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Ret JOHN L. LE.IS, ET AL. INTERVIF.. (ITH ro prin r inois, Was a ir hie residence on Septcmbcr 15, 1945, by b Speeicl icunts speaks ae und unie.st:ais mnglish very we Wes Cucperative an het he oo is wilitue to testify if necessary. H. donied heving a srininal rocord. tee . 7 gg ; ’ 2: - Po fa The fclluwing signed statement was obtained frcm [a oe "Springficid, Ill. : Septerber 15, 1943. _mneke the felicwing statement freely and voluntarily te , whe have identifiod thonsclves tc re as cpecial apents cf the Fodera. Bureau cf Investigation. No threats cr prcemiscs have been made to me to cbtain this statemont. "I, "T resid’ at Springfield, I11., and am em- has oa ployed rt Peabedy Line 759. abel "T xos born -), ee ot . a : begen to werk in Liine Ae Tricr to thnt timc I was a member of the United I‘ine \icrkers, and ccntinucd in that union after I started at Mine A. . "In 1932 I wes in faver cf the switch from U.M.W. to Progressive Mine “.crkers cf America. I wns fed up with the wey thet U.M.i#. was running things at that time. ‘shen the men switched cover I went nlong with thens From 1932 tc 1941 I ves completely satisfied with P.M.A. —< "“Scmnetins in Scptembcr 1941 I heard thet Hr. Elshcff had bought nol Eine & fron ‘ir. Rysn. I heard thet there was to be a spocial union mee o ing of P.M.4. to discuss this new devolcpnent at Mine A. As I recell this _ meeting was held cn ce Sundey in the Elks Club, ond ren it, : There wns discussion in the meeting about switching from » te UM This discussion was brought ebout because cf the talk going sround thet we, the miners, hid to join U.M.i. becsuse Fine & had been bought by the commer of Line B, and because we wouldn't be able to get jobs in Mine & un- less we joined U.li.u,. YI don't remember hearing any talk abcut working Mine 4 through Liine B, cr abcut Elshoff refusing to do business with two unions. "There was no rumpus in the meeting at the Elks Club, I think that oll cf the miners were afraid that Mine 4 would nct open up in the fall cf 1941 unless they jeincd U.H.a, I recell that somebody sent for Edmundsen, but I think this wus after the vote when the miners voted to - 611 -