The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-03-04


w. b. A., but 1t has two enemies: Its
difficulty of determining who shall, or Should or
must emigrate. Some must remain in tue col.
heItes. Who is to determine who and how many
shall leave? Second. The operators are OPP
posed to it, and how By their action; for il is
the interest and practice of the individual ope-
rators and of the coal corporations, when the
market Is active and prices are high, to employ
as many men and work as many hours as they
can, and thus make hay while the sun shines.
The second remedy is that of the W. B. A,
and is based on the fact that all admit the ne
cessity Of curtailing the supply by reducing it
TO the demand. The one-fifth surplus of coal
must be reduced. This cannot be accomplished
by reducing the number of miners; it can only
be accomplished by one-fifth reduction of the
hours of labor.
The W. B. A., by suspensions and strikes,
sought to deplete the market, not to wthuraw
the supply OF coal, but to make the stock equal
to the consumption, and when the market is
thus brought to Its healthful state, to make
eight hours instead of ten days labor, basing
their determination on the fact that since men
throughout the world we're agitating the ques-
tion whether ten hours did not overtask the
physical strength of the average man,
ana weie actually prevailing, by
TEN. The w. B. A. askc IL ten hours overtasks
a man working in the open air, what effect must
ten hours have upon the constitution OF one who
l9bOTs thousand feet beneath the surface, breath
ing foul, damp air often filed with smoke and
standing over shoetop in water? There is no man
"
one. But this necessitates a corresponding
advance in the price OF labor. Men saw ffhink Of
the the poor sewing-girl or the poor washerwoman; OF
the poor widow and her family, whose weeks wages
are barely SUFFICIENT to purchase ton of COAL"
We know from experience what 1t is to be poor, and
we know, too, that those who are making hundreds
OF thousands yearly by the sweat Of miners are not
remarkable for donations OF coal TO the sewing-grl
or the widow, although they could better afford to
do so on their profits than the miner on his wages.
Of our feelings and those whom we represent, It
does not become us to speak. Let the payrolis at
different Offices Sh tuha
men in the coal regions feel for the poor The
question between the miners ana the public is
stanty Kept before the public that the "W b. A."
demanded terms 30 exorbitant as to preclude the
the mines, and that If their demands were
acceded to the resumption of work
have to be refought. That there would he q con-
tinueh recurrence OF suspensions at intervals
known only to the w. B. A., and consequently that
operators could not bind themselves to fulfil con-
tracts for coal. Consumers would have no notice
when their supply would be cut or The public
have been told that by the 1852 or SO basis miners
earned fabulous amounts-in fact, that their wages
amounted to as high as $500 in the calendar month.
This is true, say the public.
The Board OF Operators have asserted it in seve-
raj addresses to the public and the reason alleged
for reduction was that coal should be sold at such
figure at to be within the reach OF ALL Frst take
the beam out of thine own eye. When have coal
operators told the public OF fabulous proHts-of
man one hundred miles away from his breaker
clearing the small sum CT sixty thousand dollars in
five months?
An operator can be produced who has grown poor
within the last year, but the number is legion who
have risen within few years from poverty to opu-
lence, and who can say with the utmost nonchal-
ance, 81 don't care a = whether they work or not
let the colliery rot-I have money to live on yet" {"
This modern Dives is like him OF Old feeding sump-
tuOusly clothed in purple and fine linen, reluctantly
allowing a few crumbs to workingmen.
We state fact beyond contradiction when we
say the maximum is not more than one hundred
dollars per month, while he works, supposing the
work to continue for 10 months Owing TO accidents
weather, and repairs, 1t cannot last longer TT Is
for him who is exposed to the danger OF being
crushed by falling coal and rock, aud whose occupa
tion is considered still more hazardous from the
quantity of powder he must use?
The miners use on an average twenty Kegs per
month. Even those who have got this much truth
have an erroneous idea OF what miner earns. Even
when they consider that the men have not worked
more than seven months during the last two years,
which makes their average wages less than 500.
There Is fact in which the public is Ia profound
ignorance Of, viz. THAT sometimes even when
working hardest the miner earns nothing. IL oftee
in Mn'i rocky places it does little execution
sufae srmed h''''1 with SO little effect that the
amount of coal thrown out will scarcely more than
pay for the powder, that time and labor Is lost
one the objects Of the Union is to see that he
not kept more than certain time in such places
Admitting the miner earns larger amounts, what Is
the necessary OUTLAY, not to speak of the corroiinl
nature of the mineral water which eats pair o
noots at ten dollars every month, and suit o
clothes every two months, which makes the outla
| for these items ten dollars per month? The mine
has to pay the very highest price for everything
| he eats and wears.
Owing to the barrenness of the soil in the Goa
! districts farm produce must be carted from dis
tance, and consequently Is sold at high prices WhC
| hos not heard OF the odious system OF compan'
| stores which sell them goods 1--WE put 1t at YER
| low estmate) at 80 per cent. advance? Then an
five per cent for collection, the doctors bs, COZ
| lected when no sickness exists, the tax when no
| taxable, etc Hence we recognize the necessity o
| both sides being represented and heard bV Tn
| public before forming judgment upon this ques
| ton. JAMES hEALY, freslient
| General Council, Centralia, Columbia CO., Pa
| Outrage In the Goal Region.
Mt. CARMEL. March "A man named Hofi
man was shot in his bed last night, aud one en-
Of the building blown out. 1t is supposed tina
powder was placed under the building and eS
ploded after the man was shot. Nine balls wer
found in the house. Hoffman was working i
the mines, outside of the Union, and the act
attributed to the miners attached to the UnioI
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