Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1895-11-02
The Figures Right Now.

especially that the figure, 947, is too
large:
If the official report in Pennsylvania, about
to be published, be credible, the average
miner over there in 1891 loaded $40 tons in
Maryland 947
On the 23d inst. all the dailies pub
lished dispatch from Harrisburg, Pa,
stating
l, That "the forthcoming report of
the department of internal affairs show
that the production of coal for 1894 in
Pennsylvania was So, 306, $3.50 tons.
2, That the same report shows that
this amount was loaded by 22G,S72
employees.
If the complalnants will divide the
whole number Of tons by the whole
number of employees they will find the
dividend, 376, correct.
In the limited time at the JOURNALS
disposal, however, it erred i'll getting
the official Maryland figures for 1898,
instead of 1894.
In It's hurry it also moderated the
number of Maryland employees.
These two mistakes combine to make
the dividend, 947, incorrect.
The official figures, now at hand,
shipped show that 1902 employees
1905, 707 tons of coal, or 76l tons each
still ooer t,cice as much tcorh as tile Penn
syIoania employees had!
At 40 cents a ton, therefore, each
mining employee in Mr.. Wrght's State
got $l50.40 while Mr.. Lowndes gave his
$304.40.
But for suspension, brought On
by another Pennsylvania of Mr..
Wrght's stripe, the Hon. William
Blatherskite Wilson, the tonnage for
1894 would have at least equaled that
of 1898. In which event Mr.. Lowndes
would have given each of his en-
ployees $24. 40 more, or $32S.S0.
Sensible employees. therefore, will see
that the whole hullabaloo of 40 cents
a ton," alleged against Mr.. Lowndes in
particular and the coal companies in
general, Is an appeal to their supposed
short-sightedness, ignorance and PREF
udlce. 1t presumes that mining en-
ployees will not think of the fact that
two birds in the Maryland bush are
worth twice as much as one in the UNI
brageous recesses of Pennsylvania
foliage.
In fact, the very first thing a speak
err of Mr.. Wrght's calbre has got to
do in addressing our people is to
Islander them with the presumption
that he knows it all and that they don't
know enough to come in when it rains.
of 40 cents TOM for mining coal,
but if he is real friend of the miners,
why does he stop there? Why doesn't
he explain that for every 40 cents of
work in Maryland there is 20 cents of
no work in Pennsylvania
If he were honest either as a labor
man or politician, he would not be
cheeky enough to tell only the worst
fraction Of the story. In fact, if he
were as conscientious as he seems to
be, and has sawed off all coal oper-
ators' to conform to the Procrustean
bed on which he has stretched Mr.
Lowndes, he would stay at home and
blubber over the miserIes of 10 cents
ton with As cents worth of work to do.
and leave those in their glory who, at
40 cents Il ton, have 81 cents worth of
work to do.
Workingmen, don't forget that the
element of tonnage is a consideration
of more than equal Importance to that
of cents per ton. Two tons at 40 cents
is better than one ton at 60 cents, and
considerably better than no tons at so
cents.
In passing it might be well to re-
member also that most of the no work
coal in Pennsylvania is mined under
the additional dangers of blasting and
gas explosions, and that the rate of
mortality from mining horrors over
there far exceeds ours.
Give Mr.. Wright his walking papers
homeward, and tell him that in the
city Of Prague every man kept his own
doorway clean.