Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-02-16
C0RBIN IN FOR THE WAR.
HE TELLS THE CONGRESSIONAL CON-
MlTTEE ABOUT THE RE AIDING,


That Not "A Striking Railway Man shal
Ever Come Back In His Iime-wrIin,
to Treat with Miners at Work-Parker'i
Hypothetical Question.
PHILADELPHIA, Pa, Feb IG-The special
congressional committee appointed to investi.
gate the Reading strike in Pennsylvania be-
gan its sessions Wednesday morning in parloI
c of the Continental hotel All the members
were present. President Corbin, of the Read
ing railway, was the first to be heard by tn,
committee, and after being informed Of tn,
object of the committee he said:
"The Reading Railway company owns
every share of tue Coal and Iron company's
stock. That stock is worth as, 900 900. There
are other items of cost that the purchase OF
property entailed that will be furnished in
detail at later sitting The Reading has nc
other lines running beyond the limits of the
state of Pennsylvania but that running to
Bound Brook The Central railroad of New
Jersey was surrendered because we could
not afford to keep it, We transport coal out
of the state by means Of vessels and boats,
but do not carry other freight, and only act
as a common carrier of freights mined at our
own mines"
The mines now had from > so TO 5000
men working. Prior to the strike the output
Of the Reading collieries was q 200, 600 tons
annually. He could not give the COMMITTEES Il
compar son OF the income of the company at
this time with what it was prior to the strike.
He said there was a very heavy falling off
and promised to furnish the committee with
full statistics in regard to it. Twenty three
cents ton net was all the profit the Reading
Coal and Iron company got for mining coal
during 1887 All the rest went to the miners
in wages. No other company would ac-
cept that as fair royalty on the
business of mining coal The owners of
mines would not lease them on that basis.
The Reading company always got less profit
out Of the business than any Other company,
and the miners got the benefit of it, Speak
ing Of the ultimatum Issued by the company
to the men by which, after the railroad strike
started they were given three days notice to
return to work or lose their PLACES, he said:
"None of the striking workmen ever came
back again, and none of them ever will while
l am president of this road. When the time
arrived there were in all about 9, 900 men
stricken from the company's rOlls."
His attention was called to the contention
as to Superintendent Sweigard'S alleged
trickery with committee of the men on the
q uestion of arbitration, in reference to which
he said: "There never any thought Of arbi-
tration on my part, and Mr.. Swoigard had
received full information on that point. /
have heard that Mr. Sweigard was charged
with saying that if the men went back to
work the company would agree to bitrate.
do not believe anything of the kind was
ever said We had been thwarted and an
noyed for months by these Knights of Labor,
and made upmy mind that if the mon would
not deliver our coal orders it was about time
to take the matter into our own hands"
Corbin proceeded then to submit all the
correspondence which was
evolved during the agitation of the strike of
the railroad hands, After reading the letter
requiring the men to decide in ther allie
glance as between the railway company and
tho Knights of Labor, Corbn said: q wrote
that letter myself, and meant it, The lead
ers of the Knights of Labor shall not dictate
10 the company so long rs | am its president
We decline now, and shall decline to DIS
GUS the question of wages with men who are
put on strike We have said, 'You go
10 work, and we'll agree to give you as much
as anybody, and if you want to be paid on
any other basis, we'll give it to you | can
say positively that if the miners were to go to
work we could reach M agreement. | don't |
think the miners would have gone ont except !
10 support the railroad strikers Most Of the |
men who came to fill the strikers places arc |
from different states We pay them the |
same wages as we paid the other men | |
mad half bushel of letters Yesterday |
from men asking for work which | could not |
give them. can not think of any particu-
ar influence that brought so many Hunga
-iuns, Italians and Poles to the coal reg ions. |
don't know that any corporation had any
hing to do with their influx, and | should |
lot like to express my opinion as to whether
foreigners or Americans take the lead in the |
labor organizations Mr.. Whiting can tell |
you more about that. There is no absolute
rate of wages paid the miners
The sliding scale refers to losses as well as to
profits l can say, though, that the miners
'arn more than on any other basis paid. If
he miners don't go back till the railroad
nen do, all have to say is they never will
70 back so long as have anything to do
With the company. They can't play fast and
Dose with corporation like ours"
Corbin continued: "And another thing,
we can fill the places of the striking miners
n ten days if the new men can be protected
Up in the mining districts big men with
,lubs and pistols are violently keeping not
,nly other men but. boys who desire to earn
living and keep from starving, away
rom the mines and the breakers. We have
,een compelled to protect the 3, 900 men now
It work by police and constables under coun-
y officers, the expense of which we will be
to pay"
Parker endeavored to learn something about
he largest holders of Reading stock, but Cor
in knew but little about the matter. He
ecIined to state how much he owned, al
hough he declared that he did not own suf-
Client to control the organization.
"Do you say" asked Parker, "that you
ave right to shut down your cOllieriesP
a must say that if we could not mine witt
ut loss we would be justified in doing SO.
Suppose you decide arbitrarily to close
p, would you consider that you had right
} do so!'
The witness hesitated for a moment, and
len replied 81 should like to consult some
ne before giving that question an answer
should not care to say that we had not"
"The anthracite product of the world is
conferred in the three valleys cou-
'olled by companies receiving their charter
rom the people, is it noF
81 presume So"
"Do you say, obtaining your right from
he people, that you can shut them out from
le enjoyment of that anthracite product"
That's question. don't want to give a
gal opinion here unless am paid for it,"
THAT is your answer thenF
ayes sir"
Continuing, Corbin cited the incident of
10 railroad men declining to deliver -four to
q Taylor Sons, but no new fact in cOnnec-
on with this case was brought out
Parker then said: AS a result of this
rike you have been relieved of the pay
ent of the wages of H. 900 work people and
eaned up all tina coal on hand. Can you
We the financial result of that"
President Corhin eyed his quostioner for
instant and then answered "No,"
Continuing, in answer to questions, he
i'd: "ihese 900 men on the railroad went
It on purpose to ini1ra this corporation; j..
ey had no complaint to make Of pay or la Il
II, and they never shall work for Inc c.
ain"
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