The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-07-01
MINERS READY FOR REVOLT.
The Movement Headed by President Harris
in Favor of Eight Hours Day.

in Favor of Eight Hours Day.
Pottsville (Pa.) Special,
In few months there is going to be an upris-
ing among the miners in the anthracite coal
regions such as will surprise some of the New
York coal company managers, who, seated IN
cosy offices, give little heed to the impoverished
condition of the miners, and order one suspen-
sion after another that prices may be main
tanned. Jack Williams, an intelligent miner,
who is in the confidence of his fellow delivers,
said: 'sThis thing of maintaining the trade at
the expense Of the poor workman can't last The
worm will turn at last Either the allotment
or some other system must be devised and re-
sorted to or there will be trouble
The seed sown in this region by George Har-
| ris. president of the Miners Amalgamated AS
sociation, will bear fruit before long. Fifteen
| thousand anthracite coal miners have already
banded themselves together and their number is
being augmented continually. The bitumln-
GUS miners are enrolled under the same banner,
and before Christmas, Is. 900 golfers will have
| signed their names and paid their fees to help
each other in times of need. Midsummer may
see the enrolment finished but there will
scarcely be any demonstration before cold
weather.
"The Miners Amalgamated Association said
President Harris, in his speech at Shenandoah a
few evenings since, has for its motto Eight
hours work, eight hours sleep, eight hours play
and SO day.'n The motto seems good enough
| for this region, where men work underground
for about half that amount Mr.. Harris said
men they could never hope to cope with their
employers; that they must take whatever the
latter saw fit to give them; that they must work
when ordered, and lie idle when told-ln fact
they were mere machines. His object, he said
was not to foment strikes-that was directly OPP
posed to the purpose of his. organization, which
believed in solving the differences between cap
ital and labor in a more peaceable and equitable
fashion, viz: arbitration The association was
firmly established throughout the bituminous
coal region, and had memberships of AZ, 00O
1t had there wrestled with the gigantic corpora
tions and monopoles which had hitherto ground
| down the men, and it had been successful DE
came here to preach the same salvation. HIS
object in coming to the anthracite coal fields was
| to extend the same hope to his brethren here.
| He came to establish the association here, and
he believed he would succeed. The open hand
| of fellowship he met with was gratifying. He
had spoken at Ashland, Girardville, Mahanoy
Plane, and Mahanoy City, and each OF those
| places promised to organize branch.
At the close of his remarks, ex Representative
| Conroy said that all who wished to join the or
i ganization might hand in their names Shenan-
/ doah is essentially a mining town. There are
seven large collieries in the borough limits,
| and almost as many more within mile or two.
The enrolment began early and continued
| steadily until a late hour whenit was adjourned
until the next evening. and then again was ad-
iourned until the following evening, and so con-
tinued until 2 500 miners had signed The lists
On the following evening President Harris
spoke in the little town of st. Clair. The
weather was incement and the meeting WAS
4 held in a small hall At the close of the meet
1 ing 1888 persons. signed the lists. Twenty-seyen
branches of the Miners Amalgamated Associa-
/ ton, with an average membership of more than
/ 400 has been the result of Harris's two weeks
canvass in Schuylkill county Reports from
Luzerne, where he now is, are to the effect that
his earlier meetings there continued to be uni
1 fornly successful. The men have for some
| time recognized the fact that their interests
i hot bafVs