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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 6, 1919)
THE MORNING OREG ONI AN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER G, 1919. 11 ASSISTANT ATTORNEY-GENERAL, WHO SPURNS DEMAND THAT COAL STRIKE PINCH STRIKERS' INJUNCTION BE VACATED. HELD PREMATURE '--.....v.vv:.-.:-:.:.w.-.-.5:.;.jW;iC-.; BEGINS TO BE FELTj ICTRGTLA V v Peace at Coal Mines Due to Federal Troops. Curtailment of Railroad Serv ice Started. ST HIKE K V PROPAGANDA IS EFFECTIVE Many Miners Held Good Ameri cans but Subject to Influence of Radical Labor Organ. BY CARL. W. ACKERMAN. (Copyright 1019 by The Public Ledger Co. Published by Arrangement.) CHARLESTON", W. Va., Nov. 5. (Special. )Conditlons in the West Virginia coal fields tonight are typi cal of those throughout the country. All talk of a collapse of the strike is premature. Peace prevails here, but it is due entirely to the presence of United States troops. Some of the operators and a few government officials say that the miners did not want to strike and that many of them wish to return, but my own investigation indicates the contrary. I have found no sentiment among the union men in favor of rescinding the strike order. They have been reading the West Virginia Kederationist. which is their official organ, their leader and their representative so long that they are in the state of mind of the editor, who admonishes them to "go on with the battle." Miners to Stay Out. As far as the union miners of West Virginia are concerned tonight they will stay out and resist the govern ment and the operators as long as the international headquarters in In dianapolis does not order them back. A few men may retuus. Within a week more of them r.ay desire to go to work, but this will be due to economic causes. The best evidence that there is no pronounced sentiment among the union men in support of resumption of operations is the facl that the operators, who have been discussing the advisability of setting a- date for reopening the mines and inviting the men to return under protection of the United States government came to the conclusion today that it would be unwise to do this now because the plan would not succeed. The coal strike in West Virginia cannot be ended by suggestion or by invitation. The work of the unions and the propagandists has made too deep an impression upon the minds of the miners to bo dismissed with the statement that "the men are not in favor of the strike." Lradrra Are Supported, p They support the strike. They sup port their leaders and it is exceed ingly doubtful whetiier any attempt to run the mines at this time would meet with a general response. This strike has been in preparation for many months. In addition to the educational work of the unions there have been as many as 34 organizers of the steel strikers in the coal fields appealing for funds and support for the steel strike. Railroad men. also, have had influence upon the miners. It was told today by enme high state officials of a meeting held some weeks ago in one of the coal counties where railroad employes spoke to the men about the high wages and back pay they received after the govern ment took over the operation of the roads. One of these railroaders said thatvhe received as much as $1100 in back pay from the government and the miners were told that if the gov ernment took over the coal fields they ' would meet with the eame good for tune. Another aspect of the preparation for the strike has been revealed by CJovenor John J. Cornwell, who in a published letter stated that in some sections of the state the miners have been arming themselves In anticipa tion of an opportunity such as this strike was to afford them, when they could march into the coal fields, seize the mines by force and declare them , the property of the workers. ( Propaganda Makes Inroads. Federal and state officials are di vided in their opinions as to how ei- tensive an inroad the radicals and the propagandists have made upon the miners' thoughts. One federal official who has been here since 1914. in a confidential capacity for the govern ment, made this statement: "All of the West Virginia miners are not bol ' shevists or radicals by any means. They are just as good Americans as there are in the country, but they have been nourished with propaganda. They have been reading the Federa-tionist- They have been told that if the government would seize the coal fields and operate them that wages for miners would increase as they did among the railroaders. "Some of them have been told that if they would arm themselves and fight, they could take over the coal fields. But while all of this agitation has been going on. neither the gov ernment nor the operators have done anything to present the opposite side of the case. Then he gave me a copy of the latest issue of the Kederationist and pointed to the editorials on King Al bert and the industrial conference, which he said were typical of the ideas which are constantly placed be fore the miners. 1 shall quote them in full because they present so clearly the kind of editorial ideas which the laboring people read and accept. It Is one of the forms of propaganda which has the most lasting effect. Under the title of "Americanism" the editor of this paper, which is the "of ficial organ of the Kanawha Vailley Central Labor union and Charleston Building Trades council, indorsed by the West Virginia Federation of Labor and districts 17 and 29. United Mine Workers of America," writes: Workers Pay Bills. "King Albert and his suite are be ing royally wined and dined (at the workers' expense) by the dignitaries of official Washington, and while his majesty is the first king to visit the halls of congress, the American cabinet is trying to figure out some plan to drive the coal miners back to their jobs. The federal army is being conveniently distributed over the coal x'ields, and the guns that so recently thundered against the kaiser of