March 1-Conducting the hearing on his Own resolution for the investigation of the Lawrence, Mass., outrages. March 4-Favoring the establishment of a legislative division of the Library of Congress. March 16-By his statement-presented by Mrs. Elsie Cole Phillips in his absence, advocating woman suffrage. March 4-Opposing the Root amendment to the immigration bill which provided for the deportation of political refugees. Berger's two great achievements. Among the greatest achievements of Representative Berger was the settlement of the Lawrence strike, which was the direct result of a congressional investigation initiated by the Socialist congressman and the forced resignation of Federal Judge Hanford while a sub-committee of the house committee on the judiciary was investigating the impeachment charges against him by Berger on the floor of the house. REPORT OF THE WORK IN CONGRESS OF MEYER The only Socialist member of the 64th Congress, and the second of his party to sit in the national legislature, Meyer London announced at the beginning of his service that he would advance two principal measures in the House. He introduced, on the opening day, December 6, 1915, a joint resolution (H. J. Res. 38) calling upon the President to convene a Congress of neutral nations to seek to bring about a durable peace in Europe. Later he introduced another measure (H. J. Res. 159), which provided for a federal commission to investigate and report a scheme of national insurance against unemployment and sickness, together with old age pensions. The peace resolution, asking that a mediation conference of neutrals sit in continuous session until the end of the war, suggested the following as principles on which a durable peace could be established: 1. Evacuation of invaded territory. 2. Liberation of oppressed nationalities. (3)Plebiscite by the populations of Alsace-Lorraine, Finland and Poland, as to their allegiance or independence. 4. Removal of the political and civic disabilities of the Jews. 5. Freedom of the seas. 6. Gradual concerted disarmament. 7. Establishment of an international court of arbitration, with the commercial boycott as a means of punishment for disobedience. The proposal was laid before President Wilson at the White House in January by Rep. London and a delegation from the National Executive Committee of the Socialist Party, consisting of Morris Hillquit of New York and James H. Maurer of Pennsylvania. Hearings were given to a score of advocates of the resolution, February 24 and 25, by the House Committee on Foreign Relations, Morris Hillquit leading the discussion on behalf of the Socialist Party. Spokesmen for labor, religious and peace organizations and for the oppressed nationalities of Europe took part. Hundreds of petitions in behalf of the resolution were filed with the Committee. No action resulted. Hearings on the social insurance resolution were given by the Committee on Labor, of which London is a member, on May 6 and 11. Action by the Committee was long delayed, but a favorable report on the proposal to investigate the subject was granted. Action by the house this year was considered unlikely. London at the outset of the session demanded and secured recognition in committee assignments as a separate minority. He voted alone against all increases in the army and navy, and against the use of American troops in Mexico. At one stage of the fight over the Hay bill, increasing the army, London was recognized as the official minority, and was so enabled to use the parliamentary situation as to prevent an increase of the army from 140,000 to 250,000 men. He offered amendments forbidding the employment of militia. in suppressing strikes, but was overruled. His speech on "Preparedness" was circulated to the extent of over 300,000 copies. London spoke in favor of the Keating child labor bill, the eight hour day and other labor measures. He urged the publication of the report of the U. S. Commission on Industrial Relations. He led the fight against the bill disfranchising 165,000 workers in Porto Rico who had voted for 14 years. He spoke in opposition to the literacy test in the Burnett immigration bill, both before the committee and on the floor of the House. He advocated taxation of large incomes, of inheritances and of the speculative value of land. He voted against the sugar tariff. He voted for a government-owned and government-operated merchant marine, and demanded that the waterpower on the public domain be developed directly by the government rather than be disposed of to private interests. Finally, he urged that a federal board be created to deal with the problems of river and harbor improvement, flood