Fascinating history of the class war and struggle between rival unions in the mining region of Cape Breton from Roscoe A. Fillmore.

‘Strikes and Socialism in Eastern Canada’ by Roscoe A. Fillmore from the International Socialist Review. Vol. 10 No. 10. April, 1910.

UNTIL very recently the Maritime Provinces of Canada have seemed to be the hardest possible ground in which to inculcate the principles of Socialism. The industrial activities of the population are chiefly confined to agriculture, lumbering and fishing with the exception of certain portions of Nova Scotia (notably Cape Breton and Cumberland) where mining is carried on extensively. There are portions of the country where one can imagine himself set down in Europe during the dark ages. Religious superstition is rampant. The old fables anent the “Divine right of kings” are explicitly believed in by a very large majority of the people.

In this atmosphere of superstition, bigotry and medieval conservatism a number of isolated comrades have for years worked steadily and bravely for the cause until today we are beginning to reap the fruit from their sowing. In 1899 the S.L.P. was organized in Halifax. It was disrupted a few months later but it had done some good spade work. In July, 1902, an independent local (later affiliated with the S.P. of C.) was organized at Fredericton, N.B., with about a dozen members. In November, 1904, the Glace Bay, C.B., comrades organized. And so the work of organization and education went on until at the beginning of 1909 there were five locals in the maritime. In May of that year, with the financial assistance of party members all over the Dominion, we were enabled to secure the services of a competent organizer, Comrade Wilfred Gribble of Toronto. This comrade spent about five months with us, speaking on the street, in halls, every where and anywhere that an opportunity offered, with the result that we now have sixteen locals with a membership of probably 300. A Maritime Executive Committee has been elected situated at Glace Bay, C.B., to carry on the affairs of the party. This committee is now considering the advisability of putting a permanent organizer on the road. Of course in the maritime, as elsewhere, we have the usual bunch of reform quacks with their palliative nonsense to deal with. There is also a bum Independent Labor (?) Party doing business in the country that has a few secret supporters in our ranks. But on the whole the movement is clear-cut and revolutionary, “impossibilist” as Berger would say.

Now, as regards our “local strike,” I will give you a brief history of the causes leading to it and the results so far as can be seen at present.

In Nova Scotia there has existed for about thirty years a labor organization known as the Provincial Workmen’s Association. Its adherents have been mostly miners (or ground hogs) but a few other crafts have affiliated with it. Its stronghold has, until recently been in the mining communities of Cape Breton. A few years ago a corporation known as the Dominion Coal Company came upon the scene. Until its appearance the P.W.A. had, in its dealings with individual employers, attained quite a measure of success. But when the coal merger appeared a change was wrought. The P.W.A., a mere sectional organization, found itself powerless to cope with so large an organization of capital.

About five years ago the coal company, true to its traditions as an astute business corporation, decided to “recognize” the P.W A. This of course was granted only because it did not injure the company and would have a tendency to pacify the workers. After many flowery promises and pledges had been made by the company the workers came to a working (be it noted these are always “working” agreements. Work is all that wage earners are good for) agreement with their masters. And since that the edifying sight has been presented of the lion and the lamb lying down together (the lamb within the lion as usual.)

None of the master’s pledges have, as yet, been redeemed and the tyrannical rule of the Dominion Coal Company has steadily become more hateful to the workers as was natural. A three-year contract had been signed by the P.W.A. officials and Brother Capital and Brother Labor were locked in each others arms in a loving embrace. And it might be noted in passing that the latter has been unable to extricate himself from the bear-hug up to date.

The men, being unable to do otherwise and being under the domination of the master’s moral teachers who expatiate upon honor (whatever that may be) and such like, lived up to the letter of the agreement with Brother Capital, as usual, flagrantly disregarding it. At the expiration of the first contract the workers were forced by economic necessity to sign a second and even more enslaving “working” agreement. The men became dissatisfied with their union officials suspecting them, with a very large degree of truth as later developments prove, of being merely tools of the masters. They tried to oust Moffat the grand secretary and the other tools of Dominion Coal but without success. Then a number of P.W.A. men invited the U.M.W.A. to come into the provinces. This the U.M.W.A. refused to do until a majority of the miners should declare for it. The P.W.A. officials, Moffat and his gang, submitted the question to the membership and a referendum was taken. The officials—no doubt expecting the proposition to be turned down— pledged themselves to abide by the result of the vote.

The vote was taken. About 75 per cent of the P.W.A. membership voted for affiliation with the U.M.W.A. and organizers were invited to visit the province and came. But Moffat, labor dictator, refused to vacate. He, and those who had voted against affiliation, still supported the obsolete organization. Those who had voted in favor of the proposition joined the U.M.W.A. Then the fun began. Members of the new organization were discharged—over a thousand of them. The P.W.A.—Brother Capital agreement had not yet expired. The U.M.W.A. demanded recognition and a new contract, also a cessation of discrimination against their members.

