﻿Closed Shop Is Issue in Two Fights  
By T-BONE SLIM 
 
No more than the farmer had his full chores done, and his feet safely in the oven, he let out a warwhoop: “There’s gonna be a shortage of farm help next summer!” 
Another earsplitting scream is that of the employers’ loudspeakers of the Manufacturers Association protesting the conceding of the “closed shop” as a war measure—in other words, they want the 30 odd million unorganized to enter “the works” non-union. 
Quite a quarrel here between dues-paying union men and the coupon-clipping employers—and it may not be a dud. 
On the other hand, and on a larger scale, neither side of the warring nation’s even promised to give up the “closed shop” of international economics and world trade. 
In the lesser quarrel, the ideals of democracy must be maintained however static that democracy may be, and only the finest of words flow back and forth. 
But the greater quarrel is not so easy of solution. Cannon are trotted out, tanks scratch up the boulevards, airplanes rumble overhead, submarines slink through the briny deep and other warships put on their warpaint. 
Cathedrals, hospitals, airfields and ships are blown up; and when the “ordinary” returns from his Red Sea voyage he is going on his honeymoon. All this for the sake of the closed shop—Globe-Trade closed shop. 
Labor should know our employers cannot protect us—they have their business to look after. 
Which reminds me, by the way I’ve never had much trouble holding my own with Japanese bosses in California, but wouldn’t it be one hell of a note if the Japs came over and started bossing our bosses? 

War is sure some Hail Columbia and many, many of the best of seamen are “failed to return” from their argosies, unsung heroes and devil-may-care, and it’s idle persiflage to say that a seaman of a sinking tanker can swim and splash enough to keep the burning oil from singeing his hair if he be on the lea side of the fire. 
 
In the course of this war, mistakes of Moses come to the forefront : 
Moses never knew that Japan was pulling her punches in China so as to create a “Japan can’t” psychology in the breast of the free enterprize concessioneers and it was heralded far and wide, “they are pushovers.” The mere fact that the best of generals couldn’t hold them at Port Arthur, in the Russo-Jap War, quite forgotten, or “they had degenerated since.” 
Moses doesn’t know that Japan and Germany are operating their war on the stagger plan, i. e., “you hit ‘em while I rest and when you rest I’ll soak ‘em.” Even a simpleton can see this—and Turkey is the hole card. 

Coming up from behind, we are handicapped teriffically and for that reason it sometimes looks as if our allies or generals are laying down on us. Such is not the case however—we might be more progressive anticipatory—our backwardness is wholly due to the shortsightedness of our far-seeing employers.