Previous | Next
Part: 123456789 Session: 1 Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542
high degree of animosity at that time to the labor movement, and where the labor movement had been pretty well crushed a few years earlier, and for just ordinary, sensible administrative reasons you should proceed with care.
The quality of the witnesses whom Reilly interviewed in Seattle was, according to his report, not very reassuring. He made only a preliminary investigation. They didn't testify under oath. He interviewed a dozen or so people who all made these charges that Bridges was a Communist, that they knew he was a Communist, that they'd been to Communist meetings with him, and so forth and so on. Reilly came back with the information that at least two of these people were extremely bad eggs. They had had police records. They'd been mixed up in all kinds of misdemeanors and one thing and another.
I don't know whether or not Reilly ever felt that this might be a planned attack on Bridges by people who wanted to get him out of the union. You don't talk about that kind of thing. You deal with the situation that you have in hand when you're talking to your Solicitor. Things aren't as clear as that. Everything is so mixed in real life. Nothing is that clear. There isn't a great, clear, malignant force that starts up and makes an attack, nor are there a group of sweetness and light
© 2006 Columbia University Libraries | Oral History Research Office | Rights and Permissions | Help