Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-02-16

anomalous relations that have heretofore
existed between them to the detriment Of
| both.
THE LABOR TROUBLE COMMITTEE.
1t Organizes and Begins the Investigate on.
| WASHINGTON, Feb. 1.-THE special
committee appointed to investigate the
existing labor troubles in Pennsylvania
elected Representative TilIman chairman
| and then listened to an informal state
ment from Representative Brumns, whose
district is in the Reading regions. He
said the railroad and mining companies
were one and controlled mining and
prices of coal in the entire region. He
thought this whole lockout was fostered
| by the Reading company, and that the
other corporations were as deep in the
mud as the Reading is in the mire. If
| the mining business were not connected
with the carrying business the effect
would be TO put higher price on coal at
| the mines and lower price on freight.
| WASHINGTON, Feb. 1.-THE special
committee of the house to investigate the
| Reading railroad strike. examined John
| j. Lee of Philadelphia g sympathiser
with the railroad strikers, this morning.
In answer to the questions Lee said: He
did not consider there was any strike on
| the Reading raiIroad-it was lockout
of five crews, he said, who refused to
mOve5cars at Port Richmond and General
Supe rintendent Sweigart discharg
| ed them without giving them
hearing. There was an agreement that no
man should be discharged except after a
| hearing. When the superintendent re-
fused to reinstate the men pending
hearing a general going out followed.
| subsequently meeting was held at Potts
vile and it was resolved to effect set
| Element Witness and others went to
Philadelphia and called upon Swigart
and made arrangements to declare the
strike off. There was no written agree
ment. Swigart was asked to put the
agreement in writing and he refused.
The next day Swigart
| REFUSED TO LIVE UP TO AGREEMENT
and discharged representative men all
along the lines. The men went cut as
there was nothing else to do. The result
of Sweigart's refusal to carry out his
| agreement was the cause of the second
strike or lock. out. Referring to the
| trouble at Elizabethport, n. j., the wit
ness said it was due to the refusal of the
men to load boats with coal for Eckley
B. Coke, in whose mines there was
| a strike and the men believed
i the Reading company was trying to aid
| Coke in his fight against the strikers.
| l. ee went TO Pottsville and called a joint
n Getting of the labor assemblies involved
and committee was sent 80 President
Corbin. The latter offered no oompro-
mise bat threatened punishment Of the
| strikers if they did not move the coal
| then on the cars. It was held by the
| strikers that the Reading company was
helping the Lehigh Coal company in the
stand against the employees. Corbin was
| asked TO bring about a settlement be-
tween the company and the men. Corbin,
| together with Mcleod, OF the railroad
and coal company, suggested as remedy
la plan by which the coal market would be
| bulled and the wages of the strikers were
to be made to go up with the price of
coal. This the strikers refused to ao-
cept. Corbin, the witness said, did not
want to be known in the matter.
ON REORGANIZATION.
Witness VIM. NJ Lewis, of Columbus, O.,
who was in charge of district 135, miners
organization, could give positive evil
dence that there has existed for some
time combination between the power
full railroad corporations having head
quarters in New York, to break up the
organization of the Knights of Labor.
| As the conclusion of Lees testimony
Hugh McGarvey, of the Lehigh region,
took the stand and testified. The imme-
date cause of the strike IN the Lehigh
region was that the basis of prices was
too low. The miners would hardly aver
age $3.50 per annum as their earnings.
Perhaps % per cent of the miners accu-
mulated a little money.
Mr.. Stone asked if the operators had
not
ACCUMULATED LARGE FORTUNES.
Witness replied that some of the veal
thiest men in the state were in the Uehigh
region. Since the strike began many of
the miners had found work in other reg
ions but about forty per cent. were still
idle. He knew of none that were actu
ally starving but there were many in
want. Since September the labor organ
izations had distributed $4,000 or $1,000
weekly among these people. He said
that the miners were valued by
the assessor of taxes ct 500 and laborers
at SIS. The companies deducted the
amount of the taxes from the miners
wages together With d Two per c6A6' GULL
mission for making the collections, and
turned it over to the collector of taxes.
The tax amounted to as much
as $50 for miner. In answer
to Mr.. Parker, witness said that the
Catholic miners paid their priests
about so cents a month apiece, through
the compsny's Office. At the time of the
strike there were about 5000 Hungarians,
Poles and Italians in the regions. The
chairman inquired whether witness was
paid for lecturing for the miners and he
replied in the affirmative.
John II. Davidson, a miner from
Mount Carmel, said the general impress
sion was that the Philadelphia and Read
ing Railroad company and Coal and
Iron company were under the same man
agement. Witness told how the opera
tors had managed to