OffICIAL JOURNAL INTEJ:liATlONAL BROTHERHOOD- (Y ELECTRICAL WORKERS. // j I \-f:" I OtJtt I JULY, 1912 'lAMPI' AFFIUATED WITH THE AMERICAN FEDERAnON OF LABOR IN ALL ITS I MOd I DEPARTMENTS I ZAJ. I DEVOTED TO THE CAUSE OF ORGANIZED LABOR THE ELECTRICAL , WORKER OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Affiliated with American Federation of Labor and all Its Departments. OWNED AND PUBLISHED BY THE INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL~WORKERS, CHAS. P. FORD, International Secretary, GEN~ OFFICES: P1EaIx BUILDING SPBINGFIJI:LD. ILL Subscription, 25c per year, in advance. Thi. Journal will not be held responsible for views expressed by correspondents. Th. tenth of each month is the closing date; all copy must be in our hands on or before. Second Class privilege applied for at the Post Office at Springfield, Illinois, under Act of June 29th, 1906. " I--------------------------------------~-------------------------- , INDEX Accepting Traveling Cards .................... 452 Correspondence ..... ........................ 456·462 Cost of Electricity May Be Reduced ............ 451·452 Detective Burns Unmasked ................... 435·439 Directory .... ............................... 474·480 Editorial ........ " ..... '.' ............ 447·448 England's National Insurance Act .............. 442·443 Executive Officers 445 Federation Labor News ...................... .453-455 Lessons in ElectricitY ......................... 469-473 Local Receipts 463 Memoriam ... 466 Missing Receipts, Receipts, Etc. ................ 464 New Eight-Hour Law .......................... 443-444 Obituary ..... ................................ 467 Our Label .................................... 446 Poems ..... .............................. :... 465 Reports of Officers ........................... 450-451 The Seceder's Appeal ......................... 449 Trade Unionism in England .................... 439-441 Trade Notes .... ..................-< ••••••••• 469-473 Wireless Night and Day .................. :.... 444 THE ELECTRICAL WORKER OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS s.c-I Claa priYileae app!i.,d for at the Pool Office at SpriDpeid, IlIiDois, UDder Ad of J...... 26th, 1906 SPRINGFIELD, ILL., JULY, 1912. , Sinale Copia. 10 Cea" YOLo XII. No.6 25c Pel Year. in ad.uce DETECTIVE BURNS UNMASKED By SAMUEL GOMPERS "Private detectives, 90 per cent of them, pardon was based upon an official report as a class, ar€! the worst lot of ~rooks B;nd made to him by United States Attorney­ blackmailing scoundrels that live outsl~e General Wickersham, the following letter of prisons.," This charge has been reit­ was a.ddressed to the President of the erated and emphasized on any, and ~ll United States: occasions when a sensational opportumty " Washington, D. C., June 10, 1912 was at hand, or could be created, by the Dear Sir: I have read with unusual most conspicious, if not the m~st. notor­ interest the press reports of the pardon­ ious detective of the day, Wllham J. ing of Mr. Jones in the land cases. I Burns. In view of events of t~e recent would esteem it a very great favor if you past, the charge' demands conslderat~on. would have sent to me a copy of the It appears that Burns' p~rsonal practices report in the case upon which you issued and "inside" informatlon have had much the pardon. influence in his reaching his conclusion "Thanking YOu 'in advance for your and making his charge. It is said by courtesy, I remain, scientists that in some cases in the ego "Very respectfully yours, of great wrongdoers or criminals they Samuel GomperS, President, wlll describe their own guilt by ascribing American Federation of Labor. it to others; that many a crook ha.s been "Hon. Wm. H. Taft, brought to justice by just this species of "President of the United States, ego mania. "White House, Washington, D.C." It is in view of recent revelations that To which the follOlWing reply was re­ the bombaStic and flatulent mouthings of ceived: Detective Burns can be understood that "The White House, Washlngton. he always did and will, to use his own . June 11, 1912. language, "get the man I am after." In "My Dear Mr. Gompers: I have yours what follows no connection exists in re­ of June 10th. I have great plelUlure in gard to any labor case, but it discloses sending yOU a copy of the full report in the trend of mind and the method of De­ the case. Sincerely yours, tective Burns and his own characteriza­ "WIn. H. Taft. tion of private detectives, of which he is "Mr. Samuel Gompers, so notorious an example. "801 G Street, N. W., It will be remembered that a few years "WashIngton, D. C." ago' there was considerable discussion as The report, which the President re~eiv­ to the system of land grabbing and land ed fl'om Attorney-General Wickersham frauds in the far west. That there was which accompanied the President's letter, considerable