Inflammatory Attempts to Rouse Workers to a General Strike: Agitators' Admission of Murder The strike situation in Shanghaij and its environs is becoming more acute daily. About 25,000 workers fare idle, due either to strikes or to Iockouts subsequent to strikes. The radical elements are, and have been, advocating a policy of armed resistance to loyal mill hands, and propose shooting down "capitalists," as they say, and seize the of local government. Foremen and those in charge are murdered without chance for their lives and workmen have quitted their places: of employment by hundreds, fearing sination, On Friday last two men, according. to the Japanese papers, who were in their quarters on Robison Road, were attacked by a number of armed men, in the employ of the former! Shanghai General Labour Union, and were shot immediately, On the other hand, pamphlets of the Red body state' openly, that the Communists have adopted a programme] of bloodshed and; "we executed a Inbour traitor."
Workers are intimated secretly' and are forced to leave their positions, The police have tried to cope with a situation that baffles them, and the extremists are able at night to post placards and distribute handbills, a copy of which—it speaks for itself boldly—follows, bel Wel fare publishing the document for general information, indicating the sort of literature being used to inflame the workers, But we are not to be taken as endorsing any of the statements of alleged fact. therein contained, though the admission in. the last sentence of the proclamation is not without sinister interest:—
From THE SHANGHAI GenenAt, Lavouk UNION To THE EASTERN
Districr Lavourens!
'The labourers in the Eastern District suffer more than any others from oppression. They work more] than 10 hours a day, and the only recompense accorded' to them is, cruel treatment. The capitalists can never be satisfied. They do not mind in the least even if we lose our lives provided condition made easier for them. of the capitalist, the Inbourer lower than a dog.
'At first they' instructed the foremen to oppress us, but they later employed policemen for this purpose. Now they buy fire-arms for the use of "Labour thieves," who beat and even kill us. When we object, we are sent to prison, or executed. The best evidence of this can be found in the: arrest and massacre of more than 10 workers by the Wing On Cotton Mill management. If we do not Protest against such actions, more cruelties will be inflicted upon us in the future. A general strike is necessary to emphasize our dissatisfaction with these conditions, The General Labour Union will support! you in giving effect to this decision, 'The labourers in' the western dise iziet are now prohibited from spealeing to one another by the capitalists, When they disobey this rule, they fare. sent to prison. Many of the western district labourers have been thrown out of employment owing to the decrease in wages, Wo already have had much experience with our employers. What we should do now is to unite and fight for a rank equal to tat held by our employers, The General Labour Union will agsist us in the fight, Seizure of political power and establishment of Soviet Government, should be our object. Let us overthrow the Unification Committee of Shanghai hour Unions. Let us call a general strike, Let' us seize the politfeal power, Adilitional Accusations Unsatisfied with the murderous activities of the Kuomintang, the capitalists of the Wing On Ca, in joo-operation with others, have organized a special Fascisti to massacre workers, As a con sequence, on October 2, the workers of the Wing On Ca. were trampled upon by the S. M, P., who arrested several tens of workers and serious-[ly wounded a number of others, Moreover the capitalists of the Wing On Ca. have declared that they are. willing to purchase arms and ammunition to the value of $200,000 be used against the workers, short, it would seem that they are planning to shorten our existent and check our movement. Therefore, we should endeavour to fight desperately with the capitalists in order to destroy them, The workers in the El dive trict have been on strike several days and about 2,800 workers of the Shanghai Cotton il No. 1 have also token of their the Wing On It is reported in the Ewo Cotton Mill, Oriental Cotton Mill, ete., will so" join the strike. There are alk signs that the strike will be extend-all Japanese cotton mills, Consequently the Japanese eapit~ alists have arranged to get Jay soldiers to guard their mills with ed eet Seanen) view to checking our movement. They also employ Labour traitors promote the same object secretly. This is indeed unbearable. sign of our indignation we executed a labour traitor named Anhui Lau-s, of the Shanghai Cotton Mill No, 1 the day before yesterday.
'The workers' blood is flowing incessantly. It is being shed by the swords of the Imperialists, mille tarists, influential gentry and capitalists. The blood of the volutionary workers murdered by the Kuomintang Party may Jeompared to a great flood. This will soon overflow and break the influence of the capitalists and the gentry. The "Red" tide will be irresistible, according to Sin Wen Pao of 17 inst, tendered the following recommendations:
1. The matteer of opium prohibition in the districts should be invested in the hands of a combined committee of the magistrate and other people's organizations 2 Local autonomy should be encouraged so that every ten families will form a group, in which a chief may be made responsible for the case of addiction in the whole group.
3. The policy force in various districts should, receive by turn a special ing in the course of twelve months, so as to fit them for carrying out the policy of total suppression.
4. The Government should manufacture a special kind of anti-opium medicine, with only a very small percentage of opium for the use of tuddiets. No opium alone or any) ether narcotics should be used.
5, All traffickers in such narcotic drugs as morphine, heroin and cocaine should receive death penalty. ible Public Opinion That the whole volume of public opinion is strongly opposed to any> thing like an opium monopoly soon by the response of the Kuomintang organizations of both: Kiangsu and Chekiang provinces to the manifesto recently sent out. by.
National Anti-Opium Associa jon. These include practically all the district branches of the Kuomintang in these provinces. To direct "the growing formidable movement against the existing: opium policy of the Nationalist Government, the provincial Kuomintang organizations of both Chekiang and Kiangsu provinces have issued strong manifestoes calling all lite ranches and people throughout these two provinees to fight against the policy of monopoly.
It was reported that the central Kuomintang organization in Shang= hai was going to call a grand mass meeting to arouse the attention of the people and line them up to urge the Government to adopt a [new satisfactory policy.
The above recommendations were made at the request of the economist Ma Ying-Chu, a member of the Executive Committee of Chekiang Government. Mr. Ma in his recent lecture ta the Provincisl Kuomintang headquarters gave as equally radical comments on the existing prohibition regulations.
Ir is reported that, through the mediation of the Labour Union Uni fication Committee, an increase in wages has been granted to. one hundred coolies employed in the. }godowns at the Shanghai. Nocti Railway Station,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.