. Collect at
any Waterman Line Office,
The crew that payed off the
Robin Sherwood Sept. 30,
1941 have $.30 retroactive
bonus money due them. Col
lect at Robin Line, 39 Cort
land St., New York City,
signed
JOHN HAWK
H}.;
Marine Cpoks Demand
Officials Open Contracts
and Ale membej:s..jDf the. Marine Gooks and
Stewards of thARaoific Goast (GIO) are in full revolt against
their Stalinistdominated leaders and are angrily demanding
that these leaders quit crawfishing before the shipowners
or else go back to sea.
The Secretary and Assistant Secretary of the MCS re
cently notified the shipowners that, the Union did not desire to open
the agreements for revision. These sellout artists assured the oper
ators that wages and working conditions were entirely satlsfactoiy
a far as they were concerned. The only trouble was that they fig
ured without the membership. O
In the Voice qi the Members, a
rankandfile paper started a
AntiAircraft and AntiSub
Cuns to be Manned by Navy
Crew of Eleven Men per Ship
Jks President Roosevelt presses bis denand in Gongress
for revision of the Neutrality Act, the U. S. Navy and the
Maritime Gommission are laying plans for the arming of
merchant ships with antisubmarine and antiaircraft gfuna
when that revision becomes reality.
According to Navy sources, guns are not available to fit
out all these vessels, but sufficient are in stock to arm the
ships sailing the more dangerous routes. Another hitch is
the fact that not all merchantmen have the structural
strength needed to carry the weight of guns and the shock
of recoil when fired. Only the cream of the Maritime Gom
mission built ships will he used. It is estimated that ulti
mately sixtben hhhdred slups will he amed.
Some
month ago, the members of the
union express, by telegrdm and
lettei', their dissatisfaction with
present conditions and their dis
trust of a leadership that finds
things on board so rosey.
The following is a frontpage
editorial published in the Oct. 4
issue of the Fofce 0/ the Members.
It sums up the case of the men
who actually work aboard the
ships.
(TEXT OF EDITORIAL)
"Bros. Burke and O'Donneil
have taken the liberty of notify-
ing the Shipowners that we, .the
membership of the Marine Cooks
and Stewards, are not in favor of
opening our agreements. These
olBcials liave the unmitigated gall
to tell the Companies that you
and I are content in continuing
to work another year for nine
hours a day, Saturday afternoons
(Continued on Page 2)
New Phone Number
The telephone uhmher of
the National Sec'yTreas.
has been changed. The
new number is BOwling
Green 98346 in New York
City. The office of the
New Yoi^ Agent has been
transfered from the second
floor to the fifth floor —
Room 6iD2,
BULLETIN
The Committee on Candidates
of the SlU has recommended to
the membership that the period
for nominations to 1942 Union
offices, be extended for 30 days.
If accepted, this would extend
the deadline for nominations to
Nov. 19th and would mean that
the new officers would be in
ducted Into their posts on the
first Monday In February.
The New York Branch has
acted favorably on the recom
mendation. The other branches
up and down the coast will vote
on the question on Monday, Oct.
27th.
The Committee on Candidates
accompanied Its request for an
extension of time, with the ex
planation that many of the can
didates already nominated had
not submitted all the required
papers to make them eligible
under the constitution of the
Union. Such extension would af
ford these Brothers ample time
to establish their eligibility as
well as giving the membership
an opportunity to make further
nominations.
It was stressed In the Corntnlt
tee's report that anV Brother
that has already accepted nomi
nation for office, can NOT switch
his candidacy to a different of
fice. New nominations may be
made, but only those that have
not already accepted, are en
titled to this privilege.
i.lv'v'
156 vessels completed
since the outbreak of the war ar©
already fitted , with brackets to
carry the deGaussIng equip
ment which protects against
magnetic mines by nullifying the
magnetic field of the ship.
Most experts admit that th«
contemplated n&fr armament will
not furnish really effective pro^
fection for these ships and the
men who sail them. This is par
ticularly true as far as subma
rines are concerned. It is difficult
to hit a submarine from the un
steady platform of a freighter
poop. Such a sub gun will serve
only to keep the attacker sub
merged. Since submarines dis
charge their torpedoes from ,43iis
position anyway, the guns will
have little effect.
As far as antiaircraft guns are
concerned, the story is pretty
much the same. The record of
antiaircraft fire on land is poor
enough. Place one of these guns
on the bobbing deck of a ship
and try and hit a dive bomberl
Furthermore, German bombers
are skilled at using cloud cover
to swoop low over merchant ships
at "zero altitude" and thus mak
ing the high angle antiaircraft
guns all but useless.
Indications are that fhe men to
fire these guns will be drawn di
rectly from tlie Navy. It will re
quire about eleven gunners for
each armed merchantman.
These Navy gunners will prob
ably have had little merchant
marine experience. They will
have been accustomed to the ship
shape and efficient quarters
aboard modern battleships. Their
new assignments will be difficult
and dangerous for bojth them and
the union men they. will work
with.
These Navy men will find that
the merchant seamen will wel
come them aboard and will stand
unfiinchingly by their side
through all dangertius actions.
The shipowners will find, how
ever. that the seamen will not al
low the presence of Navy mqn to
be need as an excuse to break
down union wages and working
conditions,
iS.
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I.JEXU.1
;r M E S E A F A R E R S ' hO Q Wednesday, October 22, 1^41
• ii '
|sSw;
15.
Published by the
ATIANTIC & GULF MSTRICT
of the .
Seafarers' International Union.,
of North America
Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor
^RRY XiUNDEBERG, Acting Interne^tional president
no .Market'Street, pooini 402, San Fi^ahclsdo, Calif.