basis that the land of the disclOSing the indisputable evidence of people and of the Government was being Detective Burns' criminally crooked meth­ unlawfully and fraudillently stolen, there ods to bring about a conviction of Mr. can be no question. That some men Jones, follows: charged were guilty there is no doubt, Washington, D. C., May 10, 1912. but that men wholly innocent were con­ "In the Matter of the Application for Par­ victed by the Burns' methods employed don of Willard N. Jones. Is now fully and officially established. "The President. When the newspapers of the country, "Sir: On March I, 1911, you commuted a few da~s ago, pubUsh&d the fact that the sentences of Willard N. Jones in ef· the, President had pardoned Willard N. feet to four months' impnsonment in the Jones, of Portland, Oregon, and that the county jail and to pay a fine of $12,'000. 436 THE ELECTRICAL WORKER On March 16th you received a telegram the papers which should mOdify the con­ from H. H. Schwartz, formerly Chief of clus'ions shown in Mr. Heney's report Field Service of the General Land OfflC'e, This the Pardon Attorney attempted t~ charging irregularities in the filling of do. On August 26, 1911, he informed me the jury box from which grand jurors anj that he had practically completed the and petit jurors were drawn in the Jones preparation of his report, and althOUgh cases, and also in the trial of the casClS. be bad reached a fairly satisfactory con­ and pursuant thereto you directed a fur­ clUSion, tbere were matters which he­ ther investigation to be made and that could not settle with absolute certain tv the execution of the pena.lty be deferred from the papers before him and said that until the investigation be compl~ted. he thought it desirable the Department Shortly thereafter additional papers were should have at least some statement from filed to sustain the charge, and a report 1\1:r. Burns; that he had in my absence was received from United States Attorn­ caused a telegram to be sent to Mr. Burns ey McCourt with which he transmitted inquIring how he obtained posseSSion of additional papers formerly belonging to the list of names which were in the pos­ Willia.m J. Burns, detective, which were session of Captain Sladen and Jury ('om­ found in the United States Attorney's missioner Bush prior to the filling of the office. All of these were sent to you jury box, to which Mr. Burns replied thaI. April 24, 1911, with a statement that T there was no truth whatever in the state­ thought enough fa.cts were submitted to ments that Captain Sladen or the .Jury throw a very decided doubt upon the faiT­ CommissiOiller bad furnished him with art­ ness and impartiality in the method of vance lists of prospective jurors, and ~tat­ selecting the jury and that in my opinion ing that he would look up data and turn. it would not be just to allow a man to be ish the .Department with a complete re­ sent to prison as the result of a trial be­ port of his connection with the matter, fore a jury procured in the manner in which was entirely straight and honor· which it was shown by the papers the able; that he expected to be in Washing. jury which Jones was tried was selected. ton withIn a short time and would then I stated further that the papers also tl'nd­ make iii report, and answer interrogator. ed strongly to sh9w an atmosphere sur­ ies by anyone interested. Thereupon rounding the whole prosecution WhiCh I directed the Pardon Attorney to delay was ha.rdly consonant with the impartial _ the completion of the report until he h~d administration of justice. I referred how­ &een Mr. Burns. Mr. Burns, however, did ever, to the fact that the papers had not not make his report, or come to the De­ been submitted to Mr. Francis J. Heney, partment for months afterward, although the attorney who conducted the prosecu­ repeatedly communicated with about th(> tion and who was a.t that time in Cal­ matter. ifornia, and recommended in view of the "The pa,pers received up to this time delay which would result from securing and reviewed by the Pardon Attorlltly in a statement from Mr. Heney, that the sen­ connection with Mr. Heney's lengthy re­ tence be commuted so as to relieve the port were so voluminous that the Pardon defendant from a.ctual imprisonment, or Attorney's brief had reached nearly if you desired Mr. Heney's statement be­ eIghty pages. He delayed the completilln fore a.cting, that the papers be transmitt­ of his report styled 'Supplemental Report" ed to him for an expression of his opinion until October 10, and then closed it with concerning the points of criticism. On a statement that he did not think any April 28, 1911, y()l\l replied saying that fair or proper conclusion could be arrived you believed the execution of the sentdnce at until the Department had received a should be withheld until the papers had complete statement from Mr.