The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1877-08-30
Condition of the Miners in the Penn.
sylyania Coal Regions.
[scranton Letter to New York Herald.J

lScranton Letter to New York Herald
The destitution of the most of these
miners is appalling, and to walk into
their little cottages and huts and witness
the sights there to be seen is fearful.
Whole families would have nothing to
eat; but for the charitable and their
relief store just started, many would
die of starvation. 1t might be supposed,
and reasonably so, that the quarter of
a loaf provided for them by the COM
panies, if they would work, would be
better than no bread, and l so suggested.
One of the men Immediately replied,
and give his words, nearly verbatim /:
If the work that we are called upon
to do was anything but what it is we
would accept the little offered to us as
better than nothing and continue our
labors. But remember that we are
called upon to do dangerous work, and
none of of us know when we 90 down a
shaft whether we shall ever come out of
it.ahve again or not. Many and many a
man is brought up dead, killed by a
dropping rock or suffocated by the gas
To keep man cool and careful in such
work he should have at least full
stomach, but when little mush is all
he can get for his breakfast and few
old potatoes for his dinner, l tell you,
sir, man loses his head, and either be-
comes careless and is killed, or cannot
resist the gas and is suffocated, or so
inhales it that it tells upon his weak
system, and he is good for nothing for
many week afterward. l cannot keep
family and feed myself upon five dol
lars week. No man can. And when
1 am down in that mine and these
thoughts come into my head 1 tell you a
man gets wild, and he would prefer to
live above on the earth and starve to
running the dangers of that mine.
Thank God, when we are above ground
there is no roof to fall in and crush us;
no foul gas to suffocate us or render us
useless for work; no danger of tapping
vein of water and being drowned as
we crouch in our chamber! We would
have left work in March, but the cold
weather was yet with us, and provisions
were high. To-day we can get potatoes
from the farmers and live on them till
some aid reaches u.s."
"But what is the object of the strike,
and what is your idea ofwhat you should
receiver l asked.
"We sent a committee before the
company" was the reply, "and alive
asked was an advance of twenty-five per
cent. on our present wages. We asked
not for full time, and are willing to take
our chances alike with the other men in
getting work; but We did ask that we
should get some sort of decent remu-
neration for the dangerous work we are
called upon to do"
1 have given above, without embellish-
ments, the statements of the men. 1
found them quiet, orderly and civil
They deprecated any violence, were
strongly opposed to marching or gather
ings, and denounced the action of the
roughs from the outlying districts who
fought with the vigilants in the streets
of Scranton. The miners of Hyde Park
are the best in the country. Many of
them have little homes of their own,
built upon the lands of the company;
but such are to-day as hard up as any of
the others, for they cannot sell their
properties, or even raise money on them
during these times.