' • <: J ' • I \
ABDmsH AfjL CjORRESJP.QNDENCE CONCERNINO THIS
PUBLICATION TO:
"THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. p. Box 25, Station F, New Vorlc, N. Y.
P/io«e; BOwiing Green 93437
More About:
The Stomt Comes Closer
Marine Cooks
(Continued from Page 1)
or Sundays' at sea and In port,'
without any Improvements in the
underpaid claasiflcations, and no
fui\,aamehtai revision of the lousy
conditions existing aboard many
of our larger ships.
"We state to Bros. Burke and
O'Donn^ll that this impression
they have given the Shipowners
not only violates the best inter
ests of the membership but is a
deliberate falsification pf tjhe ref
erendum ballot taken on the ques
tion of opening the agreement.
"We state to Bros, purke and!
O'Donnell that' the membership is
ready and willing to reintroduce;
the fundamental demands proj
posed at our last' negotiations,
last September, and enlist the'
support of all organized' labor for.
WrHiam Cre^ |5leelected
For Eiqhteentli Term
si.m
i;
s
IS
p)evelopuie|its in both ̂ lie Pacitic and Atlantic this week gave
the lloosoveitadministration fresh aniniuniilon to'fire at tlioso
members of Congress who still oppose Aiiierican participatioh in
in the Atlantic tliree ships were torpedoed, one a war ship. I their achievement. And we fur
The U.S.S. Kearney, a new destroyer, was attacked 300 miles off ther contesnd that,the major rec'
the coast of Iceland by a submarine which the Kavy pepartmcnt 1 oinrnendgt,ipns maijie hy ,the vuri:
qliarged was' "undoubtedly Germaii." ous ships published from time to'
Two jVIaritime .Commission freigliters were sunk. Tlie S.S. Bold Pupoc, must be glveni
.yenture went down about 400 miies west olf Ireland, and tbe S.S. every consideration in the com
Lehigh was sunk .just south of Dakar, ,<>n tlie west coast o# Africa, negotiations.
In the Pacific the increasing tension between Japan aii^ the "Pros. Bur^ke and .CTDonnelli
ITnited States resulted in a Navy order to all m'erahant ships to ha,ye plainly denionstrated their
geek /'friendly ports." Henceforth no U.S/ship will be allowed unwilliiigii^s to fight for a bet:
ofport unless her course and destination Jiave plliciai Navy Ltei' agreement. We are no lohgei'!
^approval. placing either bur'conddcnce ori
" President Roosevelt seems determined to force a s^owdovv^ ltriist in their decision. j
with both Germany and Japan, The week's developments brought "jf our Secretary and Assistant
closer the actual ̂ shooting'stage of the undeclared war between Secretary in their support of thci
America and the Axis povyers; In liiie with war preparations is kjjviu's drive to equalize wages
the story, from authoritative jpiuarters, ,tliat the JMaritiine Com and conditions on both Coasts,
mission has notified the shipowners tliat the Army may at any that they are going to bring
• taoment issue an emergency call for all available ships for service about that condition by sacrifc
to the Phflippint Islands. It is reported that merchant shipping. • }„„ QUR wages OUR conditions,
as btring: assembled for sendee to Vladivostok. ' • arfd' O£R^ militancy, they kre
sadly mistaken.
msS, m% A • ."The membership is willing fo
f flO 'dOOflCfS higkt for its conditions even
. though the OJficials are not. The
No seaman yiiee^s mucli convincing as to iLe eprmpt^ess of
.the cmployerrun press after the • • faif.play" dished out to'the:
Seafarers International Union in tlie cour.se of i^e h.istoric bonus J stronger arid more militant Ma
beef. rine Cooke and .Stewards.
In every port the story has been the same. In every branch! The Associate Editors."
the SlU.the anger of the striking seamen was kindled .anew
every day, as they read the slimy attacks against their Union.
The antilabor yawp of the penprostitutes could be dismissed
as jibberish were it not for the fact tliat they exploit the real
ha.tred of the common people against the Nazi oppressors and
distort the genuine desire of helping fhe oppressed, to achieve
their aim. By such trickery they create fiysteria directed, not so
much against Hitler, as against RitlM's fiercest enemies in the
country, the proud and freedomloving American working stiffs.
One of the most shameless examples of this crookefi jfiand
wringing was an editorial which appeared iii tJie N. y. flerald]
.Tribune'on September 2.5th. Its title—V.Gost : One ,Thousand SIU has concluded a collectiyG
A^plapes'—dnly indicated demagogic contents. bargainiug agreement with .the
'^" 'NOW, everybody knows that airplanes are vital to modem Cedent Transit. Company which
warfare. And everybody wants to see Hitler licked. So, if working conditions and
strike comes lip" which involves this important weapon, the wages which have seldom been
i'r'ibune hns a simple formula:" Paint the strikers up as Hitler's .e'l^aled in the Great Lakes area,
helpers! Smear labor and holler "Nationa.1 Defense." The principal provisions of the
Fourteen of the struck Alcoa ships, tJhe editorial points out,. agreement are: a base pay of
were carrieis of "bauxite pre. for ^le manufacture pf pei month for A.D.'s and
Auin." Then.it goes on: two and onehalf
days paid vacation fpr eyqry 30
days work,, 35 cents an hour for
Tin « . . J b., ^ t I • n 1 vT overtime, unloading pay Increase
, Who estimated f Un what statistics is the figure based r No .
1 I.' £ 1.1 XT ii. T '/TA/T 1' < J • ' TV li of 50 per cent, and seniority conliint of that! No matter, 1,000 planes sounds impre.ssive. It will M ' : • ,
T1' V J M ' Ti. h i'" ' ' fi' • I. • • TV ditions tfiat include accumulated
help to dramatize the tssue. It will, put over a point. . Here it . , • ^
t tr. v ,;v • • ' c ji 1 ' seniority for men serving in the
is, right in tlie next sentence 01 the editorial: .
