The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1897-09-01
NO ARBITRATION.
Conference of Miners and Operators
Comes to No Agreement.

Conference of Miners and Operators
Comes to No Agreement.
Pittsburgh, Pa, Aug. 25.-The final
effort to arrange plan for ending the
big coal strike has proved failure and
the strike goes on. At noon the con-
ference between a committee of coal
miners and operators, national and dis
trict officials, closed and the conference
adjourned without date. The miners
representatives did not recede from
their original proposition to settle the
strike by arbitration and start the
mines at the 69-cent rate.
The operators offered to divide the
difference between "a and 50 cent rates,
making the price at. which the mines
should start 61H cents per ton, but
this was rejected. Then additional
propositions were made. One was to
start the mines without fixing any
price for 30 days and then to pay the
rate agreed upon by the board of arbi-
tration. This was also refused by the
miners, who said they had been fooled
too often to trust the operators again.
They declined to work for month.
giving the operators the output that
length of time without knowing what
wages would be paid. A proposition
was then made to operate the mines for
ten days without fixing the price, and
allow board of arbitration to fix the
price for that time.
President Ratchford insisted that
nothing but the SO cent rate could be
possibly accepted.
The operators were firm, but the
miners were equally determined, and
every argument of the mine owners
was met by the miners leaders.
Neither side would concede another
point, and it was decided to end the
conference.
Pittsburgh, Pa, Aug. 26.-Coal OPP
a decided change in front since Tues
day. Internal dissensions, mixed with
fear on the part of some, caused split
in their forces and change of base.
On its face the move looked to many
like a temporary surrender to the
United Mine Workers of America. This,
however, is denied in most emphatic
terms by the most prominent lake ship
pers. who say they are going to start
their mines and supply the demand
from the northwest and not stand idly
by and let large volume of business
go to operators of other states. They
publicly state that they are willing to
wait for a week or ten days before
a decided move is made. They claim
that this will give them ample time
to get the lake trade. Some of the OPP
orators in the meeting were frank
enough to state that the situation at
the present time in all branches of labor
is critical, and that they have no desire
to make any move that would cast
odium on the operators of the Pitts
burgh district.
It was under these conditions that the
operators went into session Wednesday
morning. There were many who had
not signed the agreement to share their
portion of the expense that might
accrue in the effort to start the mines,
and they were loudest in the appeals
to hold aloof to await developments.
1t was proposed that notices be printed
in various languages embracing briefly
the position of the operators and also a
final notice to the miners that the mines
were ready to be operated as soon as
the men expressed desire to go to
work. This proposal was barely enter
tanned and voted down, showing that.
many of the operators had receded from
the stand they had taken. A motion to
discharge all committees and adjourn
sine die was made and prevailed.
Pittsburgh, Pa, Aug. 2s.-Coal opera
tors of the Pittsburgh district have not
been asleep during the past few days.
The impression in certain circles that
there would be no attempt made to
start the mines seems to have been es-
tablished for purpose and that pur-
pose was to divert the attention of the
miners officials. 1t has been definitely
decided to start several mines along the
Wheeling division of the Baltimore &
Ohio railroad. The preliminaries are
all completed and decisive move can
be expected at most any time.
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