Letter from J. Ernest Dunn to President Harry S. Truman with Attached Newspaper Clippings

flay Staff Run 6/30/52 bloy Steel Cayucos, Calif. mise June 11, 1952. D President Harry S. Truman, Washington, D.C. Dear Mr. President, I was surprised and very much hurt when I read today's headlines' Senate asks President to invoke Taft-Hartley Act in steel strike." I know it is the law of the land but what a law. I contend it is a slave law. Any time men are compelled to work against their will and for wages they don't agree to, I still believe they are being made slaves. If the working man was shown as much consideration as the special interests there wouldn't be so much labor strife. The farmer is guaranteed parity or better, some big ranches are paid thousands of dollars forplowing worthless land and also for other work that would normally be done to keep a ranch property in condition they are paid for land conservation. The merchant is protected by fair practice laws and it does seem that almost every-one is protected but the laboring man. He has to fight his own battles and if he gets too strong he has a T-H Bill thrown at him. If he was shown the same consideration that congressmen show them- selves there wouldn't be any labor trouble. I seem to remember about two years ago congress gave themselves a $2500 raise in pay and that tax free, And didn't they also give themselves a full pay pension and didn't they just recently give themselves a nice $900 expense raise tax free and didn't I hear that some of them were paying members of their own families as much as $700 per month for office work? What does the average day worker make? If he makes over $300 per month he is doing very well. If he asks for more to meet the un-controlled high cost of living what does he get? Why The T-H Law is thrown at him and he is called all kinds of a skunk. What did congress do about the recent false potato shortage? Nothing? What was done about the false coffee shortage? Nothing? When the manipulators got the ceiling taken off potatoes and the price raised on coffee there was atonce a plentiful supply again. Congress did themselves proud when they gave the armed forces a 4% raise in pay. Do you know that amounts to about 75 for the men who are do- ing the dirty work of the fighting? He should be very grateful. And also why should our fighting men have to pay income taxes? To make up the high cost of maintainingour congressmen? Do you know that the average working man has to go in debt every time his wife has a baby? Do you know it costs him an average of $500 in this part of the country? The doctor charges $150 and the hospital nearly the same and with all the other costs it easily runs to $500. of course if one has no property and is willing to swear they are practically a pauper they can go to the county hospital. And what does he get if he gets too strong and demands a living wage? Why a T-H injunction thrown at him. The railroad controversy just settled is a good example of com- pulsory arbitration. Three years. When there is a strike do the corporations lose anything? They only sit back and are granted a raise in rates or prices to bring their yearly earnings up to average so they lose nothing but collect from the long suffering public and tax payers. I believe something should be done for the common working man and there would be more prosperity and less strife in this country than has ever been heard of. Yours very truly, .Ernest Dunn, Cayucos, Calif.