Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-01-21
A SETTLEMENT AFAR OFF
THAT IS THE PRESENT OUTLOOK
 OF THE MINERS STRIKE.

'''N' ID LIE FRES6Ni OO Oi.OO'>
 OF THE MINERS STRIKE.
 Business Men Express the Opinion That
 the Trouble is the Result of Scheme
 on the Part of the Coal Pool-strlkers
 Expect to Win.
 READING, Jan. 21.-The situation in the
 coal regions remains unchanged. All reports
 that five of the Reading company's collieries
 are running are erroneous. Nothing is going Tn the coal regions excepting that few very
 small concerns are run by few dozen miners.
 The miners are out to stay out, and the Read
 ing Railroad company will not recede That l. how matters stand, and bid fair to stand for
 some time, the best posted men cannot tell
 how long. Apparently all efforts for peace
 have been given up. Those business men who concerned themselves in behalf of a settlement
 have come to the conclusion that they have
 had their labor for their pains, and that it was
 an idle task from the first.
 A prominent business man who has just re-
 turned from the coal regions says that he
 finds leading business men now of one opin-
 ion only, and that it is that the entire trouble
 If the result of preconceived policy of the
 coal pool, first, to force up the wholesale price
 of coal fifty cents or $1 per ton at the mines,
 and, second, to annihilate, if possible, the
 labor organizations that have been annoy
 ing the company by unbusinesslike dictation
 for some time. MT. Corbin has said
 that too much money has been paid for
 labor at the mines out of the receipts
 for coal, and that to carry mining at
 profit the price of coal had to he advanced.
 The details for forcing up the price of coal
 may not have been planned by the coal pool,
 but business men are of the opinion that the
 miners strike was welcome to the pool: that
 they knew coal would naturally advance to a
 high figure, and that when the miners re- stunned the prices could be lowered within
 fifty cents or $1 to what the price was in De-
 cember last, thus attaining their object in an
 easy and apparently natural way. Prior to
 this understanding by the coal pool, busi-
 ness men in this valley say that the Lehigh
 members of the pool sent sharp letters
 to the Reading railroad officials for granting the 8 per cent. advance after the Lehigh com
 pany had refused it. Then it was that the
 coal pool resolved that they must stand to- gether, both ill allotments and prices and wages, and MT. Corbin found himself out voted and compelled to decline to pay the miners the per cent advance any longer. It
 is the general opinion that this plan did not anticipate tho trainmens strike. This was an
 issue the coal pool did not anticipate would be so suddenly sprung upon them. Some, however, say that even that trouble was pre- cipitated Intentionally by the company as oart of the war on organized labor. A lead ng member of the city council here said to-day:
 ''Mr. Corbin never dreamed that the miners rould take up the cause of the trainrnen. He nsls himself in a dilemma that he never an- .cipated. The company officials were right i'll their position that they should say who should and who should not be employed by he company, but they made the mistake ill ndertaking to do too much in the rush to !ipe out these labor organizations. The best ay to deal with labor organizations is to see nat they are run by level headed men, be- ause labor organizations can never be wiped ut in these United States. The officials, when the labor leaders declared the strike off, hould have given the men plenty of time to ,et back to their engines and trains; but in- tead of that the absentees who could not pos ~ibly get back in time were summarily dis charged. This blow at organized labor is what the P, 900 miners in the coal reg ions are resenting, and they will fight Mir. Corbin, wen if it comes to blood Said leader of the strike last night: ''This ! ;trike will continue until the Reading com ,any is sick and tired of it, and the 800, 900 ! members of orders will keep the 10000 strikers from starvation. It MT. COfbn wants to bring new men here to work in the ! hines he is welcome. We do not apprehend hat he will make any such effort He can't | ,et miners in the United States, for they are ,ur brothers. He can't import them, for | that's illegal. Raw material won't do, because | it takes experienced men to mine coal. l do aot suppose the Reading company cares much ! about this question as yet because every dol ar they lose by the strike they will fully make ! up in months to come by putting up the price ! of coal fifty cents ton. On the 13,000, 900 ! tons they mine per year the profit can easily ! be calculated
 ! WILKEsBARRE, Pa., Jan. 21.-In all address ! before mass meeting of miners at Ashley ! Ir w. H. Hines advanced a new idea rela- 1 tive to the strike. He advised the strikers to apply to the poor authorities in their districts ! or aid. This would under the law have to be accorded them, and to meet it a tax would have to be levied, which would necessarily fall nost heavily on the corporations and wealthy ! :oal operators. Thus they would be com
 'elled to contribute to the support of the men they are trying to starve into submission, and ! Ill this way could soon be brought to terms