It was a prolonged, early-morning blast of locomotive whistles in the Polish industrial city of Poznan that set off a revolt heard round the world. At 7 a.m. one day last week some 30,000 machinists, founders, fitters and laborers of all callings assembled at the locomotive, railroad-car and metallurgical factories on Poznan's outskirts. They were orderly but they were determined, and they had a grievance.
The workers at the Stalin Locomotive Works had been paid higher wages than most of their neighbors, because they were making military equipment. Three weeks ago, when the...
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