"And there was no . . . excuse for the strike," which was
"activated by aii arrogant impatience with the decisions of
government agencies."
Army bases are held up in the West Indies and the strike
lias cost the country 1,000 airplanes. Who is responsible/? Not
Ajicpa, the' steamship subsidiary of the powerful Aluminum trust,
wipcA ,i^ fpr "defepse'' bidy on .condffipns that .it pays huge diyi;
dends.. No, e.ii% Blame the seamep lybp .want a few .more, dollajrs,
in war bonus and risk insHrar,"e! They only stake their lives, for
Cciiix^tipn |4ear.s-Demand for Creation
Of a Marine Trades Depjrtmejnt
The sixtyfirst annual convention of the American Fed
eration of Labor reelected William Green as President for
his eighteenth consecutive term. Brother ̂ Qreen faced no
opposition for the office arid was returned to Ms post hy
a unanimous vote.
On tfte secopd day of the cqnvention, which was held last
week in Seattle, Wash., the assembled delegated turned their
> attention to the question of the
organiz^iloin of maritime work
ers. Deleaate Wendell j. Phillips
of the Labor .Council of Sqn
Francisco introduced a resolution
calling for the establishment of
a Marine Trades Department to
supervise the activities of the
various AFL maritime unionp.
Brother Phillips based his reso
lution on the need of meeting
the long trumpeted NMU drive
to take oyer ,all segmenfs unions.
Apparently Brother Phillips js
unaware of Just how Joe Gnrranls
plans .have blown iip In his face.
The resolution, which follows,
was not acted upon by the con.
ventiqn but was referred to the
Gommitfee on Organization.
Text 'of Resolution ifo. tfii
I
JHfy SA Ii 'lM
UNTI L THf Y
APART
CoflGituy On
The S.S. Essex, a 3,000 ton
freighter, was biiilt In Phila
delphia fiftyone years ago.
She was built as g coastwise
ship.: ,
This spring the White
Pearl Shipping Corporation
bought the antique vessel and
put her into degpraea service
,be,tyyeen. ,Pal.Ump,re and ,Li8.
.faon, Spain.
On her first trip she man
aged to woljow Into Lisbon,
but on her return .trip she
foundered in a heavy sea and
on ^ept. 26th 'was driyien onto
Sbuth'easl Light' shoals off the
coast of Block island. Thirty
feet of water flooded her en
gine rooms anoi jthe crew was
rescued by the Coast Guard
Cutter" Argo.
When the operators were
informed of w;hpt happened,
Lincoln T. Judd, president of
the company, remari;ed that
the Eeseex had' made a "re
markable recQrdV for a ship
of h.er age.
(Only.remarkable ffiipg was
thai the crew got op,alive!)
Of Racket In
"WHEREAS, There now exie/!)
within the American Federation
of Labor several unintegrated ma
rine groups,, and
WHEREAS, This lack of coor L
diriatlon capses dissatiqffictlqp I .
and defections in the ranks of ; 5
marine workers, and .
"WHEREAS, This lack of coop ''i
eratipn among marine groups ' i
causes confusion, .duplication . of
effort and ignores fhe real eco
nomic problems of marine work
ers, and ' " ' • '
WHERE"AS, Certain rival' iha
rine groups are now planning a
colossally intensified membersBlp
drlye yvhich .aims at a verticpJ
uuion to contain all these
crhfts and promises direct Action • (, 1
for nuii'ine workers sd organized,! ) |!
and i"1
• t:
f"
The Great Lakes district of the
"It is estiniated that , the interiuiption of tlus coinnie|:ce for
a fortnight, aside from the delay it lias caiisgAJn the eonstruq,.
jtioft 6f the bases, hsis cost hie country 1,6^00 airpiap^s,','
army or cqnpdripted jfidr; vital de
fense industries. d u r 1 n g the
emergency.',' ,
"Bcfehs'e."
'f'.seam.en.did,not even haye an "excuse" for the strike, ft
was just "impatience" antf "arrogance" on their pajff, Fine yionths
(Continued on Page 4) '
LP ST
pne apk , pyepi. fiag
was taken', by piis.tjake from
jhe sixth floor, .hall In jfie,
"y.ork Branch of tfie ̂ lU,
It contains a C.P..p. cap, one
stamp set and toilet prtlci.eB.
; Please return at once.
JF.ro,m .time Jto Jimp petty port
officials rig MP rackets deisignefi
to line their pockets at the ex
pense of visiting seamen. The
Seafarers' international Union
has beep unreJenting. in its war
upon such rackets,
The crew sailing .a.n .Alcoa ship
recently enc.ountred such
squeeze. The' following letter,
vwitten to the editor'of the "Sea
farers Log", gives ,the story of
what appears fp bp a. n^w .Jwist
in gouging seame.n put of .some
of their hard earned money."This
case, is novy .being..investigated
by the ynipn.
jESditor, Seafei:e.is Log
i?ear Sir and Bro.thier,:
"In a meeting helAon board the
S.S. Alco^ Pioneei: on Oct. 12,
h94l we', the^ entire membership
Of the cfewirwent 6n record t'd
copipiaip, pnd tp ask you to'pub
iisji in the Lop, jtfie story Qf wfia.t
we cdnsi.d.er a yacjket. ,on the
island of "Paramaribo, Djuteh Gui
afia in the Wert Indies.
;/'Ori arriving at Pfiramarifeo we
wdre given a pas^ to go ashord.
