The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-10-18
OFFER TEN PER CENT NET
Advance Will Remain in Operation
Till April First.
THUS MINERS DEMANDS ARE CONCEDED
The Operators Further Agree TO Take Up With
Their Employees Any Grievances They May
Have. Resumption Of Work Prob
able Monday.
able Monday.
(By the Associated Press.)


Philadelphia, Pa, Oct. 1.-THE strike
of the anthracite mine workers of Penn
sylvania, which began September 18th,
practically ended today when the Phila
delphia and Reading Coal and Iron Com
pany and the Lehigh Valley Coal Com
pany agreed to abolish the sliding scale
in their respective regions and to grant
an advance IN wages of 10 per cent. net,
the advance to remain in operation until
April 1st, 1901, or thereafter. This ac
tion meets the demands of the Scranton
miners convention. The decision was
arrived at after a conference between rep
resentatives of the individual coal opera
tors and the large coal carrying COM
panies. The conference began yesterday.
Today's action was the elimination Of
the recent meeting of the individual
operators at Scranton, following the mine
workers convention in the same city.
Nearly all of the collieries in the coal
region had previous to the mine workers
convention posted notices granting an adj
vance of 10 per cent. The mine workers
in considering this demanded that the
sliding scale in the Lehigh and Schuylkill
districts be abolished the increase TO be
guaranteed until April 1st, 1901, and all
other differences be submitted to arbitra-
ton. The individual operators agreed to
everything and the appointment of u
committee to induce the Reading and the
Lehigh companies to abolish the sliding
scale and make the wage increase per-
manent followed. It is conceded that the
result of todays conference is COM
plete victory for the men. All the de-
mands of their convention are acceded to,
and as one of the individual operators put
it after the conference, the operators go
little further in agreeing to maintain
the wage advance after April 1st. This
same operator, who suggested that his
name be not used. said in speaking of
the conference:
Its uD to the miners now. We have
agreed to everything and nothing remains
now but for them to return to work as
soon as the notices are posted by the
colliery managers. These notices will be
practically similar to the Reading Com
pany's notice, the phraseology only being
changed. l look for resumption of
operations by Monday night at the latest.
The conference was entirely harmonious,
and every phase of the strike situation
was gone over
The Reading Company's notice reads:
1T hereby withdraws the notice posted
October Srd, 1900. and. to bring about
practical uniformity in the advance Of
wages in the several coal regions gives
notice that it will suspend the operation
of the sliding scale, will pay 10 per cent.
advance on September wages till April
1st, 1901, and thereafter until further
notice and VIII take up with it's mine
employees any grievances which they may
have"
A SURPRISE TO THE MINERS.
Hazleton, Pa, Oct. 1.-THE news from
Philadelphia today that the Philadelphia
ard Reading Coal and Iron Company had
agreed to the anthracite miners propo-
sition as set forth in resolutions adopted
in convention last Saturday, brought
forth many expressions of surprise that
it should come so soon after the conven-
tion.
President Mitchell of the United Mine
Workers, when informed of the Reading
Companys action by representative of
the Associated Press, was pressed for
statement on this acceptance of the min
ers' proposition. All he would venture to
say, however. was that he would be glad
to know that the anthracite operators
had decided to change the notices previ-
ously posted so as to comply with the
provisions of the resolutions adopted at
the Scranton convention.
Mr.. Mitchell declined to say whether
the union would let the men return to
work at those collieries where the opera
tors had accepted the miners proposition
before all the companies had fallen into
line. 1t is generally believed that the
big coal carrying railroads that mine coal
will quickly follow the Reading Company
and grant acceptance of the proposition,
and that all other operators will do the
same.
The first company in the Hazleton region
to take acton similar to that of the
Reading Company were Calvin Pardee &
Company, operating the Lattimer collier
les, and the A. Pardee Company owners
OF the Cranberry mines. both of them
individual concerns. The notices an
nouncing their acceptance which will be
posted tomorrow morning are as follows:
I'VE hereby withdraw our offer of Oc-
tober 9Th and make the following an
nouncement to our mine employees:
''The sliding scale under which we have
been working is hereby suspended and
Continued on Second Page.)