◆ SpookStack

° Cc wd RE; JOHN L. LEWIS, ET AL. ITERVIEN WITH Agents has @ great deal o ifficulty in speaking an understanding the English language. It is believed he would be a poor witness. There is set forth below the signed statement exeouted by erviewed b ecial “Springfield, Ill. Sept. 17, 1943. "I, make the following voluntary statement to Special Agents of the Federal] Bureau of Investigation. fo) eats or promises have been made to induce me to make any statement. "I was born and same to the U.8&. in I became a U.S. citizen in I have been a miner all my . life and now work at sane A. My present address ia “J started working at Mine A in and had been a member of the UMn for a long time. I joined PAA in 1932, but never took an active part in it. It doesn't make much difference to me what union I belong to, I just do what ever the rest do. "I remember that Mine A was sold to Flshoff by Ryan in the fall of 1941. I got a letter from Ryan saying he had sold the mine and I thought that maybe I would be out of a job. I thought that maybe Elshoff wouldn't open the mine up in the fall. Everybody said that maybe Elshoff would only hire UL men if he opened the Mine A. “During the summer of 1941 I was working for be aan ae arrem onal so I didn't have any time to go to any of the meetings tna é ‘eid after the sale of the mine. I went to a meeting at the Elks Club on a Sunday and I got at that meeting a little late. All of the PMA men had signed up with UMW so I signed up too so I wouldn't lose my job. The meeting was about over when I got there. 1 don't remember what they talked about et the meeting. I was never beaten up or forced to join any union. “this statement has been read to me > & I wish to state it is true to the best of my memory. }/ Special Agents, F.B.I., U.8. Dept. of Justice. . Viitnessed: = 599 - sy ee em RE gtk TOT To TM Dee mg Gorge mae