When we got ashoaie we were
checked in apd told H wp did
not. phepk. ! flut,,.,whep,. th^ , Jart
launch left for the ship at' 11:3,0
we would be put in Jail and
fined, • '
"Wellr several theboys
"WHEREAS, The mar^ifle unions
within the American FedeVatibp
of Labor regard this threat fA \ f
their membership as ominou's and
imminent to .their craift unions •
and are alarmed at the full im
plicatipns .of so sweeping a ma Y
rine movement, and
WHEREAS, It is the opinion
of all qualified marine leaders
that a similar movement within
tfie American Federation of La
.bor.can forestall the action de
scribed above, and
WHER^ASj Mpst maripG units
would piofer to keep their auto
nomy but appreciate the need for
concerted piariue act'iou by a com .
bination of all pariue crafts act
ing unison; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Anjef
ican Federation of I^bor, in con
vention assembled, go on record
ffi! favor p.f .establishing a mari
time cojincil within the American .
'Federation of Labor similar Jo
the units now functioning for tile
metal trades, building trades alid
railroad departments., J : • • ;
s''iv V ..'. v!
stayed oyernigbt ap.d .wfien they
capie. back in fhe mprfilug they;;
were told by Ab.
be' checking out that tfiey 'were
filled from 16 to 26 "GuildotS
I Dutch , money) . It seems that •
these fines fio not aPPly'A.P'
pensefi peponnel ' ' " •
;'Nq"w, none of the bqyp Whq. /' ''
stayed over night were arrested!,' j' :
put in Jail Or even tried by a ' '®
judge, ft seems that if the che^er »• ^ i
liked y,P"''f i.PPks he woj^d fiat y.ou • * |
on .the shouider and ,8)ay, . 'AnierJ
caiio, Americano," only' 15 .Guilfir , J u
erk' But if he'didn't like you'i •
(Continued on Faye'4)' . « J
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^ednesday, October 22, 1941 T H E S E A F A E E E »* tL O G
^ fe a t' 8
T
, ' (^f. 3, 1941..
Dear Sir and Brother:
Shipping in this port continues
only fair," The Jump in the beach
lists, however, is to be expected
at thia time of the year. Many
memberSfr especially the oldtimi
ers, sit tight at the approach of
the winter (and according to the
weatherman! this winter promises
to be oneof the long> hard type).
Shipping conditions have
changed materially during the
paat six months due to the rapid
decline In the coastwise and ih
terdbastar trades. Figuring as
closely as' possible; we fihd that
the length of the average Voyage,
from' signon to • payoff; ^atk Hi'
1939 was 33 days. Today the av
erage voyage hae increased to" 71
days. This figure will increase as
more khd more coastal and inter
coastal'vessels head for the'long
offshore fuhsi
;• The" daye. Of the seaman short
age are definiteiy over, Fresident
Roosevelt affixed his signature
last week to the bill' providing
that ai Ship may carry fifty per
cent BlueTicket AB's on deck
and the continuous streams of
Governrneut school graduates en
sures that there will be crews to
spare for the rteW llOOishlp' mer
, chant fleet'. One aspect of the
.'• present situation that the average
. seaman overlooks is the. end of
!?the.>: coastwise trade. The Marl
tSjipeGommission hasbids out for
a largo'; fleet of the socalled
"Cewtera" designed primarily to
release ships of the. Bull Line
type i for the offshore trades.
These small; selfpowered vessels
handled'adequately by half
a do^n men and it is more than
probable that their economy of op
eration will find high favor with
friend shipowner.
;. Joei Curran's rosy dream of one
big: union (• controlled by Joe, of
course) , is: fading rapidly. The
MFOW voted the merger down
fasti The Marine Cooks and Stew
ards also voted against the NMU
tieup by U' vote of 1254 to 9841
That must have been a big disap
pointipen.t to the .NMU master
minds, for they had really count
cd on theMC&S. Now it is the
turn, of the ACA . ( radio opera
tors)'to, cast a ballot onthe ques
tion., Party leaders are working
hard on the operators, but, AGA
ofBclaJs are uneasy. A Jaige per
centage of the AGA membevslxip
have signed their intention of
quitting ACA and joining up with
the CTU (A.F. of L. operators)
if the_ Commies pushover the
merger, in a phony ballot.
NMU mernbers who never, did
like the idea of the merger, since
it threatened to jam already
crowded East Coast beach lists,
are jubilant over the MS&S vote.
That the NMU rank and file are
getting wise to their bigshots was
evident during the recent strikes
when action on their, part forced
Curran to wire Washington, pfo
festing against Maritime Comihis
sion, interference with normal ne
gotiations between Union and the
shipowner. :The. recent strike did
a lot to clear the air down Wash
ington way and we doubt if the
Maritime Commission' wHl do
much more nosepoking into our
affairs. The • Gommiasion's idea of
pulUng the NMU,. and .every, other
.maritime union in the United
States, into, a dispute between the
SIU and a couple of the offshore
linos, was pretty raw but it didn't
Work. SIU' membership showed
good judgftieiit in' Holding off a
general strike hild agreeing to the
dertiflcation of the dispute to the
Mediatioh Board. A general strike
at' this time would have been
playing right into" the Maritime
Commission's hand' and would
have given it all the excuse it
wanted to man everything afloat
!Wlth their school graduates.
A localpaper tbpk the oeca'sion
recently to'pan thd'hell out' of us
and wanted to know what wei
meant by rtriking at this time.
We could have answered the ques
'tlon by giving the answer another
Amertcah gave back in 1776:
"OUR IJVE& ARE AT YOUR
SERVICE; BUT OUR LIBER
TIES WERE RECEIVED' PROM
GOD: ̂ WE SURRENDER' THEM
TO NO MAN."
• Wm: MbKay, Agent
SMmSAH
• 0«t. 6, 1941.
