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Labor spy report by Agent #106 to Broussais Beck, December 4, 1919
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| Title | Labor spy report by Agent #106 to Broussais Beck, December 4, 1919 |
| Author | Unknown |
| Date of Publication | 1919 |
| Notes | In this report to Broussais Beck on December 4th, 1919, "Agent #106" informs Beck that "Ault, Listman, Louis, Strong, and Rust" of the Union Record were all arrested. People at the Labor Temple insist that this is an attempt by the authorities to discredit organized labor. Those arrested are released later in the day. McKorkle suggests to #106 that, as women "are not educated in economics" and as the "kept press" discourages women from voting, it may be easier for labor to be successful in the port election. That evening, #106 attends the Central Labor Council meeting. A dispute arises over whether or not the Council should resolve to have a radical article printed in the Union Record, which some oppose on the grounds that the paper will be shut down again. Harry Ault, the paper's editor, stands and informs the crowd that only the Union Record's editorial staff will make decisions about what articles to print, and the motion is tabled. Another resolution is put forward denouncing "the Daily newspapers and the commerical interest" for attempting to provoke a war with Mexico. When some object that similar resolutions were used as grounds for imprisoning Hulet M. Wells on sedition charges, "the radicals" insist they are willing to be jailed for the cause. The resolution passes almost unanimously. After a series of other announcements and speeches, the meeting concludes with an accusation by "the radicals" that the committee of fifteen has exercised too much authority over the Council for a body not elected by the rank and file. |
| Contextual Notes | Broussais Coman Beck (1886-1936) was a prominent Seattle businessman and rowing enthusiast. He was educated at the University of Washington and at Yale, graduating from the latter university in 1911. He returned to Seattle later in the 1910s to work as the store manager for the Bon Marche. In the wake of the Seattle general strike of 1919, Beck paid spies to infiltrate the labor movement in Seattle, and received frequent reports from his agents (often accompanied by clippings or ephemera relating to labor organizations) in 1919 and 1920. Due to the information acquired through these reports, the Bon Marche was centrally important to the alliance of Seattle employers who organized against labor, a group called the Associated Industries of Seattle -- and, consequently, the Bon Marche became the target of increased pressure and boycotts by organized labor in this time period. |
| Subjects (LCSH) | Beck, Broussais C., 1886-1936; Labor movement--Washington (State)--Seattle; Labor unions--Washington (State)--Seattle; Business intelligence--Washington (State)--Seattle; Union busting--Washington (State)--Seattle; Seattle union record (Seattle, Wash. : 1918); Ault, Harry E. B. (Harry Erwin Bratton), 1883-1961; Industrial Workers of the World |
| Geographic Coverage | United States--Washington (State)--Seattle |
| Digital ID Number | PNW00886 |
| Ordering Information | To order a reproduction or inquire about permissions contact: photos@u.washington.edu. |
| Digital Collection | Pacific Northwest Historical Documents
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| Repository | University of Washington Libraries. Special Collections Division. |
| Repository Collection | Broussais C. Beck papers. Accession No. 0155-001. Box 1/17 |
| Object Type | Typescript
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| Physical Description | 1 leaf; 28 x 21.5 cm. |
| Digital Reproduction Information | Scanned from original text or image at 150 dpi saved in TIFF format, resized and enhanced using Adobe Photoshop, and imported as JPEG2000 using Contentdm software's JPEG2000 Extension. 2011. |
| Restrictions | For information on permissions for use and reproductions please visit UW Libraries Special Collections Reproduction & Use page: http://content.lib.washington.edu/sc-use.html |
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