Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-02-15
SAFETY OF MINERS.
That Was the Question Considered
by the Columbus Meeting.
LEGISLATION THE MINERS WANT.
The General and Defense Fund Are Merged
Into One Hereafter.
PENNSYLVANIA STRIKERS ENDORSED

brhCiAL IELh9hAM TO TEE plsFATSH.a
COLUMBUS, Feb. lathe National Con-
ventlon of Miners has adjourned to Monday
with the prospect that it will require the
greater part of next week to complete the
work. The scale question. which is one
OF the most important, was referred
back to the Scale Committee with
instructions to investigate the conditions in
the several districts, and it is expected they
will be ready to report by Monday. There
are rumors of a sensation brewing in the K.
OF L., in which Hayes, Cavanaugh and
others are interested, but none of the par
t~iculars have been learned.
The defense fund occupied the attention
of the convention nearly all day. Some
were in favor of abolishing the national
fund and creating district funds. Others
were in favor of tax for a defense fund to
be devided between the national and district
organizations, while there was a less radical
sentiment in favor of a national fund, Civ
ing districts a voice in its disposition.
The General and Defense Funds.
The drift of the discussion was decidedly
against a national fund, and it looked as if
this vital feature of the organization was
ABOUT 10 pc KNOCKED out.
President Rae, in his annual address, rec
ommends that the general fund and defense
fund be consolidated, and that 80 per cent of
the monthly per capita tax be set aside for
defense purposes. This recommendation
was adopted on the suggestion of John P.
Jones, the per capita tax being fixed at 20
cents a month. An amendment was adopted
providing that where any dispute arises the
District President shall report to the Ma
tional Executive Board, and if they neglect
or refuse to give a decision within ten days the
District President shall have full power to
order a strike; and the strikers being enti-
tied to receive aid from the defense fund,
the National Executive Board shall not call
off a strike iuaugurated under this section
unless by the consent of the district officers
difficulty was satisfactory to all the dele
gates. 1t leaves the defense fund practi-
cally as it was last year, and gives the dis
tricts rights which they did not have.
The Irwin Strike Is Indorsed.
The Committee on Grievances presented a
report indorsing the action of the national
officers concerning the strike at Irwin, Pa,
and recommending that the incoming Ex-
ecutive Board receive deserving attention.
The committee recommended that the West
moreland and Pennsylvania Gas Coal Com
panies, at whose mines the strike has been
on since last May, be forced to comply with
the national scale of prices. President Rae
said the two companies had lost several mil
lion dollars by the strike and were becom-
ing very sick of 1t. He had information
from a Pennsylvania operator that if a Wig
orous effort was made to force the payment
of scale rates May 1, the companies would
concede them. The recommendation of the
committee was adopted.
The Committee on District and Boundaries
reported as follows:
District !, anthracite region of Pennsyl-
vania; 2, counties of Jefferson, Clearfeld, Cen
ter. Indiana. Cambria. Blair, Huntingdon and
1 Sedd0sd; ! n sOw Esade. Pennsylyania; 4 coke
trict; 9, Ohio; II. Indiana aud Southwest
Kentucky; u, Illinois; Ii. Iowa; a
Miss ouri and Kansas; 10. Colorado. Washing.
ton and Territories; l6, Maryland; II, West
Virginia: Is. Virginia; lg, Tennessee and East
ern and Southeastern Kentucky; 20. Alabama
and Georgia; q. Texas, Arkansas, Indian Ter.
Disasters and Safety Appliances.
The report was accepted and the matter
of consolidating District II with District 2
or 8 was referred to the Executive Board.
The Committee on Mine Disasters and Safe
ty Appliances recommended that the Legis.
lature of each State be urged to enact a law
dt CdCh ~ q 1OCa4 DOdTu III eX-
amineIs, to consist of two practical miners
working at the mine and the mine boss or
other representative of the company, the
appointment of miners on this board to be.
long to the majority OF miners at the works.
Theduty of the board is to be the examiu-
ing of miners as to their efficiency in the
knowledge CT safety lamps and how to use
them, especially in time of danger.
Other laws recommended are, that
there be created a State Board
of Examiners in each district where at pres
emit none exists, whose duty shall be to ex-
anime applicants for mine and fire bosses
from the various districts to which the
board belongs; the Examining Board to con-
sist of one representative of the operators,
the District Mine Inspector and one miner,
the National Executive Board of the
United Mine Workers of America to rec
ommend the miner named to the Governor
of the State for appointment.
Other Legislation Recommended.
The report also urged that all operators of
mines be compelled to place the Shaw appa-
ratus in every mine generating gas until the
coming of a more perfect machine.
In support of this the committee say it is
their opinion that, had this machine been
in use in the Mammoth mines, such a terri
BILE catastrophe as that which shocked the
entire world a few weeks ago would not
have occurred. The committee further re-
ported:
We recommend a law compelling all compa-
mics to place a competent person at the top and
bottom of each mine while miners are ascend
ing or descending. We recommend a law max
ing it obligatory OF all companies
to keep at their works, always in
readiness, an ambulance wagon and other con-
veyances for carrying injured miners to their
homes; that no person be employed In any
mine where safety lamps are used without a
edge of safety lamps and how to use them in