of almost any man in the United States. If the law and the courts permitted it I could ruin them.

Mr. WHEELER. I have not looked it up, and that is the reason I asked the question. I intended to do so, and will do so before we complete the hearings, or, at least before making a report, but I understood that there had been several decisions by United States district courts upon this question.

Mr. SPROUL. I have a lot of them.

Mr. WHEELER. I think there was one in my own district, in fact, I know there was. Are you familiar with those decisions?

Mr. BLANTON. Yes; some of them, and I will give you a brief later on that subject.

Mr. WHEELER. Were they conflicting?

Mr. BLANTON. Yes; there are some apparent conflicts, but none on the general principle.

Now, Mr. Chairman, I am a citizen of the United States, and as one of the 435 Members of this House of Representatives, I have the right to speak as one man, and as soon as this picketing started, I went to Mr. Reeves and told him that such coercion was against the principles of our institutions and of this Government, and I told him that I thought Congress would back him in his rights, if he did not care thus to be coerced into doing something that he did not like to do, and that I hoped he would not give in to them. Mr. Reeves did see fit to run his business as he wanted to, and did not give in to those people. They picketed his place from October 5, 1920, to February 6, 1921, and then quit.

Now, I want to call your attention to the Raleigh Hotel strike in Washington. Here [indicating] is a little advertisement that appeared in the Washington Post during that Raleigh Hotel strike. It was so peculiar that I preserved it. I made a careful investigation of the Raleigh Hotel strike and I was interested in it because of certain constituents of mine who happened to go there and being annoyed by pickets called my attention to it. I knew exactly what was going on. Here is the advertisement I clipped out and preserved that appeared in the Washington Post:

Help wanted, male. Men with loud voices as barkers; $25 per week. Kerner, 719 Sixth Street NW.

Mr. SPROUL. Was that a paid advertisement?

Mr. BLANTON. Yes; that was among the classified advertisements in the Washington Post.

Mr. SPROUL. Who was this man Kerner, or did you find out?

Mr. BLANTON. I will get Mr. Wallace, representative of the American Federation of Labor, to tell us after a while when he goes on the stand. He knows who he is, very likely. When that strike began, because of my constituents being bothered with it, I went down there to get the hotel's side of it, and I found out the waiters' side of it also. The hotel had a statement printed, and I ask that it be inserted in the record.

(The statement referred to is as follows:)

INFORMATION ESPECIALLY FOR THE PATRONS OF THE RALEIGH.

The management of this hotel, not wishing to enter into the contract proposed by the Hotel and Restaurant Employees' International Alliance, as printed below in full, arranged with its former colored waiters, which it very clearly had the right to do.

As soon as this fact became known, the white waiters' union withdrew its demands, not only so far as the Raleigh was concerned but as to all hotels in Washington employing white waiters. The Raleigh, it seems, was the only hotel which had actually made a new contract outside of the union; the others, not having done so, were free to negotiate and, doing so, renewed the old contract with the union with a few very minor changes.

The Raleigh has no quarrel with the union. If it had, the contracts with the important hotels which its stockholders control would not have been entered into with the union. Raleigh waiters were not locked out. Their contract simply had expired. We have no hesitancy in saying that they left the hotel in a perfectly orderly and proper manner.

EDWARD L. WESTON, President and Manager of the Raleigh.

COPY OF CONTRACT WITH WAITERS EXPIRING MARCH 11, 1919.

Agreement. This agreement, made and entered into this 12th day of March, 1918, by and between the Raleigh Hotel, party of the first part, and those employees of the Raleigh Hotel who are now members, or may hereafter become members. of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees' International Alliance. Washington Local No. 781, affiliated to the American Federation of Labor, party of the second part.

Witnesseth: It is agreed that all waiters shall be paid $40 per month. pay days as at present on the 7th and 22d of each month.

It is agreed that six days a week shall be considered one week's work for all steady waiters and that they shall have one full day of 24 hours off in each seven days with pay, and that no waiter shall be required to work more than 63 hours in any one week. In the event that any waiter in regular service is ordered by the man in charge to work more than the prescribed hours, he shall be paid at the rate of 50 cents per hour for such overtime.

It is agreed that there shall be no discrimination exercised by or against any employee by either party hereto because of membership or nonmembership in the alliance or association, and that the party of the first part shall have full power as to the hiring and discharging men.

It is agreed that during the pendency of the contract the service of the party of the second part shall be continued without interruption, and the agreement and all of its provisions shall remain in force and be binding upon the parties for one year from date. It is agreed that the party of the first part will endeavor to have sanitary lockers and toilet facilities and every effort will be made by the party of the first part to serve wholesome food in sanitary quarters.

It is agreed that if any difference arises between the parties growing out of the contract, or their interpretation, which can not be adjusted by conference between the parties, it shall be referred to the Director of the Division of Conciliation of the Department of Labor, whose decision shall be binding upon both parties hereto.

