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1242 MOTION-PICTURE JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTES answer. We knew the only way we could get anything would be to strike. Mr. Owens. Now, you are certainly coming to the edge of the preci- pice. You wanted the decision of the NLE.B and tried to get it. Now, it did not make any difference to you whether they were to abide by it or not ? Mr. SoRRELL. Oh, yes; it did. If nobody abided by it but us, there wasn't any use. Mr. Owens. The point was to get the decision and then see whether they would abide by it. Mr. SoRRELL. Now, wait a minute. You understand that these unions affiliated with the Conference of Studio Unions had not signed any agreement since 1942. We had been knocking on the door and I stayed here in New York City for 5 or 6 weeks trailing around, pulling on everything possible to get an agreement. Mr. Owens. I am only breaking in on you to say that you broke off at a time when you were close to a decision from the Board that could give it to you, the National Labor Relations Board. Mr. SoREELL. You are not giving me an opportunity to tell you what brought on the strike in 1945. Mr. Owens. Well, of course, you said you decided that because they would not agree to be bound by it that you would do that. Well, naturally, in a decision that might be against me, because someone might not agree to be bound by it, does not mean that I am not to go through with my suit. Mr. SoRRELL. Mr. Owens, all of these unions were pounding us officials on the back to get an agreement, get something signed, "get on the ball, what are you doing?" Our organizations are democratic. Mr. Owens. Then you went on a strike ? Mr. SoRRELL. All of the conference unions went on a strike which is pictured as a strike for 77 set decorators in the industry, 47 or 48 of whom worked in the motion-picture studios, and the fact that we wanted wages-and-hours contracts. Now, it has been testified here by Peter Rathvon that we tried to picture our fight as on wages, hours, and contracts. That is what we were after. That is why we went on strike. The 77 set decorators were injected as the usual thing to make a jurisdictional issue to tie everything up. Mr. Owens. But you did want recognition, did you not ? Mr. SoRRELL. That is right. If they had given us recognition we would never have gone on strike. Further, in 1944, the painters organization submitted to the confer- ence, and the conference submitted to the producers, a proposal for arbitration machinery to arbitrate all jurisdictional issues without the work stoppage. We wanted it worse than anyone. We knew they could not conspire to destroy our unions if there was an arbitration clause in the contract. Mr. Owens. I do not like to take the time, but you are using these words and you must have something in back of your mind that you have not yet given me. The facts you have given us so far have been absolutely in accord with the attorney's testimony, whether you real- ize it or not.