Germany -tre now dting duty in behalf of the coal kaisers cf America. The harlot press is maintaining its ci'stomry campaign of lying about the workers, counselling or acquiesc ing in the suppression of constitu tional rights, and virtually suggest ing mob violence against the workers who ask for a decent living. Is all this what the masters mean by edu cating the workers in Americanism? res, by Americanism our profit patriots mean a country where the workers have no rights which they are bound u respect. It means a land of starvation, disease, misery and death, witi- private armies of thus and gunmen who beat up men who simply ask a right to live a human life. Logan county is the capitalistic ideal of what real Americanism should be. One would thir.k that a f i f ' ' I - - I ' ' ' J CIIARLKS self-respecting governor would wipe that infamous spot off the map of the state instead of camouflaging with an upstart investigating com mittee. But such is the way of the politicians. "What this nation needs is a bap tism of real Americanism. It needs an Americanism that gives the boot to' royal grafters when they come over here. It needs an official Wash ington that gives more attention to the needs of the workers and less to hereditary parasites. The burden of reconstruction in this country is great enough without spending time and money entertaining the rotten nobility of Europe. American babies.. American mothers and American workers need a real, decent human life. Kings do not sit well on the stomachs of American workingmen and wonwn, and the quicker the whole gang of them follow the kaiser, the better for a weary and dis gusted world." The second editorial on "That In dustrial Conference," reads: "The in dustrial conference called to meet at Washington by President Wilson has contributed its share to the gayety of nations. Its conception could emanate only from the Impractical college professor. The idea of three groups, one representing capital, one the public and the other labor, sit ting down to the conference table, and arriving at an amicable adjust ment as to how much the capitalists should be permitted to skin labor, is a sight for the gods. "This nation is cursed with eco nomic illiterates. The high offices are filled with men who know abso lutely nothing of economics or the processes of history. The birth of machine technology and the rapid de velopment of the factory system, with its consequent increased exploit ation of the worker, means absolutely nothing to these Rip Van Winkles. Their twilight sleep Is perpetual. They are as blind to the forces now gripping and shifting a new world as though they were still living In the dark ages. If they were not, they would not be. wasting their time hob nobbing with captains of Industry who believe that the worker has no rights which the bosses are bound to respect. The thing for the workers to do Is to return to their shops and organize. Let them have no illusions about the identity of interest of capital and labor. That Is an applied fiction. There is no such thing. The bosses thrive and get fat on the wealth wrung from the blood of the workers through the wage system of produc tion. The bosses must go. That is not the decree of labor. It Is the de cree of evolution. Unions To Fight On. When the bosses fight the unions they are also fighting the invincible march of history. They may crack some of the heads of the workers or shoot them down like dogs, but they cannot stop the onward march. With each blow from the employers the plalanx of labor becomes stronger and more solidified. There can be no de feat. The 6000 slaves wh'o were hung along the Appian way by the bosses of ancient Rome have contributed their part to the fight for a world of free workers. On with the battle." While the officials of the interna tional organization remain silent, as result of the injunction granted by Judge Anderson in Indianapolis, the president of local district No. 17 dis- .patched a letter to President Wilson on the situation in this state which was given to the press this evening by the writer, C. F. Keeney. Because of the mass of detailed information which it contains and because it re flects the state of mind of the union leaders In West Virginia, I shall give it in "full: Letter Is Quoted. "United Mine Workers of America, Charleston, West Virginia, Novem ber 3. 1919. To the president, Wash ington. Sir: The following facts Tired Nerves? Relax a while BAUME ANALGIAS I QUE BENGUE is always soothing. Get a tube. Most drug stores hare it Thorn. UaalDf c N. X. ' Kit- rhoto AMES. Copyright, Underwood. B. concerning the coal mining industry In West Virginia are presented for your Information in view of the at tempt to compel the miners to return to work at the same wages paid them when they voluntarily quit work without reference as to whether they were receiving a decent living wage or not. ine ngures are official and are taken from the report of the de partment of mines: "Comparison of wage increases. Price of mining, 1916, 52 cents: price of mining, 1917, 69 cents; increase over 191S, 32.7 per cent. Price of mining, 1918, 7S cents; increase over 1916, 50 Per cent; increase over 1917, 13 per cent. Comparison of increase of selling price or coal: Selling price. "1916, $1.09. Selling price iiy, iz.zn;- Increase over 1916, 107.3 per cent. Selling price. 