New-York tribune., 1870-12-14
THE coal STRIKE.

WAGES OF COAL MINERS-GREAr REDUCTION
DEMANDED BY THE GREAT CoMPANILS-s
CONSPIRACY BETWEEN THE COMPANIES AND
THEIR MEN-THE COMPANIES AND THE
PUBLIC. ...
SCRANTON, Dec. 13.-It needs very little be-
yond mere statement In dollars and cents 10 show that
the wages which the great Coal Companies have been
paying are excessively high They have been giving Tor
mining 81 81 per diamond" car Of from one and ahaft
two tuns capacity. miner and laborer usually got on'
seven cars each day, which amount to " H. FROM tnl'
sum must be deducted, at liberal estimate, for oast
ing owder lamp oil tool sharpenng and blasting paper
soap and wear and tear Of tools all OF when the miner
has TO furnish leaving q IT for the miner and aborer
The aborer gets from "a 70 to - for his share oihe
work, q average, leaving " II lot the niher
Now other companies and private operators IN hS ro
gon who have accepted tho miners basis have been pay
ing all the year but Sc IS per days complement OF ~
tuns from which deduct 81 for expenses, and there re-
mains IS @ of which the laborer receives " 25 leaving
q 80 for the miner. Here is difference OF 81 IN
favor OF the companies miners and rs cents In favor
OF their laborers. Tho Sohuylkil or "Gowan'
basis Is even still lower-probaby nearly as much Dc
low that OF the private operators and companies
here, the wages paid by the latter are below those
hitherto paid by the great companies IL Is not there
FORE 10 be questioned that the great companies found IL
matter OF necessity to reduce wages. The wonder is
that they did not make reduction months ago, and the
only possible explanation OF their neglect TO do 30 Ia that
they were either determined to break up the Miners
Union or TO cripple the private operators, or both Had
they attempted to reduce wages last Spring OF Summer
when the schuylkill were out on strike Tor hVe
months the price Of coal would have risen the schuy
kill men would have made terms with their employers
and the Miners Union and private producers OF that
region would both have been strengthened.
Was the reduction decided expressly for tho pur-
pose OF bringing about strike The officials OF the
companies say not and profess to be surprised that the
did not accept II and keep on working Let US COM
pare the wages which the companies have been paying
with those that they propose to pay hereafter or as soon
as they persuade their TO accept them We have
seen that under the old scale the miner got IS II for
full days work Under the proposed reduction, seven
cars Of sc cents would give &c o. from which deduct
for expenses and for the inside laborer and We have
left 81 02 for the miner Tho miner would thus be cut
down 81 49, 40 per cent, and the aborer VI, or
about onethrd 1t should be understood that the miner
makes his own contract with his laborer but the above
are the established prices To outside laborers working
above ground the companies have been paying " day
they now offer 81 s.. Some time is unavodably lost by
the miners on account of breakage and necessary repairs
Of machinery explosions scarcity Of mules and other
causes that their average may be put down at about
| % or % days month.
1t will scarcely be disputed that 40 per cent pretty
sharp reduction OF wages and 1t can hardly astons any
one outside the offices OF the great companies that the
miners refused to submit. And yet the companies say
and tay truly that the wages they propose TO pay
good wages and the same as they paid in 1861 1863 and
1862 up the suspension in that year. They better
wages than the schuylkill now getting under
their basis, and better than the wages paid for more
severe and quite skilled labor in iron works
and on railroads. They also say that living is less
pensve than two and three years ago, when they
paid the they Offer Granting all this, we
very naturally led to inquire why have they paid for
fifteen months to their miners and aborers upward Of
srfy per cent more than they oeri Deductng the
miners necessary expenses, they now offer him and his
laborcr IS O2 for days work. for which for over year
he has steadily been receiving 6 II. Do they not rea
that the coal market s gluttedl That they have
half million tuns on hand to profit by any rise That
they could not lose more by standing still thar they In
eyitably must they go on Pr11ucngi dnat thelp t
acquiescence 1t has represented that there is
sort of understanding between the companies aud the
miners that both work together to keep the price
Of coal by dnlshng the supply That !; % not true oi
and Hudson, and the PENNSYLVANIA companies This is a
fact however: That in September 1862 when coal at
the companies came to terms with their men, and
granted them the enormous wages mentioned above 1t
is quite true as the officers or the companies Ultimate
that the principles on which they conduct their business
the public. Nevertheless 1t Is clear that II miners and
aborers have received advance of GO per cent in
nearly doubling the price OF coal the temptation Is
strong for them to repeat the effort In order to retain
what they have already once triumphantly secured.
II would be quite difficult for the companies to JUS
tfy their policy 10 the public as to their own sockh0d
eTs. III is tleH business 70 suIpS
and demand Of labor and not By the price of coal Hay
ing themselves advanced wages GO per cent TO take ad
vantage Of corresponding rise In Anthracite with
what do they resist the miners demand TO have
his compensation rise and fan with the price Of coal
II they right in c0nceding what they did
their abOrers In September 1869, they clearly
wrong in not Offering basis They virtually say,
stick until coal goes to s., and then we may come TO
terms did last year" Having once admitted the
principle OF the basis sliding scale, for which the
miners contend how can they expect the public to re-
spect the sincerity Of their hostiyl Having scarcely
year since reaped rich harvest through the firm
ness OF their miners and labOrers in struggling
for what they had never yet been yielded,
they expect that people that precisely similar
struggle s renewed, will give them credit either for
greater irmness less setshnessi do think the
companies expect their TO hold out long enough TO
carry coal very high. They will probably be well
tented their miners at work again at the proposed
reduction Nevertheless they have no right to complain
may lit to make on their present course.