The Brookhaven leader., 1889-10-24
MISUSED MINERS.
Gross Violation of Law at the Mendoza
Coal Mines-The Labor Commissioner
Unearths Pretty state of Affairs.


Coal Mines-The Labor Commlssloner
Unearths Pretty state OF Affairs.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo, Oct 19-Mr. Leg
MerIwether, Labor Commissioner, has re-
turned from Putnam County, where he
had gone to investigate the condition OF
miners at the Mendoza coal mines, and
has made known to the Governor some
facts concei ming the payment of wages to
coal miners that are very interesting. In
1885 the Legislature passed q law prohib-
iting the operators Of coal mincs from
paying the employees in orders on stores
or n any thing but cash under penalty Of
500 and imJ risonment. This law was
made necessary for the protection of
miners all over the State, who, by reason
of the kind OF wages paid to them by the
companies they worked for, suffered heav-
lily in a reduction of wages that at best
were low enough to excite sympathy.
The mining companies, following the
Pennsylvania plan, had built little houses
about the mines, which they rented to the
miners, collecting the rent from their
wages, and had established stores from
which the m ners were obliged to pur-
chase their supplies, always at the high
est figures, so that when wages were raid
they were not paid in cash but In store
orders ana rent receipts
From reports of his agents throughout
the State, Mr. Meriwether has found that
the law is a dead letter. so far as the OPP
erations of mining companies are con-
cerned, and last " eek the Labor Commits
siouer paid visit to the Mendoza coal
mines in Putnam County TO make per-
sonal investigation into the manner in
which miners were paid by the Mendoza
nua of the n Of the
labor bureau recently forwarded to his
chief a circu ar piece Of pasteboard, which
read as follows:
This check is good for one dollar. DIe Janu-
airy l. 1899 MGndota Coal & Mining Company,
Mendoza Mo.
The Labor Comm ssoner at once wrote
the company, asking if it was true that
these checks were not payable within ten
years except in supplies from their stores
| and in reply received letter to the effect
that the checks were pay able in cash only
at the time stated thereon.
81 went to the mines at Mendoza, Z" said
Mr. Meriwether, 'and without revealing
my identity circulated among the miners,
and found that all that had been said
| about the charac' or of the checks received
was true. 1t seems that the com pany has
a large store in the little mining commu-
| nlty from WHICH Ino inluoTS eApeCtou
to purchase all the supplies they need,
and that every miner has an account
at the store payable in checks re-
ceived as wages. The company owns the
houses, too, in which tho miners live. and
deducts the rent from the wages of the
miners Pay day is the goth of each moni h
and then, if the miners prefer, th7y may
be pal in cash. minus their store and
rent account But at any o her time of
the month should they nee money they
can receive it only in the form of these
checks, which are discounted at the rate
| of eighty cents on the dollar. Now
| it is true that miner may wait I'M
| til pay day and then receive cash
| wages but il he follows that prac-
tice his days as an employe OF the COM
pany are numbered. This is not a wild
statement, as have here affiiavits from
men who were discharged from the SER
vice of the company by written notice
from the president thereof on official pa
per because their account at the COM
pany's stores was not large enough. l do
not care to make any comment on such
transa actions by min ing company further
than to say that l had no idea that the law
of the State could be so openly and so IA
grantly violated. l asked the president of
the company for an explanation of his
practice in this resp ct and explained the
nature of the law forbidding it He said he
had never heard CT the law, and yet on
his desk before his eyes was a copy of the
session acts of 1885 containing the law. /
took this b ,ok from his DISK and pointed
out the law to him. but he feigned great
surprise al its existence and claimed he
never before heard of it. l called mass
meeting Of miners and personally invited
the mne owners to attend. S ma of them
oil So About $50 of the miners were
present, and there in public, and before
some of the operators, and in face
of the fact that the company's
stenographer was present taking a
report of each sentences uttered. the
miners boldly avowed every thing
that they had in private communicated to
me about the obligation they were under
to patronize the company's store and the
alternative they had OF getting their
checks cas- he'd for so cents on the dollar
or losing their places, as it was no secret
that failure to patron 70 the store to The
extent OF given amount every month
had become ground for dismissal 1 told
the miners that there was a law prohibit
ing the owners of the mine from paying
their wages to them in the form of store
orders, ana tnat Snoulu lOQge lnIOrma-
tion with the prosecuting attorney of Put
nam County against the operators for
violating it. Tho meeting was thus
brought to a close and l have since my re-
turn written to Prosecuting Attorney Nc
Kinley a statement of the facts l have
discovered and accompanied the same by
copies of affidavits furnished by miners in
support of the statements made, together
with some of the checks, which bought
there at the rate of so cents for the dol
lar"
Mr.. Meriwether intends to follow up the
prose cution. il one il. inaugurated by the
authorities of Putnam County, and to do
every thing in his power to suppress the
Pennsylvania practice, which be has
reason to believe is followed by too many
of the Missouri mines.
Civil-Service Question.
WASHINGTON Oct. 19-The Civil-Ser-
vice Commissioners have asked the At
torney General for an opinion on an i'm
portant test case, to-wit: On May l the
civil service rules were extended over the
railway mail service. On April 20 j. NJ.
Tavl0r nf IIlinnic waS annpinta1 m a No.