Witnessed by

ROWLAND B. MAHANY,

United States Commissioner of Conciliation,

L. A. STErne.
J. J. KENNY.

H. HANLEY.
E. L. WESTON,
Manager the Raleigh.

Department of Labor.

COPY OF CONTRACT PROPOSED BY WAITERS FOR RENEWAL FOR A SECOND YEAR.

Agreement between the hotel and restaurant proprietors of Washington, D. C., and Waiters' Union, Local 781, of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees' International Alliance, to be in full force and effect from March 12, 1919, to March 12, 1920.

1. The union agrees to furnish competent and honest craftsmen, and stands responsible for losses to employers by the willful act of members while employed.

2. No member may leave his work before his specified time has expired without the consent of the man in charge.

3. This contract is not to interfere with members receiving higher wages or better conditions. At no time shall the wages provided for under this agreement be curtailed owing to a reduction of hours by law.

4. The business agent of this union shall have the privilege of visiting members when they are not too busy.

5. All waiters and captains shall be members of this union. Head waiters do not have to affiliate, but only one head waiter shall be allowed in any one room.

6. It is agreed that every member employed steadily shall have one day off in seven, and that six days will constitute a week's work. They are not to work longer than 9 hours within 13 hours, allowing two breaks.

7. There shall be no compulsory layoffs and no fine. Members shall not be held responsible for the loss of any articles of service. They shall not be required to do any so-called porter work, such as oiling tables, sweeping, washing of silver or glassware, or the handling of chairs or tables. Waiters are not to serve officers other than captains or head waiters. There shall be no compulsory contributions to buss boys or other employees.

8. The management shall provide adequate and sanitary locker facilities, and a clean and presentable dining room for waiters.

9. Palatable and wholesome food must be served at all meals. Steady and extra waiters shall have at each meal the choice of at least one roast, one entree, with an additional fish entree on fast days, also soup, potatoes, one vegetable, coffee, tea, or milk, bread and butter, and one dessert. A wholesome breakfast shall also be served. No one kind of roast or entree may be served more than once in any four consecutive days. Whenever the majority of the waiters employed in any one place decide by a majority vote that the food served them is unsatisfactory, they shall be given $1 per day, or 40 cents a meal, in lieu of food.

10. Where special uniforms are required their cost to waiters shall be agreed by this union.

11. Wages, payable weekly, shall be as follows: Steady waiters, $15 a week; steady 2-meal waiters, seven hours a day, $12 a week; steady 1-meal waiters, three hours a day, $8 a week. Captains shall receive a minimum of $30 a week. Scrub captains will be paid $20 a week, working two meals as waiter.

12. For extra a la carte work, waiters, when they collect their own checks, shall be paid: Full day of 9 hours, $4; 7 hours a day, two meals, $3; one meal, 3 hours, $2 a day. For captains, extra work: $7 a day; $3 a meal and $5 for banquets.

13. Overtime performed at the request of the management by either steady or extra waiters shall be paid for at the rate of 50 cents an hour, or a fraction thereof, and 75 cents to captains. Steady men can not be employed overtime to work on banquets, special parties, or to work an additional meal, unless the office of this union is unable to furnish the required number of men, in which case steady men so employed shall receive the same rate as extra men.

Waiters ordered to count silver, linen, etc., and to set up or clear off banquets, shall be paid at the rate of 50 cents an hour or fraction thereof, in excess of their regular

wage.

Steady waiters taken off their stations in their regular time, to serve banquets or special parties are to receive $2.50 for three hours or less.

14. For extra work on banquets, or special extra parties, waiters shall receive $3.50 for three hours or less; if they are asked to set up, $1 additional for two hours' work or less.

For serving luncheon parties between the hours of 10 a. m. and 3 p. m. waiters shall receive $2.50 on the same terms as for regular banquet work.

15. Places where waiters do not collect their checks are subject to a special agreement with this union.

16. All disputes which can not be satisfactorily settled between the parties concerned shall be referred for arbitration to a board, composed of two representatives from the union, two from the employer or employers, and a fifth man to be appointed by the Department of Conciliation of the Department of Labor. Such arbitration shall be had if one party serves notice to that effect on the other party, when the board shall meet within seven days.

