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cr or rt E f be B INTERVIEW WITH Springfield, Illinois, Po wos interviewed in his residensa on Septembor 16, 1948, by crass Se and understands English very well. he he is willing to tes in court. He claimed to have no criminal reoord. moe Springfield, Ill. September 16, 1943 - "I make the following statement freely and voluntarily bh err corrsrs eee ; who have identified themselves to me as Special agents of the Federal eau of Investigation. No threats or promises have boen made to me to obtain this statement. weasantly res _ _+ ire "I presenti “aside at Springfield, Ill., and am employed b I was born on work in Mino Togressive Mine Workers of America, "I wes satisfied with P.M.A., and cannot compare it to U.M.W. prior to 1932 because I was not in any union before I joined P.M.A. "I don't remember how I heard that Mr. RYAN had sold Mine B to Mr. ELSHOFF. Because of the trouble at Mino B just a few years ogo, I thought that ELSHOFF would not permit P.M.A. to work in Mine A, and that I might have to join the U.M.W. if I wented to continue working at Mine A. I don't reeoll any trouble at Mine 4 when Mr. RYAN ran the mine. "No one evor asked me to join U.M.W. before ELSHOFF bought Ming &. There was talk among the minors that there was going to be a switch from P.M... to U.M.W. at Ming A, and that such o ewitch wae ine evitablc. I also heard in general conversation with the miners that ELSHOFF was going to try to pull coal from Mino 4 through Mino B. "I did not go to any union or group meetings prior to the time I joined up with U.M.0. I signed up with U.M.W. in their hall just before Mine A opened in the fall of 1942. A great many mon had signed up with U.M.E. at the Elks Club, but I did not go to that meoting. "It did not make much difference to me to which union I belonged. It meroly meant that I paid dues to a different organization. —_ I quit working at Mine A on 1942, when I was able to get a bettor job with better working cond - 555 -