Dear Sir and Brother:

The trades unionists of this section have read with a great deal of interest of your campaign against Mr. Littlefield of Maine and fully believe (despite press reports to the contrary) that your efforts were responsible for the great decrease in that gentleman's pluralities. We are pleased with the activity of the A.F. of L. in political matters during the past few months and hope and trust that continued effort along these lines will convince politicians that workingmen have at last awakened to the fact that they cannot depend upon representatives of the Corporations and Trusts to enact laws favourable to the common people.

Our membership seem to have awakened to the necessity of political action and have shown a more active interest in the attitude of their congressmen and State legislators than in the past with the result that we have some friends nominated to these positions.

The Republican party has held aloof from us in most instances, they being the majority party. The Democrats have, on the other hand, conceded us practically everything we have asked of them. In the past year we have placed Democratic mayors in the cities of Tacoma, Spokane and Seattle.

The Democratic State convention last week not only gave us such platform endorsement as we asked but named, Bro. Wm. Blackman, for years the President of this Federation and State Labor Commissioner, and Dr. Byrne of Spokane, a favorite with the trades unionists of that section, as two of their candidates for Congress.

I feel that it is up to us to do everything in our power to elect these men to succeed the present incumbents who have absolutely nothing in common with us. Congressman Jones in particular has defied you and us on labor legislation and at the recent convention reiterated his position in opposition to the eight hour day on the Panama Canal.

Newspapers are attributing the nomination of Bro. Blackman to your handiwork and commenting on the probability of your taking an active part in our campaign. I believe that with your assistance we would be able to elect these men as they are both popular with the common people. The State Grange is working in conjunction with the Federation and we have a better line up than at any time in the past.

Brother Blackman, although an officer of the State for eight years, left his position a poor man financially as he had been an honest official. If he is elected as Congressman it will have to be through the assistance of his friends and as his election would be a great victory for the A.F. of L. as well as ourselves, I am appealing to you to render us some assistance. The presence of yourself in our State for a number of addresses would not only assist us politically but act as a check on the growing sentiment in favour of the Industrial Workers. These people are devoting considerable energy to organization work here at this time.

This state is normally but 15000 Republican plurality and I feel that the time is ripe to overcome this with united action as there is no National issues at stake in this campaign. In fact no State election other than Congressmen and Supreme Court Judges.

Trusting that you will give this appeal careful consideration and if possible assist us with your presence or if that is an impossibility render us such other assistance as you can,9 I am,