The Fall of Milton Murray

Judged by the advance notices of the Right v. Left split in the C.I.O. American Newspaper Guild, its 14th annual convention in Sioux City, Iowa last week was to be a finish fight. As it turned out, both Right and Left concentrated, for different reasons, on removing garrulous Guild President Milton Meadowcroft Murray. They succeeded.

Elected six years ago on an anti-Communist platform, Murray had made enemies, Right and Left. At the convention he accused his once-close associate, Executive Vice President Sam Eubanks (who is also anti-Red, but now more anti-Murray) of heading a "secret cabal" to seize control of the union. Eubanks' countercharge: Murray was seeking "demagogic control."

Unwanted Advice. Murray did not help his chances by his choice of a convention speaker. He invited Nathaniel R. Howard, president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors and editor of Cleveland's middle-roading News. Nat Howard criticized what he called the Guild's "smear tactics" in strikes. Said Howard: "Guild members have widely attacked the integrity and public intentions of the newspaper [in a strike] as a newspaper, and not as an employer. . . . A newspaper's good name with the public is something like a woman's reputation for chastity. You can foul our particular nest with lasting effect." One delegate called Howard's speech "an insulting attack on working newspapermen."

Everything that Murray brought forth was quickly beaten. He wanted to make the presidency a paid job. He also wanted to give the Guild's International Executive Board a veto power over local strikes. Both proposals were defeated.

When nominations began, Murray learned that both the Eubanks faction and the leftist "independent-progressive" wings were stronger than he. For Murray's office, the Eubanks crowd put up 38-year-old Harry Martin, amusement editor of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Leftists entered 41-year-old Willard Shelton, onetime editor of the Christian Evangelist, now a Washington correspondent for Manhattan's PM.

Like Decent People. Beaten Milt Murray declined to be renominated, and got loud applause for saying: "There has been some pretty vicious politics . . . and I contributed my share. We've fought like a bunch of goddam kids. Let's see if we can't grow up and act like decent people."

The Guild's Right-Left split remained unhealed after Sioux City, but it looked as if Harry Martin would be top dog in the race to be president. And there was no doubt now who was the Guild's strong man. He was burly, closemouthed, onetime Make-Up Editor (Oakland. Calif. Post-Enquirer) Sam Eubanks.

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