The Forrest City times., 1897-07-23
The Scheme Making Glow Prog. ress in the Pittsburgh District.
SECRETARY BISHOP STILL sANGUIse.
4 Prominent Operator Declares the Min CTS Do Not Stand the Ghost of Show-The Situation in
 West Virginia, Etc.
STRIKE SUM M ARY.

Guards protecting the men working In the Canonsburg valley have been strengthened. and will prevent inter ruption of mining.
 Debs' advent in West Virginia has there.
 The men in Watson's mines, the key to the situation in the Fairmont region, are still at work
 No progress has been made in the ef- fort to end the struggle by means of arbitration.
 No important change has taken place in the central Illinois coal fields. Few mines are being operated. The Bloomington Qll.) miners will go out Thursday.
 A leading Cleveland (O.) coal opera tor claims that the strike is already lost; that coal is coming in freely and there is no danger of famine.
 Surface Indications at Pittsburgh.
 PITTSBURGH, Pa, July 23.-From surface indications the scheme of arbitration on the uniformity basis is making but slow progress in the Pitts burgh district No attempt has been made for several days to confer with any of the Pittsburgh operators, and no signatures have been secured to the agreement, but Secretary Schmidt said that it was quite probable there would be interesting develop ments within the next "A hours. He expects the commissioners all back in Pittsburgh, when something definite may be accomplished. Henry Floers- helm. one of the larger operators in the district, has placed himself on record ss favorable to the plan, but said Mir. De Armitt would not accomplish it by run ming around to Philadelphia, New York and Atlantic City looking for sigma, tures
 Why don't he call q meeting of the operators?s said he, ito be held here In Pittsburgh, say in the council cham Der, and have all the operators attend it, and there atfix their signatures to the agreement? That's the only way that 1t will ever be accomplished. When it was suggested to Mir. Florshei ID that he call such meeting, he pondered moment and then said that he would consider it. Mir. Floers- heim declares that at the present time he can buy West Virginia coal at the mines for 50 cents a ton, and then asks how the operators in Pennsylvania are expected to compete against that and pay 6p cents for mining. Of course the quality is poor, but then it is coal, and will do nicely in pinch.
 Secretary Bishop Stili SanRuine.
 CLEVELAND, O., July 22.-Secretary Bishop of the Ohio state board of arbitration continued his canvass among the local operators. Some of them he found willing to sign the true uniformity" scale, or to agree to almost any thi ng that is not manifestly unfair to the operators. Others he found less tractable, and several long discussions which he had with this class threatened to prolong his stay in Cleveland beyond his calculations Mir. Bishop said he ever was gifted with tenacity and en- thusiasm, and he was not easily dis eouraged. He said that he believed he would leave Cleveland with the conse n t of the nine local operators having mines in the Pittsburgh district. With but one or two exceptions, perhaps, local operators have no confidence that the uniformity scale will ever be intro duced in the Pittsburgh district, and they believe it is only waste of time to try to introduce it. They are of the opinion the best way to settle the strike is for the operators to remain silent and inactive. This absence of action, they argue, will make the miners uneasy and will discourage them.
 AN OPERATORS OPINION.
 Mir. J. R. Zerbe. of the Ohio and Pennsylvania Co.,, said: This strike Is just where we said it would come to- The miners do not stand ghost of a show of forcing the operators to come to their terms. They are making no headway in West Virginia. In fact, they are losing ground, and it will not be long before they are all clamoring for work again. There is one impor- tant fact the strikers overlook A labor leader may shut down a mine by calling out the men, but he can not
 
 the power to open the mine, who has the real power and who is the real master of the situation. As to opening the mines with new saen, l should say there is little probability of that. One or two operators may attempt it. but there is no reason for it. The operators are not worrying; they have the situs- ton in hand"
 The Situation in West Virginia.
 WHEELING, W. Va, July 2s s.-The day opened with the coal strike situa- ton not materially changed in West Virginia. The Watson mines. with l. 900 men, hold the key to the Fairmont region, for Monongah can not be kept closed unless Watson's men quit work. Debs' failure to do anything with the Watson men at Riversville Tuesday night was dishearteninp but the or-