Editor. Seafarers' Log
Dear Sir and Brother:
Shipping in the last two weeks
has been very lively in this sec
tion of the coast. We are still
looking for AB's.
Since calling off th,e? strike, the
|M.S. Melvih H; Baker got Away
jfrom here the next day mlntis orio
iAB. As usual., Brq. W. Bfotlge.s
got left behind again. Collected
46 hours overtime for painting in
• the Chart I'oom. i ,
i pot a call from'Charleston the
jOther day; The S;S, Alcoaf Patriot,
inew edition to the Alcoa ®eam
isliipCo., was in from Frisc^ via
Chile and she was loaded doWn
two feet below the pimsoll mark
with overtime beefs in the St'ew
ards department. A f t e r the
,smoke cleared away, 146 hours
iovcrtime in the Deck department
!was in dispute and collected. The
• blackgang had' 18 hours' overtime
in dispute, and this Was colle'cted
iand everybody received' ?125A0
tilfnsport'atibn' back to the coast.
Had the S.S. Cornfelia of the
Bull Steamship Line in here the
other day and: oolleoted for all
three watches . for heaving out
mooring lines and also for men
going in the chainlockers for
stowing chain; Everybody, was
happy when this was accom
plished.
Collected 48~hourB overtime on
the City of Montgomery but
sailed her two eoalpassers short
and 36 hours overtime on, the
City of Savannah. Outside of
this, the rest of the Mates and
Engineers feel that it is no use
to chisel anymore, because it
causes a lot of decension and de
lay in paying off. As for instance,
on the S;S. Alcoa PbtrlOt the Cap
tain had to change the payroll
three different titties before h^
could start to pay off. She final
ly finished paying off at P o'clbck
that night. So if . these ehiselers
would quit chiseling it would not
take them dH day to pay off.
, Shipping is still, good down this
way and everything is running
smooth;
Steady as she goes,
Charles Waid, Agent
In Memory of
Brother
dARtoB" LOWE
Diecl in Eienqh Hospital,
New: York ,,,
September 30, 1941
FmtAimLPBlA
A once famous humorist said,
"All r know is what 1 read in the
' papers and hear over the radio."
He also went on to state that
after reading arid lisfening, he
still wondered if he knew any
thing; 'After that piece of logic
he was asked to explain what
he meant. This was his reply:
''Did you ever hear an an
' nouncer or a commentator
KNOCK the pro;duct they were
being' hired to tell the public
' about? They get" paid to do
what they are told to do by the
Boss that hires them."
Then he went on to state that
that is the reason that everything
Is so onesided in the press and
oh the radio. You hear just ex
actly what the Boss and tlie spon
sor want you to hear, The aver
age seamen do not' have enough
money to biuadcast over the ra
dio, 'scf therefore they are not" in
a position to be heard by the, gen
eral public. Some '.vise person
may say: "Why doiFt'you seamen
write an article and send 11 to the
papers?'': That in itSelf sounds
like good: logic, but' can you pic
ture the stupidity of an editoi: al
lowing a seaman to knock' the
Jshipowners that advertise and
ikeep the paper going?
' So you sere my rfear 'brother
seamen, when you pick up the
i papers or turH on your radio,
don't expect to see or hear any
thing that is in your favor. Just
remember that the writers and
announcers are paid tb tell you
j Just What the boss wants; There
1 really IS method in ail this rnad
: ness.
Now let us dwell oM law and
[contracts. The law,'in mjrhunible
opinion, is something that we sea
imen are supposed to abide by, but
ican easily be broken by the ones
• that have enough money to do so.
The writeis came across an
A.B. who stated that lie had taken
a course in Hoffman Island and
in seven months without actual
experience his course was com
pleted and he was awarded an
Able Bodied : Seaman's certificate.
The government, through its
agencies and Maritime Commis
.sion tmining schools and vessels
is favoring a chosen; few and in
so doing they are twisting the in
terpretation of laws that they
have made and which have been
carried out so efficiently and dili
gently in the past years. It used
to take three years to make a
qualified seagoing A.B. and then
the government agencies found a
loophole to give men such a rat
ing after nine months training.
An oldtimer told us a story
once and it went like this:
"I was on a sailing ship a long
time ago and we had a mate that
had a mite of book larnin'. I
reckon that His: Was on one of
them government training bug
gies. Well, air, the old man took
down with the D T'ees and the
mate took oven We run into one
of them thar t'yfoons around off
the Chinnie coast. And as I live
and breathe thar he wuHwiUi his
book, and a bellerin' out the or
ders ferl" sail .lower the jib, and
about that time the wind caught
a\ couple of tRe pages from outen
his book and blew them over the
side. Lo and: behold, the next or
der; was, let goboth anchors. I
could hardly believe my ears. I
Was aft and I looked over his
shoulder and sure enough there it
• wias at the top of the page. So I
don't know, mebbee the consarn
SEAFARERS' INTERNATIONAL UNION
. OF NORTH AMERICA
Atlantic & Gulf District^
JO. .9,
VW
Secretary^re&mrer'8 Office
• • BOoim 213 — 2 stone street. New YOrk City
J P. <X BOX 25, Station P Phone; BOwling Green' E3437*
DlkECTORY OP BRANCHES
BRANCH
NBW' YORK ...
BOSTON
PROVIDENCE .
BALTIMORE ..
PHILADELPHIA
NORFOLK .....
NEW ORLEANS
SAVANNAH ...
JACKSONVILLE
TA'MPA • * • .
MOBILE
TEXAS CITY ..
MIAMI
SAN JUAN ....
ADDRESS
..2 Stone St, ...........
Dispatcher's Office .
. 330 Atlantic Ave; ..
. 465 South Main S.t. .
. 14 North Gay St.