Mr. BLANTON. The contract that he had with his men and the contract that they demanded are shown in the statement. The manager, Mr. Weston, told me in person that many of those waiters could not speak English. They were foreigners, and many of them even were not citizens of the United States. They had never taken out their papers. Some were not voters in this country, but they were for

eigners. He told me that in addition to the wages he paid and the meals he furnished them, those waiters made all the way from $5 to $10, and even as high sometimes as $12 per day in tips, and that some of them became so independent that you could hardly get them to wait on you for less than a 50-cent tip. They were used to waiting on moneyed people who came to the hotel from all parts of the country, but some of them were not moneyed people. Some people in ordinary circumstances stop at the Raleigh, because it is a wellknown hotel. Some of my constituents from Texas, who are not rich people, when they come up here stop at the Raleigh Hotel. The Ebbitt and the Raleigh are well-known hotels to people from the South, and have been for a long time. When he first got the demand of the union for this new contract-or this is what he told me-he went into the dining room and called them all together. The ones who could not speak English he talked to through those who could. He wanted to know what about the contract. They said that they did not ask for any new contract, and that they did not know anything about it. He asked whether or not they were satisfied, and he found that they were perfectly satisfied with their positions. Well, he asked them, "What about this contract?" They did not want any new contract, but just before he left the head waiter said, "Wait a minute and let me see about that." He turned to the men and said, "Now, here, if our union has demanded a new contract for us, this action has probably been taken with respect to all the hotels for new contracts, and if we do not back the union up, they will blacklist us so we can not get another job." He said, "Just wait a minute, Mr. Proprietor, and we will have to look into this." When he did look into it he came back and said that they would have to have a new contract. I mention those facts to show you that it was not the waiters who demanded the change. It was not the waiters, but the union acting in their behalf and without their knowledge. You will see from this contract that certain meals were required, and Mr. Weston told me that if he furnished the meals that they could demand in that new contract, the food alone could cost him as high as $4 per day for each one of them. He could not stand it. He refused to sign the new contract and his white waiters struck. He sent for his old waiters that he had a long time before and who happened to be Negroes.

Now, Mr. Weston got his old waiters back, and his white waiters' union immediately surrounded his hotel with pickets. It is a disgrace to the United States Government, but that is what happened in Washington. You fellow colleagues of mine can soft-soap this question in Congress as long as you wish to, but, sooner or later, you must stand up and face it. It is a big question. It involves the rights of 105,000,000 people as against the selfish class dictates about 5,000,000 people. That is the question.

I caused these photographs to be made [exhibiting them]. They changed these placards almost every day. They would bring out new ones because people get tired of looking at the old ones and want something new. I wish I could reproduce all these photographs in the record. As that is not possible, I will put some of what is on them in the record.

Here [exhibiting] is one that shows an ordinary crowd of people around the Raleigh Hotel, showing one side of the main entrance.

Here are two men standing together, each one with a bid sandwich placard covering the whole front of his body. One of these two men has a big card on his hat, calling attention to this strike at the Raleigh and asserting that the Government is supporting organized labor. Then down farther, near the entrance, is another man with a great big sandwich placard that covers the whole front of his body from just below his neck down to his knees. I can read the lettering on that photograph, and it says, "Labor trouble at the Raleigh. Union waiters locked out. Colored scabs. 1 There is some other fine writing on it that I can not read. They are shown coming down to the main entrance of the Raleigh Hotel. Here is another photograph with two men standing right in front of the main entrance of the Raleigh Hotel with big placards on top of their hats calling attention to this strike. Just beyond those two men, at the main entrance, is a man who has gone by the main entrance with a great big placard on his hat the back of which reads, "Why prefer imported colored scabs to the white union waiters locked out at the Raleigh." Then, beyond him, is another man with his back turned, and he has another big placard, but not so large as the other. He has a placard on him, however. Just in front of him is another man with a placard both in front and behind on his hat, calling attention to the strike.

Here is another photograph taken adjacent to the main entrance. The man is standing with a double sandwich that covers his whole front from his necktie down to his knees, and on this sandwich appears: "Government holds that waiters' union has been very fair with Raleigh. Are you with the Government?" There is a big sandwich on his back that you can not read, because it is turned the other way. Here is another photograph that is right in front of the entrance. There is a lady shown with a soldier escort, and there is a man standing in front of the lady and her soldier escort, and here is the entrance to the Raleigh Hotel. This man has on a big double sandwich which reads as follows, in big letters: "Labor troubles at the Raleigh. Union waiters locked out. Imported colored scabs. are in." Here is another photograph showing a man not walking back and forth, but he is shown to be standing absolutely still in front of the main entrance of the Raleigh Hotel. You can see a lady who has just passed by him, and you can see that he is handing out cards. It appears that he has just handed one to this lady, because she has it in her hand. He is just now handing a card to a sailor boy who is coming out of the hotel. On his back is a placard that you can not read, and he also has a placard on the side of his hat. Here is another photograph of a man standing right by the front of the entrance to the Raleigh Hotel, and he has a placard around his neck, and then another one down in his hands, or where his hands would be over his stomach. The placard has printed matter upon it, but with the exception of "Raleigh Hotel" which is very plain, and "locked out," you can not read it.

I want the committee to note the facial expression of this man. If he is a loyal American citizen, his face does not express it. He looks like a Russian thug, or he looks as I imagine a Russian communistic thug would look. I would like to have you look at this photograph because, as you will see, the whole facial expression is plainly depicted. Here is another photograph showing two men