1918, $2.8J; increase over 1916, 1S9.6 per cent; increase over 1917, 2Tp.2 per cent. -Average price of coke, $2.10 per ton In 1916. $4.77 in 1917, $6.86 per tor. in 1918. The total value of the produc tion or coal and coke placed on the market was $213,177,977.38 for the year 1918. Net increase in value of production of 1917 over that of 1916 $95,942,361.61. Net increase in value of production of 1918 over that in 1917. $30,426,741.68. Wage Average 1 11.00. "It will be observed that the aver age selling price of coal per ton in 1918 was $2.83, an increase of 184.8 per cent over 1916, or approximately $1.22 per ton above all wage increases granted the miners. It is fair to as sume from these figures that the op erator made an average profit of $1.45 on each ton-of coal mined. The av erage annual wage of pick miners, who are the skilled workmen of the industry, ior tne year 1918 was $111.09 per month. This is the high est wage the coal miners -of West Virginia ever earned. "During this same period hatchet and saw carrpentere working on the government plant at Nitro. right here in tne neart o-r the coal fields, aver era i.3o per momn, or 9Z376 per year. On the same work ditch dig gers made $5 per day, yet the coal miners stayed on the job and actuallv produced 1.200,000 more tons in 1918 than they did In 1917. "In the process 404 miners were killed outright , and 795 severely in jured, as against 394 killed in 1917. a death rate higher than that of the American expeditionary force. With these cold facts before them, who can question the loyalty and Intense Americanism of the West Virginia miners? The coal miners of the country have not received a cent of wage Increase for two full years dur ing this period. All other workers have had from one to four substantial increases. MEXICO REFUSES REFUND American. Consul Denied $150,000 Paid as Ransom to Bandits. WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 The Mexi can government, according to Mexico City newspapers, has refused to re fund to William O. Jenkins, American consular agent at Puebla. the $150,000 ransom money which Jenkins' attor ney was forced to pay Mexican ban dits in order to procure his release after he had been kidnaped last month. S. & H. (.reen siamcs for cash. Holman Fuel Co.. Main 331. A 3353. Adv Wanted Highest cash price paid for used Upright Pianos Player Pianos Grand Pianos Pianos exchanged for . Victrolas and Records Get our proposition. Seiberling-Lucas Music Co. 123-27 Fourth St. Main 8586 MANY STATES ARE SHORT Strike Situation Itself Shows Lit tle Change Approximately 425,000 Miners Idle. CHICAGO, Nov. 5. Beginning of curtailed railroad service and the pinch of inadequate supplies of soft coal in several states today marked the fifth day of the miners' strike. There was little change as- con cerned the strike Itself, although operators in West Virginia and Colo rado reported gains In production. The principal developments were: Removal of six passenger trains from service of the Chicago & North western and the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroads. Refusal of the federal department of justice to consider labor leaders' suggestions that the government In junction against the strike be re scinded. Clothing of Fuel Administrator Garfield by President Wilson with full authority over prices, distribu tion and shipment of all fuel. Appeals for fuel made bv several Nebraska towns to state railway com mission. Railroad Selaures Protested. Iowa fuel administrator's com plaint to Washington against rail roads' seizures of coal while "luxurious" transcontinental trains continued running. California coal dealers reauested Governor Stephens to ask the fuel ad ministrator to release confiscated coal to prevent a possible shortage there. Release of coal seized in transit on orders of fuel aduilnistrtion for relief in some districts. Reports of coal operators of in creased production in West Virginia, where 31 union mines were said to be in operation, and in Colorado. Missouri coal dealers asked revival of the state fuel administration. While approximately 425,000 union miners remained idle today theie wtre few indications whether the strike would be short or protracted. Operators and miners apparently were doing little pending action in the government's injunction in the federal court at Indiatiapolis set for Saturday. There was no evidence that the controversy would be short and pome statements were that the fight would be a long one. Utah Mines Operating. In Utah railroad officials began preparations to clear congested rail lines under fuel administration orders to release coal shipments held up. The Utah miners, or the majority of them, continued at work and all mines remained in operation. The Went Virginia operators an nounced ten union mines resumed operations today in New river section, and that 18 were operating In the northern field and three in the Kanawha district. In five of the ten mines that resumed today the opera tors said the men returned under the old wage scale, four operated as non union and one under open-shop condi tions. The Kanawha operators re ported two mines still operating under union agreements. The Colorado Fuel & Iron company reported 64 per cent of normal force at work In its Colorado mines. Topeka (Kan.) schools were to close tomorrow for one week, a brick factory was closed and many coal dealers' bins were empty and em ployes laid off. Mines at Madrid, N. M., were in operation at full capacity today, ac cording to operators, and three at Gallup were, running with reduced forces. Convict Labor Available. Governor Robertson of Oklahoma announced he would await completion ' of government injunction proceedings before attempting to operate Okla homa mines with unskilled labor, but said convict labor would be put to work in mines on state lands. Two passenger trains on the C, M. & St. P. were suspended, officials an nounced, at Ottumwa. la. At Mason City. la., the Chicago & Northwestern took off two trains and curtailed freight service and two other local trains between Chicago and Wiscon sin points were annulled, although officials made no announcement that the latter two were removed because of the strike. Consumers to Get Coal. A conference of the coal commit tees of the central western and north western railroad regions today agreed that no diversions would be made of coal from Utah mines, where cars would be shipped by operators In ac cordance with federal priority orders. Dr. F. C. Honnold of the central western committee sent letters to I Cold? 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