Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1897-07-02
STRIKE.
250,000 Expect to Strike.
The Coal Pits Of Several States
viii Be Deserted.

orders from the Natlonal OfncerS Ol
the United Mine Workers, assembled
al Columbus, Ohio, 100000 colliers
will quit work tomorrow.
Today circulars will be placed in
The hands of all bituminous miners in
The United States, calling them out
On strike. 1t is estimated that 25O,
poo men will be involved. Pennsyl.
vania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and
parts of West Virginia and Kentucky
will contribute to the movement.
The strike is to enforce the Columbus
scale of so cents per ton for Pennsyl-
vania, 60 cents for Ohio and Indiana,
and 55 cents for Illinois.
The battle-ground of this great con-
flict for bread will cover the coal CEN
fers of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, West
Virginia and the great bituminous
section in Western Pennsylvania
known as Pittsburgh district. Next
to the great national strike of few
yeals ago it will be the greatest wage
contest miners haYe ever engaged in.
III the temper of sthe hungry men is
accurately gauged it will be most vio-
lent. The strike order results from a
four days consultation in Columbus
between members of the National Ex-
ecutive Board of the Miners Union
and the district presidents.
The session concluded early Sunday
morning To every member of the
confere nee there had been submitted
a long list of questions on the condi-
lion of his district, and when all re-
ports had been received and debated
b strike was the only logical action.
Not that all members of the board
personally favored such action, but
because urging them on and demand
Ing it at their hands was this horde
of wronged and hunger tortured mi
ners and their families. The fight
bad to come. There would haye been
nc safety for any member of the board
who returned TO his constituents with
Jhe report Of "no srike."
The price demanded py the miners
is SO cent per ton, based on the thin
vein region of Western Pennsylvania.
Allowing for the customary different
ials this will give 6O-cent, rate in
Ohio, and corresponding figure in
the various fields in Indiana, Illinois
and West Virginia.
At the present time the miners are
working for the lowest wages in the
history of the industry. They are
getting 54 cents in Pittsburgh, and |
on last Saturday a conference was
held in Columbus, between .Ohio |
miners and operators, at which the
Employers demanded that the rate in
the Buckeye field be reduced from 81
TO 81 cents. In Illinois and Indiana
miners have been working for any,
thing they can get, doing it, too, at
the advice of their officers.
"Get what you can," was the order.
'We will make our fight all together"
But this waiting policy was not
Entirely successful. The turbulence
at the Virden pits in Illinois and the
Gallitzin mines in Ohio shows that
the miners great and sorely tried pa
tience is about exhausted. So rest
less did the miners of the Pitt sburgh !
iistrict become that the men were |
called together in special convention
Three weeks ago to receive a warning
that spremature aggression might |
the final outcome Of the
;trike.
Not alone are the pangs Of hunger
md the cries of supperless children |
potent in adding fuel to the flames Of
|ebellion among the miners. Had it |
,ot been for newspaper inYestiga-
Hons, depicting in unprejudiced cOlors
10 the public.eye the miners awful
plight;had it not been for thennheard
u probing into their misery by the
and the speedy passage of
'emedial laws; had it not been for
|hese contingencies, it is questiona- /
sie If the miner would not have been