The Madisonian. (Virginia City, Mont.) 1873-1915, 1895-11-23

that amount Of intelligence.
Secret rebates and commissions and
even signed contracts cutting agreed
upon prices, such contracts being given
under a pledge Of secrecy, have been re-
sponsible for the low prices for bitumi-
nous coal for the past two years.
When competition of this kind is once
started, it does not stop until it APP
proaches the point Of actual cost Of pro-
duction, and this is generally followed
by an attempt to reduce wages so that
the competition may be carried still fur
ther
1t seems to me that there is no bust
ness in this country where the remedy
is SO plain as in the bituminous trade.
1t is possible for capital aud labor to
unite in such a manner that both will
receive their fair share of the results.
There is no question that the yearly con.
dict is injurious to all concerned, and
there is likewise nc question that these
yearly conflicts can be avoided. .
1t rests with the conservative and in
telligent men in the ranks Of labor and
among the operators and railroad man
ayers to bring about an organization
which will prevent any trouble in the
future. Such All organization should en-
brace West Virginia, Pennsylvania,
Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The Inter
state association should fix the miners
wages for the miners i'll the various
districts. It should also establish the
price for coal and the rates for carrying.
Then in each district there should be Il
local organization, like that of the Ohio
Coal association, to take charge of ques-
tons which belong to that district alone,
such as the making Of sales and contracts
and receiving the proceeds. This power
should be added to that which is already
possessed by the Ohio association.
Formerly there existed an interstate
organization embracing Pennsylvania,
Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana and Hi
nois, and the results were profitable to
all interested-i. g., the railroads and
their employees, the mine owners and
their employees.
Today the chief opposition to reviving
it seems to be the operators in Pennsyl-
vania, who have openly declared them
selves against any agreement either Of
the mine owners or organization Of mins
labor.
A good commencement to an inter
state agreement is found among the
operators Of Ohio, who seem to be gen
orally in favor Of it, and who have made
frequent efforts during the past year
among the Pennsylvania operators to re-
establish the Interstate compact, because
it gave the best returns to all concerned,
including labor. 1t was with this in
view that the Ohio operators faithfully
carried out the 1894 agreement, and If
the face of Pennsylvania having reduced
Its labor to the lowest point ever reached
There should be no difficulty in arriv
ing at an agreement with tho nationa
miners organization as to what woult
be fair wages for the miners in the va
rious districts. Then the agreemen
should provide a scale Of wages for tn
miners which would advance and de
cline with the price of coal. I believ
that such a scale is in existence today ii
Wales and has been found to work t
the satisfaction of both the mine owne
and the miner. The Reading railroa
at II time worked under such a syster
and found it satisfactory.
In Wales an auditing Of the sale
takes place every 60 days, and the ave,
g price determines the price paid tn
miner. The books Of the various associs
lions should be open to the inspection {
the Representative yes Of the railways. tt
operators and the miners organization
SO that there could be no question AS
whether the agreement was being faitl
fully carried out.
: The Ohio operators deserve gre;
: credit for the stand they have alwa.
. taken in favor of higher wages for tt
' miners and also for the honorable ma
> ner in which they have lived up to Il
agreement they have made with tt
= miners organization. Iwish Icould 81
. as much for the operators Of the Pitt
> burg district.
1t seems to me that the labor ieade
- in the mixers organization made a s
,, rious mistake in 1894 when they order
-" a strike not only in the district viii
:. refused to pay the wages demanded, b
. also in districts where the operate
9 were willing to concede what the mi
! srs asked, and where they had alwa
- received fair treatment. Had they
that time confined their strike to t
3 districts which insisted upon low wal
their expenses would have been mu
y less, and they would have had a lart
= fund at their command by being able
10 draw more heavily upon the miners W
. would have been at work in the distri
- which were not opposed to the rate I'll