control, irrigation and reclamation, reforestation and the scientific development of the public lands and forests for the nation as a whole. At intervals of four to six weeks London has made per sonal report on the work of Congress, addressing meetings of the voters of his district in public school auditoriums. At these meetings he has described the principal measures over which Congress has been struggling, and has answered questions put to him from the audience. This plan of keeping in touch with the sentiment of the voters has been generally commended in the press of the country. London is a member of the House Committee on Labor, the Committee on Mines and Mining and the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of Labor. II. STATE. Socialist Party State Legislators in Office January, 1915. California-George W. Downing, Los Angeles. L. A. Spengler, Los Angeles. Idaho-E. W. Bowman (senator), Council, Adams Co. Jos. M. Mason, Chicago. Massachusetts-Charles H. Morrill, Haverhill. Minnesota-A. O. Devold, Minneapolis. J. W. Woodfill, Two Harbors. Montana-Leslie A. Bechtel, S. Main Street, Butte. Nevada-M. J. Scanlan (senator), holdover, Tonopah. New Mexico-W. C. Tharp, Curry Co. New York-A. I. Shiplacoff was elected to the Assembly in the Fall of 1915. Oklahoma-C. E. Wilson, Cestos (senator). N. D. Pritchett, Snyder (senator). S. W. Hill, Roll. C. H. Ingham, Ringwood. D. S. Kirkpatrick, Seiling. T. H. McLemore, Elk City. Pennsylvania-James H. Maurer, Reading. Wisconsin-Louis A. Arnold (senator), Milwaukee. Frank Metcalf, Milwaukee. Carl Minkley, Milwaukee. William L. Smith, Milwaukee. George Tows, Milwaukee. James Vint, Milwaukee. Frank J. Weber, Milwaukee. Edward Zinn, Milwaukee. record. There are many school officials in Oklahoma of whom we have no WORK IN STATE LEGISLATURES. We give as typical of Socialist accomplishments in the state legislatures the reports from six states, California, Illinois, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania. THE WORK OF SOCIALIST LEGISLATORS (From a statement by Mr. Downing.) Legislators Downing and Spengler succeeded in bringing 18 measures to a vote in the house. Of the eighteen, eleven passed the assembly, five of these passed the senate, and four of the latter were signed by the governor and became laws. One was vetoed by the governor, and one was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Of the four Socialist bills that became laws the most important one provided that a voter moving from one precinct to another in the same county within thirty days of an election, may vote in his old precinct at that election. This was a bill intended to prevent the wholesale disfranchisement of workingmen, because of their moving from precinct to precinct. It was declared constitutional by the attorney general before it was passed, but was afterwards rendered unconstitutional by the supreme court, "almost before the ink was dry on it." The Socialist bill giving women the right to serve on juries passed the assembly and the senate judiciary committee and was killed in the senate. Five resolutions, introduced by Socialists, passed the assembly. They were memorials to Congress: 1st, to take steps toward government ownership of coal mines; 2nd, to prohibit the exportation of food and ammunition to the belligerent nations; 3rd, for full political rights for civil service employees; 4th, for world peace and an international congress and courts to settle international differences; 5th, a less expensive method of naturalization. WORK IN THE ILLINOIS LEGISLATURE. (Report by Christian M. Madsen.) The 49th General Assembly of the State of Illinois may be considered the most reactionary in a decade. The strength of the Progressive party had dwindled from 25 members in the House to two and they immediately joined in caucus with the Republicans. The Socialists who had elected four members to the House in the previous General Assembly were successful only in returning two and the old parties were in absolute control and feeling secure in their power. As will be seen from the record on bills and resolutions not a single one of our measures passed or was given a chance for a final roll call in the House, and most of them were not even considered by the committees to which they had been referred. Nevertheless, the two Socialists were able to make their presence felt in various ways. While we did not help to elect the speaker, but refrained from taking part in the prolonged deadlock, we received fair consideration in the appointment on committees where we were able to do some effective work. Joseph Mason was appointed on the committees for Revenues, Charities and Corrections, Enrolled |