The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-10-15
DEMAND MADE
BY STRIKERS is
UNREASONABLE
Say tho Operators and Many Will
Lose Their Last Dollar Before
Acceding to the Terms.
CAN NOT AFFORD THE ADVANCE:
Already Given, Says President Wat
k;ns-Accuses Mine Workers Of
/, Fostering Dangerous Trust.

SCRANTON, Ia, OCT. l9.--ln re-
pponse to a request as to his views as to
The answer OF the United Mine Workers
20 the operators proposition, It. II.
Watkins. president OF the Temple Iron.
Company, gave out the following:
,,..We will give our men reasonable,
ilme to return to work, trusting that
they will see the mistake of being Guid-
I'D and Influenced by men who however
honest and sincere they may be In their
efforts to benefit the miners Of the an
,hrac!te region, are unable to advise
them ln,clllgently and for their best
good, because of their ignorance OF the
conditions controlling the trade. 8
"Mr. Mitchell apparently thinks that
The control OF the mining operations
rests in the hards OF one or two per-
sons, notably Mr.. Morgan, or that
there is a trust of some sort which can
decide the whole question. when as d
matter OF fact. there are only three or
four of the transportation companies In
which any one concern has any tntlu-
encc. and they do not represent 80 per
cent OF the whole anthracite Tonnage
More than one hundred different COM
panles and individuals are interested in
mining the total tonnage and no one
man can control or have the slightest
influence over their action.
VIII Not Agree.
"The one thing the companies are
apparently agreed upon is that they
will not agree. Efforts have been made
for years 10 get some plan 10 which all
can agree to control the tonnage. SO
that fair prices can be secured for
product whlEh requires so large an in
ves,ment Of money with such great
rsI; to the labor employed, us well as
the capital employed. but effort after
effort has failed through. failure to
agree on a plan that would not violate
the laws, and TO which all would agree.
But Mr.. Mitchell comes here and
says in effect, No matter how well you
may treat your employees or how much
you pay them. or what agreements you
may have with them. your men must
rot so to work until every operator does
just exactly what the other one does.
and that the LehlGh and Schuylkill
men must have new basis before the
men In the Lackawanan and Wyoming
rnpIon cou pn m Iyorls
Lose Their Last Dollar.
There are some Individual operators
and some companies who viii lose their
last dollar before they win enter Into
an arrangement to recognize the union
by agreeing to any arrangement Mr..
Mitchell's organization dictates for q
settlement of the strike.
'.The leaders OF the organization. I
trust, will soon see their mistake In IN
slsting upon any further action by the
companies and order the strike Off.
The companies and operators have
given an advance they cannot afford
unless they are able to get better
price for coal. Having given in they
will all be compelled to make an ear
nest effort to secure better prices, and
without doubt, after the restriction
caused by the strike, can get better
prices for some time to come. certainly
until after April in my opinion, SO
that the suspicion that the advance is
only given to be taken back after elec-
t!on is unfair and unwise.
Large and Dangerous Trust.
"Thc United Mine Workers will lay
themselves open, II they have not al
ready done SO, to the charge of being
the largest and most dangerous trust to
the public welfare that has ever exist
cd, and the organization Will make the
mistake OF all others that have failed,
by going too far and using Its power to
hurt the public as well as those direct
ly Interested"
President Mitchell would have moth
ing to say for publication tonight. He
spent the day In catching up with his
correspondence. He also had various
Informal conferences with his fellow
officials. but what was done could not
be learned. sri
This afternoon Mr.. Mitchell went for
n drive over the boulevard and about
thn rtty ,,.,,b ,o,,,a na.,a.,, <I