The evening world., 1894-05-28
MINE OWNERS LOSING
Southern Operators Getting Gen.
trial Pennsylvania Business.
Prices Of Hard Coal May Be Raised
Tomorrow.
No Resumption Yet Reported in the
Clearfield Region.
lRY Associated PreaA.l

PHILADELPHIA. May 2S.-This Is
the day fixed upon by the BIZ
luminous coal mine operators in The
Cles rheld and allied districts Of Central
Pennsylva.. la for the resumption of work
in the mi es. So far as heard from
there has not been any resumption;
neither has there been any trouble Of
any sort. AS predicted by men in a posi-
ton to know, When the operators, on
Monday last, issued their ultimatum Of
~ cents a ton. tn. strikers have re-
NAMED away from the mines. and the
commencement of the sixth week Of
their strike finds them apparently as
determined as ever to await the orders
OF President Mcbride. of the United
Mine Workers. before resuming.
Meanwhile the coal situation. as far
as this region is concerned, grows more
serious every day. Soft coal is extreme
1y scarce. and operators are compelled
to pay almost eXorbitant prices in order
to fill their contracts. Agents who are
lucky enough to have control OF coal are
making profits of from 81 to Sl.50 a ton.
whereas 10 cents was considered a fair
profit before the coal famine set in.
Another serious result of the strike that
pTOIl1SeS U Dt IIlOTe ldStlIls III l lie
Is the permanent loss of business. be-
cause of the inability of operators to full
Ill old contracts or enter into new ones.
The regions that compete directly with
miners, are the Cumberland, In Mary
land, the West Virginia fields. and the
Pocahoatas, in Southwestern Virginia.
gion is to the effect that men are going
.tSrned out rapidly. Evidcnee Of this
80 unan In thn n i-- No. fAn n n
and dee Ohio io ' Rsi flreeaS'o ~ S Coal tne which inisf" had
been. c~onfiscated. and the delivery OF
Cumberland coal in portions Of the East
Central Pennsylvania for soft. coal.
One reason for the return OF the Cum
berland miners to work is said to be the
Gus strike occurred. in 1884, the Clear:
field miners failed to stand by them, and
they are now settling the old score.
In the ~Pocahontas region the mines
most capacity. The Norfolk and West
ern Railroad Is said to ave hired all
the locomotives and cars they can get
from Southern railroads, and is at tbs
present time rushing coal into Norfolk
at an unprecedented rate. From Nor.
folk this coal is shipped by water to
points on the New England coast. Com.
paratively little of 1t reaches New York
for the reason that since the coal goes
by water 1t costs very little to carry l,
further along the coast. and the prices
obtained in New England are much
better
The activity of the P~ocahontas opera,
tors and the gradual resumption in thu
Cumberland region is a bitter pill fol
the Pennsylvania operators to swallow
The coal mined by them Is brought ir
direct competition with the Pennsylvania
coal, and yet the miners employed by
the latter ask for wages at the rate OF
30 cents a gross ton. whereas the Cum
berland miners work for 40 cents a tor
and the ~Pocahontas men, mostly ne
groes, receive only 25 cents a ton, OIL
60 per cent. less.
While the scarcity OF coal continues
the producers and shippers OF anthra
cite are reaping a harvest. Shipments
have Increased enormously. and It Il
probable that the coal sales agents a
their regular monthly meeting in New
York tomorrow. will advance the prize
on all sizes at least 25 cents a ton. I
is expected that a large proportion o
the ffty-two collieries controlled by tn
Reading Railroad, which were drowned
day or two. They will be worked tel
hours a day for some time to come.
One effect OF the scarcity Of soft Goa
has been the increased use Of what 4
known as washed culm." This Is tn,
fine coal, formerly wasted. which, by
patented process. is now washed free o
dirt and utilized in connection with bi
luminous coal.