NOTICE The American Labor Year Book aims to be as accurate Wehr 5-9-24 FOREWORD With this, its fifth issue, the AMERICAN LABOR YEAR Book enters upon what is hoped to be a period of yearly, instead of two-yearly, publication. The importance to the American labor movement of such an annual can hardly be over-estimated. For an understanding of the present eventful period of world history, close knowledge of the labor movement, its daily struggles, its victories and its defeats, its shortcomings and its aspirations, is indispensable. Such close knowledge, accurate, objective, and concise, the AMERICAN LABOR YEAR Book aims to present. Appearing as closely as possible after the end of the calendar year, each volume will prove a useful record of the twelvemonth's activities. Important changes have been made in the present volume as compared with earlier issues. The entire subject matter has been reorganized, and arranged with a view to more consecutive and logical presentation. For the first time, also, instead of being a collection of articles by specialists in the various fields, the material has been written up practically in its entirety by the Research Department staff. The gain in completeness and in unity of point of view will, it is believed, be obvious. New features are a calendar of Labor Conventions in 1924, an International Labor Diary for the preceding two years, discussion of Workers' Education and Labor Banking, and a comprehensive Directory-perhaps the first to be issued in this country-of trade unions, labor political parties, workers' educational institutions, cooperatives, and labor papers and magazines in America and abroad. A volume such as this must of necessity be a cooperative effort. Hearty thanks must be given to the numberless officials of trade unions and other organizations on both sides of the Atlantic who have supplied through letter and printed report the authoritative information on |