The company held up its hands in holy horror. Recognition! What! To a “foreign” organization! Ye Gods! Treason! Sedition! etc., etc., ad nauseum. A new contract! Some more spasms of righteous indignation over the terrible depravity of men who would break the unexpired contract, made by the P.W.A., and demand a new one. Finally the U.M.W.A. called a strike about July 1st, 1909, and about 6000 men dropped their tools. But Brother Labor, represented by Moffat and the remnants of the P.W.A. considered themselves bound by “honor” to stay on the job. So a labor (?) organization becomes a scab agency.

The second day of the strike some women, wives of strikers, clawed the face of General Manager Duggan of the Coal Company and pulled his hair. This was made a pretext for calling out the soldiery. The mayor and a majority of the councillors of Glace Bay were opposed to the calling of the military (as they know another civic election would be held within a few months.) But the red coated thugs were sent for nevertheless and came—8500 officers and men from the Halifax garrisons armed with machine guns. It later developed that even before the requisition papers were signed the machine guns were entrained and the men under arms.

For some time after the arrival of the thugs everything was peaceful. But this did not suit the purpose of the masters. So Pinkertons were hired; a series of bomb outrages planned and carried out and then a number of workers were arrested for conspiracy. Meantime the licksplittle press of the company spread the news far and near that Cape Breton was in a state closely bordering upon anarchy. It was reported that the residence of Mine-Manager’ Simpson had been completely wrecked by a bomb presumably the work of the U.M.W.A. Later we learned from authoritative sources that $1.25 repaired the damage done. And so it went on.

On July 31st several thousand strikers, carrying their master’s flag “the glorious Union Jack,” formed in procession for the purpose of demonstrating the strength of their organization to the public. They were met by the military armed with machine guns. In spite of the flag of “their” country which the strikers carried the military ordered them to disperse upon pain of being blown full of lead if they refused. They dispersed. Men were arrested for calling “scab” at those who were at work and this still continues. Pickets are arrested almost daily. A few days ago a picket was shot by a company thug who had been sworn in special as constable. The fight is still on and likely to continue for some time. The company claims it has plenty of men and is getting out as much coal as before the strike. Whether this be true or not the strikers will probably lose the fight Within the past few weeks a merger has been affected by the Dominion Coal Company and the Dominion Steel Company another Cape Breton corporation. This, of course, has strengthened the masters.

There is a silver lining, however. Already there are four socialist locals in Cape Breton, and these are steadily increasing their membership. The men are awakening to the fact that the political scab is the lowest, most contemptible sneak alive. They are discovering that they must unite politically and take, because they have the power, the coal mines and all other industries for themselves. Ere long Cape Breton will be “Red” whichever way the strike goes.

While these events were transpiring in Cape Breton, the U.M.W.A. had ousted the P.W.A. in Springhill. They asked the Cumberland Coal and Railway Company to remedy certain grievances and were refused. So in August 1909 about 2000 men quit work and the mines have been closed ever since. Here several (five I think) investigations had been held under the Lenient Act (that glorious bit of labor legislation of which Laurier, King, et al., are so proud) and, of course, the findings of the boards of conciliation were against the men. Through incompetent management one of the finest seams of coal in America had failed to pay and the wages of the men had several times been cut in order to make up for this incompetency. They were also mulcted by a thieving system of fines and finally turned like the proverbial worm. Here, unlike Cape Breton, no effort has been made to start the mines.

The men may win at Springhill. But, whether they win or not, they are awakening to the need of political action on the part of the workers. There is still a certain amount of confusion in their minds as they are enthusiastic over their obsolete I.L.P. But a strong Socialist local has been organized and will ere long leaven the whole community. On the whole the Revolution is progressing favorably in Eastern Canada, and we will presently make the capitalist parties sit up and take notice.

The International Socialist Review (ISR) was published monthly in Chicago from 1900 until 1918 by Charles H. Kerr and critically loyal to the Socialist Party of America. It is one of the essential publications in U.S. left history. During the editorship of A.M. Simons it was largely theoretical and moderate. In 1908, Charles H. Kerr took over as editor with strong influence from Mary E Marcy. The magazine became the foremost proponent of the SP’s left wing growing to tens of thousands of subscribers. It remained revolutionary in outlook and anti-militarist during World War One. It liberally used photographs and images, with news, theory, arts and organizing in its pages. It articles, reports and essays are an invaluable record of the U.S. class struggle and the development of Marxism in the decades before the Soviet experience. It was closed down in government repression in 1918.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/isr/v10n10-apr-1910-ISR-gog-EP-cov.pdf