.6 North 6th St
. 25 Commercial PI. .
309 Cbartreg St, ...
. 218 East Bay St. ...
.136 East Bay St. ...
. 206 So. Franklin St:
. 65 So. Conception St.
. 105 4th St., N. ....
.1348 N.B. First Ave.
. 8 Covadonga St. ....
PHONE
. BOwling Green 994S7
.BOwling Green 93430
.LIBerty 4057
.Manning 3572
.Calvert 4539
.Lombard 7651
.Norfolk 410S3
.MAgnolia 3962
Savannah 31728
. Jacksonville 51791
Tampa M1323
. Dexter 1449
• Texas City 722
• Miami 2 2950
.San Juan 1885
orlttfer wae right. At' least' the
boolr said so."
Next' time Til have a few words
to say on the subject of contracts
and how the shipowners and
their battery of lawyers can chi
sell Oil'them. But I guess we have
said! enough for this time; so
here's hoping that out of this
shuffie we emerge bigger and bet
ter than ever. Might never was
fightV but we can' still' hold fast
and fight.
We remain fraternally,
The "Three Musketeers
WWB, NO. 1994
JJF, ,No. 542
HJC, No. 496
mw oKmAm
Dear Sir andBrother:
Due to the' jiresent situation
here in the dulf there is no time
to take off to run down the pres
ent rumors that are circulating
around here; One of these is to
the effect thaf the local Commies
are rather peevedabout the stand
taken by the Executive Board' of
the NMU, wlieu the members of
the SIU were pounding the bricks,
fighting for what all members
wanted — a substantial increase
for going into the war zone. Now,
the Mediation Board has met the
SIU and the operators and has
i endered a decision that was prac
tically an ultimatum, but still and
all did raise the bonus $20 per
month. 'Tis rumored that the
Chief Commissars are refusihg to
accept; this raise in bonus, as
they resigned the present agree
ment without any changes, as
long as the present "emergency"
exists.
'Tis furthei rumored around
these heie parts that the n!em
bers of the NMU (by this I mean
the ones that go to sea and re
spect picket lines) are rather up
set about the aforesaid rumor.
They seem to think that the
nienibers should have a little
something to say about the con
ditions under which they sail the
various rust bucket's. There are
a lot of lluiigs that the SIU col
lects that is still uncollectable un
der the NMU resigned agree
nients—and the rank and file
NMU boys wonder why.
Allout aid to the Allies is now
the Party slogan; Forget the
home folks! Allout aid for the
allies is OK and has received the
wholehearted support of all
American seamen. But this does
not mean the men that are real
ly making the profits for the
shipowners (the seamen) should
not ask for and receive enough
of those profits to insura the safe
ty and wellbeing of their wives
and dependents.
It's time for the members of
the NMU to wake up and start
asking que.stions that should
have been asked long ago. They
should' remember what happened
;tb the old ISU. 'TJiey sHouM:
member the struggle in 'SBr aod
'37. on this coast, '35 on the West
Coast. They should compare what
they have today trim what ttaeji
got rid of in those historic ntrugi
gles. When they, de ths^
will be some changes mst.)er
. Bo, until the rumorS " are
squelched or until seme definite
action is taken, I remain,
'' Yours wondering, '' 'I
• /frmy '
xk"
TAMPA
. A' • :
Oct. 3; 1041.
Editor, Seafarers Log
Dear Sir and Brother
Since I have been down here
in this port I have beenquite
busy hunting up men to 'sllit) (ftp
these scows, and believe me it is
a'hard job to find any one tb take
them.
This last week I had a call,
from the tug Naussa for three:
coal burning firemen and onff
oiler. Well; did you ever try to*
find any Banjo Pickers in an or
ange grove? I shook every palm
tree and orange tree and I final
ly found one about twenty miles
out in the country. The rest of
them came over from Jackson
ville.
The captain agreed to give
them first class transportation,
and subsistence from New York
to Tampa. $135 per month as,
wages and overtime for Saltirday
afternoons and Sundays. So that'
was not so bad.
Brothers, I have heard numer
ous beefs about different Agents
and Patrolmen. So if I were you
I would tVy and vote for the one (
I thought would" do the best for":
the union as a whole.
We are a progressive Union,
and to stay that way we must put
in brothers that will look to our
interests when we are at sea and
also in port.
D. L. Parken, Agent
NEW SIU PAPER
A new labor paper made its
bow last month. It ia called'
the GREAT LAKES SEA
FARER and is published by
the Great Lakes district of the
felU.
Th^ appearance of the
GREAT LAKES SEAFARER
is one of the many good omens
of militant trade union prog
ress being made on the Lakes
Congratulations! May the
GREAT LAKES SEAFARER
march beside the SEAFARERS
LOG for many years to come
in the cause of honest and pro
gressive trade unionism.
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T H
tcr-^\
• Wi
• i/v..'
MORE ABOUT
Tlie Pre» Sounds Oif
(Continued from Page 2)
of fruitless negotiations since the sinking of the Robin Moo:
tfait only shows the lack of pafience on the seamen's part.
Ofi the other hand, the decision of the Maritime Commission
to sail the struck ships with scabs two days after the strike was
called—is undoubtedly the supreme example of patience and cour
i , .tesy on the part of the Commission and the shipowners, like
Robson, who fiU its key posts.
I After this open and aboveboard presentation of the facts, an(
I after such an unbiased analysis, the Tribune can only offer a cor
j responding fair solution:
"We have repeatedly," says the editorial, "advocated the im
position of a 'coolingoif' period for defense labor." Then it rec
';«mmends a supplehientary solution which is purported to be in
jeifect in Canada: "After . . . conciliatory machinery has had
! <^anc^ to operate and a strike vote is in order, that vote shall be
; by secret bailloi: under the supervision of the Federal Labor De
partment."
