House Divided

Nine months ago a kind of companionate marriage was arranged between the A.F.L. and the C.I.O. Along with railway labor leaders, they formed the United Labor Policy Committee to present a solid front in Washington on mobilization policies. The U.L.P.C. wielded considerable influence in Washington, helped push through the new wage policy, and seemed to be there to stay. But last week, as the family settled down around the conference table, the A.F.L. members confirmed reports that they were filing for immediate divorce.

A.F.L. President William Green droned out a statement. The U.L.P.C., he said, was a temporary arrangement that had served its purpose. Now union committees should get to talking about what the A.F.L. had long wanted--actual merger. The C.I.O., which prefers the U.L.P.C. kind of unity, argued that the committee's usefulness was far from exhausted, demanded further explanations. But the A.F.L., for the moment at least, had nothing further to say about its decision to break up housekeeping. A.F.L. Vice President William C. Doherty delivered the official reply: "We've come to bury Caesar, not to discuss him."

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