Resolved, That except on stickers, circulars and literature presenting the merits of the I. W. W., and emanating from the general offices of the I. W. W., the universal label shall be retained only as evidence of work done by I. W. W. men; and be it further
Resolved, That when the label is so printed, it shall be done by the authority of our union without the intervention of any employer; and be it further
Resolved, That when our universal label is placed upon a commodity as evidence of work done by our men, it shall be accompanied by an inscription underneath the label stating what the work is that our men have done, giving the name of the industrial department to which they belong and the number or numbers of their local unions, and that the universal label shall never be printed as evidence of work performed without this inscription; and be it further
Resolved, That the universal label shall be of a uniform crimson color and always the same in design.[281]
It has been stated that experience with, and the deposition of, President Sherman resulted in the abolition of the office of General President. No doubt the Sherman controversy was the principal predisposing cause, but it is very probable that there would have been some agitation for the abolition of that office even if there had not been a single charge against Sherman as President. A good many were a little shy of the name "President"--it savored of the present political state! Others thought it involved too great concentration of power in the hands of one individual. These latter were the sponsors of the "rank and file" and the forerunners of those who later figured as "decentralizers" in the controversy concerning centralization in the Industrial Workers of the World.[282] "The people who direct the Industrial Workers of the World," said Delegate Reid, "are the rank and file.... In a multitude of counsellors there is wisdom, and wisdom is not in the brain of one man to direct this institution."[283] Furthermore, as DeLeon pointed out, "the President is mainly, essentially and exclusively an organizer, a general organizer with a high-sounding title and wages and expenses to match...."[284] The committee appointed to report on the advisability of retaining the office of President reported that it came to its negative conclusion "on the assumption that there was not a man in this convention strong enough or capable enough to assume the office of President."[285]