>' Here is what the Tribune would have the seamen put up with
• in a dispute like the bonus beef: After voluntarily "coolingoff'
your heels for five mpnths, waiting for the operators to condescend
S and talk terms, you get a compulsory "coolingoff" period. Even
i,; when that is over, it will never do for jmu to conduct your own
f secret referendum, as'per your constitution. No, the government
I IS going to conduct the strike vote for you. You're too irrespon
lsible. $laYear man (alias "Banana") Robson will help you
; count the votes and tell you when to strike.
I ' "Neitiier of these regulations," says the Tribune, "challenges
' the right to strike." Hell, no. They only gag that right so that
iit can do no harm—to the shipowners, to the Aluminum trust, to
• the employers in general. In short, to practically all the Trih'a
best advertisers.
» What a? katzenjammer these great advocates of government
regulation of organized labor would have if it were proposed, for
instance, that a government agency composed, say, of the .deck,
engine and stewards department delegates of an SlUmahncd ship
sit in at Board Meeting of their trusts and tell them when to
yote dividends and how to allocate profits t
No, it's not, labor that needs "coolingoff." It's the jiroflteers
"who need curbing! No, it's not the seainen who have "cost the
leountry" 1,()00 planes. It's the greedy Aluminum trust which
bas cost the country thousands of planes J It's riot the seamen
who are impatient. It's the shipowners and the Maritime Com
f aaisai(A who are arrogant.
The HeraldTribune is barking up the wrong tree. The peo
;ple who are helping Hitler and holding up defense are the mon
' opolists who want to crush labor here as the Nazis crushed labor
• in Germany. LaBor is the mortal enemy of Nazism and Fascism.
But it realizes that defense agaist the foe from abroad must be
gin with protection of labor's rights at home. That's what the
seamen have done in the bonus beef.
E A P A R E R S * L O tJ Wednesday, October 22, 1941
^Mere Abont
25
(Continued from Page 2)
lookB he'd atlcK you with
Guilders.
"lYel!, anyway It
one big Joke as nothing more was
heard of this matter until we ar
rived at Mobile. Then the big sur
prise came: When the boys went
to make a draw from the Old
Man in Mobile, he informed those
that stayed ashore that some
were fined 25 Guilders and that
this money was paid by the agent
there and that it would be dieduct
ed from their wages.
"Well, all of this looks phoney
as hell. What we want to. know
is how in the hell can this sort
of racket stick when ypu are not
arrested, jailed, tried before a
judge, sentenced or fined or'even
asked to sign for the fines. '•
"It seeiris to us like it is high
time for someone, to stop this sort
of racket. The boys have agreed
to sign off under protest arid take
the entire thing up with the Com
irilsslorier through the Union. In
the meantime this ielter may tip
off some of the Brothers so they
won't fall for the same racket."
Fraternally yours,
Adolph Capote, 66G
IMewsRegulatroris Coaming
I Ul
Profits And
Patriatism
Longshoremen Get
New Wage Boost
The International Longshore
meri's Association has signed a
mew twoyear contract with the
operators of deepsea steamship
companies. Under the terms of
the agreement the hourly rate for
lon^horemen is increased from
Jl.i() to ?1.20. Checkers on the
piers receive an increase from
$8.50 to $9.25 per day. Overtime
rate for longshoremen is also
raised from $1.65 to $1.85 an
hour and will be paid after.ifive
P.M. on weekdays and one P.M.
on Saturdays.
m f '
Negotiations for increased pay
for longshoremen employer by
coastwise lines have not been
completed.
"More than usual Interest
was evidenced in ship line
stocks especially Atlantic Gulf
and West Indies, based on the
favorable earnings reports
coming to hand. The . . . op
erators :are understood to be
reaping considerable gain from
the increased shipping activity
incident to th^e defense pro
gram." .
—The Journdl of Commerce,
October 15,1941
A raise in yvages for sea
men? Hell, riel That's net
patriotic — according to the
profiteers.
... Ori Sept. 22, 1041, a resolution was submitted at the rectt
lar meetings at New York in reference to closing the Itooks
and to realBnn the policy that was adopted by the Union ̂ iar
to the Agents Conference tliat was held in lYashlngton, D.O.,
on April 30, 1941. This resolution was subsequently carried
in a coastwise referendum.
Please he advised that only thqse men that shipped on
vessels under contract to the SIU prior to Sept. 22, 1041
shall be eligible to Join this organization. In other words,
the hooks are definitely closed to all ratings that were
shipped AFTER Sept. 22, 1941.
Any man that Is eligible in accordance with the action
taken by the menthershlp as outlined above, shall show defln
' Ite proof tliat he shipped prior to Sept. 22, 1941. Such proof
shall h^ a diwhaige, from the vessel to which the man
/! • shipped. VfUtm the above, requirement is complied with, no
: committee shal! consider a man eligible for nieiabership In
• this^ Vnipn,
X In as much as we are compelled from time to time to dis
patch men to Jobs for which hook members are not avail
able, we must revert to the original permit card systeUi.
Members applying for permits, or those being dispatched to
shl^ under, the permit card i^stem, shall make out the
same white application that was used in applying Xmr W''
hook and the investigating committee's recouUttendations
shall he written thereon.
Only those men holding permit^ cards with SECOND
ISSUE stamped across the face of them, shall be eligible to
. register as .penult: card seamen.
Any man holding « pennit card without, the words SEC
OND ISSUE stamped thereon and has failed to Join thq/;
Union, shall not be dispatched to a vessel under any cir>. ;
enmstancris. '
Fraternally yours,
" Joftn ifOTHJfc,
• • SecretaryTreasurer" " "
%
\ f
PERSONALS
Vlaritime Officials
The Maritime Commission
Is under the thumb of the
operators today more than
ever before.
