Battle of Titans

The Great Gargoyle of labor, as usual, seemed to enjoy himself. John L. Lewis was in his favorite position--protruding from the nation's facade, making frightening faces. Washington had glimpses of him. He emerged from his stone headquarters on 15th and I Streets. He carried a cane, which he waved good-naturedly at sightseers. He was one of the capital's sights. He clumped to the elegant Carlton Hotel, chewing a cigar. He doffed his large hat to a lady acquaintance with a lorgnette. He sat enthroned in the Carlton's lobby--the picture of indifferent contempt.

The Shadow of Disaster. No other man in recent history had provoked so many economic spasms in the U.S. No other American had been so violently attacked. But they had never touched him. Every time, he had come out on top. In this latest fracas United Mine Workers President Lewis had broken a contract with the Government (the Government said) when he let his miners go out on strike. Now, arrayed against him were: the Departments of Justice, Interior, War and Navy, the Civilian Production Administration, the Maritime Commission, the Federal Power Commission, the Office of Defense Transportation, the U.S. Public Health Service.

They had all testified that a coal strike would cause "irreparable damage" to the nation. When it can be shown that a strike will cause irreparable damage, labor can be restrained, even under the Norris-LaGuardia anti-injunction act. Furthermore, the Government, as the "sovereign," believed it stood above the laws which applied to its private citizens. Elderly Judge T. (for Thomas) Alan Goldsborough had handed down his order to Lewis to keep open the mines (TIME, Nov. 25). When Lewis disobeyed, Judge Goldsborough decided that Lewis might well be in contempt of court, and ordered him to appear for a hearing.

This week (coincidentally there was a partial eclipse of the sun), the shadow of disaster crept across the country. There was coal for only 37 days. Blast furnaces were banked; steel ingot production began to drop. Republic Steel cut operations 65% and laid off 5,000 men. Railroads into New York canceled 500 trains and laid off 3,000 railway workers. CPA ordered wartime "brownouts" in 21 Eastern and Midwest states. The floodlights went out in the dome of the Capitol in Washington. "The dome is a cherished symbol to all Americans," mourned the Committee on American History,". . . and now are we going to darken it for John L. Lewis?" The answer appeared to be yes.

Source of Power. These were merely portents. The auto industry, dependent on day-by-day steel supplies, watched the shadow creep, with the agonized knowledge that auto plants would have to close completely 24 hours after the steel mills shut down. Soft coal supplies 47% of all the energy generated in the U.S., 51% of the electric power, 81% of the locomotive power, 55% of home heating. Coal, like food, is also an instrument of international politics. France, Italy, other Western European countries count on coal imports from their friend, the U.S.

All this Lewis controlled. The source of his power: the 400,000 pale-faced, coal-stained men who work the coal mines and unquestioningly obey his orders.

By just such methods as he now employed, and with a major assist from a sympathetic government, he had raised their wage level from an average hourly wage of 50-c- in 1933 to $1.47 an hour last summer. He never bothered much about other gains, such as safety devices and hospitalization, although he paid such things lip service. When the Government seized the mines last spring he wrung from it a 5-c--per-ton royalty for a welfare fund. The major objective of Economic Royalist Lewis has always been higher wages. Although his new demands were not officially made public, they embraced a shortened week and a higher rate which would boost the hourly wage to about $1.88. He wanted the 5-c- royalty doubled.

This was the economic background of the battle which had moved into the courts when Lewis' chief antagonist arrived in Washington for the showdown.

Mine Coal With Bayonets? Also swinging a cane, wearing a Florida tan, President Truman stepped out of his plane and went to the White House to confer with his advisers. Harry Truman, who had made the decisions which had precipitated the battle and had directed it step by step, faced the most suspenseful week of his year and a half in office. Men close to him said that he was determined not to give way.

He was well aware of the hazards. If John Lewis went to jail, all organized labor might strike in sympathy. Said A.F.L. President William Green, a usually mild man: "The workers of the nation resent this action on the part of the Government. . . . All American labor unites with the mine workers in condemning this reversion to the archaic philosophy of government by injunction." A general strike was a possibility also if the injunction was retained. In either event, the mines would stay closed.

Could Harry Truman open them? Could he break the union, even if he wanted to? A determined and sweeping Government assault could include prosecution, under the Smith-Connally Act, of Lewis and all his district leaders; seizure of the funds of all districts; an attempt to dissolve U.M.W. as a monopoly; the freezing of U.M.W.'s $13.5 million treasury; a request that company stores deny credit; operation of the "strip" mines by the Army; a heavy daily fine for as long as the strike continued. But this would be the extreme of extremes.

John Lewis was well aware of all this. Lewis, a master of bluff, knows when to quit bluffing. Never before had the U.S. Government seemed more stubborn.

This week, convoyed by six lawyers, Lewis stalked into Judge Goldsborough's crowded court. The judge listened reflectively to the arguments. Lewis' chief counsel, Welly Hopkins, argued that the court had no right to issue the temporary injunction, therefore Lewis should not be held in contempt. The judge was not impressed. He ordered Lewis to appear two days later for trial. At that time he would also listen to arguments over whether Lewis had violated his contract. The battle between John L. and his Government entered a critical phase.

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