Oh September 28th, Ad
miral Emory S. Land an
nounced that Julius Bouslog
had been appointed manager
of the Middle Atlantic Dis
trict, and that John J. Brune
would be port agent.
1 .Oouslog came to the Com
Itnisslon from the position of
;Ch!cago general agent for the
United States Lines.
Brune was the Baltimore
representative of the Quaker
and CaliforniaEastern Lines.
DO NOT SHIP!
THOMAS WILHELM
93272 Call BOwlIng Green
• soon as possible.
Don McAlister A Lynners
17 State St., N. Y. C.
PERMITS REVOKED
J. A. B. Fontenette
S. L. Grice
INDEFINITELY
SUSPENDED
Antonio Avila, G93
BasU E. Hyde, 7081
Edelmiro Carpentero G222
Howard M. Hart, 136
William Waddell, 1584
MEMBERSHIP
REFUSED
Joseph Stewart
M. B. Mnckleroy
Julio P. Rey
Oiistaf Johnson ^
Joseph Corona
J. J.:Regan
Arthur Balton
Get in touch with your wife
at 320 Westover Ave., Norfolk,
Va.
* « *
Eddie Merrell .
Get in touch with your mo
ther at once. She is ill.
* * «
James M. Simpson, Jr.
J. D. Ross, Jr., of Asheboro,
N. C., is anxious to contact
you.
* * «
Lonnie Hendricks
Your birth certificate is with
the Agent in Jacksonville, Fla.
m * *
John Morris, A.B.
You have $19.10 coming to
you, which may be collected at
any office of the Waterman
S. S. Coiripany.
* « •
Alexander Idvingston
Formerly of Lykes Ripley
S. S. Co. Get in touch with
Mrs. Hugh MacLeod, Union
St., North Sydney, Cape Bre
ton, Nova Scotia, Canada. Im
portant.
• • •
Kenneth Raymond
Your mother is very ill.
Please get in touch with
Thelma.
• • •
Jack M. Foright
Get in touch with your wife
immediately by writing lit
. <are of General Delivery, Sa*..
vannab, Georgia; • ^ '
New SHJ Manned
SMp On Its
Maiden Voyage
The Alcoa Patriot, new ClB
cargo vessel,=sailed at noon Oc(o
ber from Pier K,'Weehawken
bounc^ for the West Indies with a
cargo of materials. and supplies
for imericata dcfonso bases. Tho
Alcba Patriot is the fifth ClB
type freighter to enter Alcoa
service and to he friknned by SIU
crews, , ' ,
The'sHIpr Is' 417 feet in length,
with a 60foot t^tri and 4s rated
at 9,300 tons deadweight. She is
propelled by st'eam turbine en
gines which develop 4,000 horse
power arid gives her a maxlmtwn
speed of 16 knots.
NOTICE
MAIL INNEW ORLEANS;
Joseph Barro#; .Paul Dixon,
George . Girard/ '©oty; ̂ Robert
Fisher, M<^5 Herano, Charles
Jones, Jack p.. King Lloyd Mc
Donnell, Harrey NelsoHi Frank
Friilmer, dark Hope, Richard
Rothrock, Homer Taylor, Ed
ward Yanal, Houston Cooper,
Harry Black.
MAIL IN MIAMI:
Herbert Gray, Dennis Ho
gan, Harry^ Rogers, Paul Art
hofer, L. O, Baker;
MONEY IN NEVAT ORLEANS:
M. Elks, N. De Long, G. Sau
cier, MUrry Elks, Geor^ Sau
(iier. • • " '
MONEY NEW YORK: .
Frank CampbeU, Ha rry
Black. • • ^ V
/
New York,
Sept. 23, 1941
Editor, Seafarers Log,
Dear Sir and Brother
"• r .r V'i
• 1
• i
Men ̂ ot Properly Cleared
The following is a letter that
the undersigned sent to |he Tfeyrsv
paper PM, which was tinted In;
today's edition:
"Lindbergh's latest outburst of
bigotry is the straw that broke
the camel's back.. WheriA riian ia'
permitted to exploit the right of
"free speech" in a campaign of
racial hatred toward the Jewa
then he is starting the ̂ first.step
towards a Nazi. uprising,
country. . <
"Even though I despise the
Communist Party pTdgraifa;
never did extend itself ttf the'rii
tent of advocating racial hatred
In this Country. We teftts iehd
ers of the Communist Party in
Jail for less. What protects Lind
bergh from the governriienria
agents who claim they are orit'tri
stop saboteurs of our forttof of *ght
ernment? "
"Does a high government posi
tion give Senator Nyri'^hn ^rivr
lege of' violating the' "Bftf olP
"I'm against Americ^,g(gng;ift)
war, but I'll be damned jif f'^,use
a race of people to press home my
point." '
Joseph.
• v'
The fpllpwing,,.men; ^shipped
from Baltimore without ptoklng
up their..pipket: cards. i,y ' "
F. Anderson—S95ftA '
W. Barrett—1001; f;;j;
O. Barnes—2388A
F^Barilzo—74MA
" 9. Crosby^SG
IM. Epolqb«iit;rN«W Bipojc
• if. Gri«h^G''''® T'
ri Qalindex842dA
Ui:
F. Harbriarios—Ne^'kbdfc^^l
H. Lynoh_23660A;'''^^"
W. Roberts_4159Av,,
F. 8eller83026 ' 'n^^
A. VaIentine_7G trr fj"
R. Williams—6367A
M. Walker—6576A —
J. Weedan—New Book
F.Callanghan—6333A
Q. Horner—4994A
A. La Combe.;^1A
R. Woodford—3032A
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