Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1900-01-18
WILL SEND
DELEGATES
Iowa Men Will Take Part in
National Mine Oper-
ators' Meeting.
OTTUMWA MEN WILL GO
Iowa viii Also Participate In the Con.
ference With Representatives. of
Wine Workers for Purpose
Of Fixing the Scale.

Des A.oines, Jan. 1s.-(special.) -
For the first time in the history of
Iowa. the coal operators of the state as
an organization have consented to treat
with the United Mine Workers of
America and attempt to arrange
scale of wages for the state. This con-
.clusion was reached at meeting of
the operators association held in the
club rooms of the Kirkwood hotel yes
terday.
Nearly every coal company of conse-
quence in the state was represented and
every district had from two to half a
dozen operators present with full au-
thoritv to act. The meeting was called
to order by III. L. Waterman of Ottum-
wa, president of the association, and
the object briefly stated. 1t was pro-
posed that the Iowa association send
four delegates to the. National Opera
tors association meeting to be held in
indianapolis, January %, and that they
be empowered to treat with the repre-
sentatives of the mine workers at a
joint meetirg to be held in that city
January 23, and cooperate with dele
gates from the fifteen coal producing
states, or as many of them as
will be represented, to reach an agree
ment for basis on which to fix the
scales to be paid for mining in Iowa
this year.
The proposition was discussed during
nearly the entire day. 1t was finally
decided to instruct the delegates to vote
against any proposition looking 10 the
fixing of a scale based on mine run of.
coal and insisting that they agree only
to scale for screened coal. The differ
ent conditions existing in the, several
districts of the state were also dis
scussed, and it was concluded that one
scale Tor the entire state would not
be equitable, either to the operators or
the miners, and that the agreement
reached at indianapolis, if there is an
agreement, shall be used as basis for
determining the scale TO be paid in the
several Iowa districts, and that these
scales shall be finallv determined at a
joint meeting of the state board of the
United Mine Workers and the exec
utive committee of the Iowa Operators
association, to be held in February,
probably either in Des Moines or OF
tumwa.
District The State.
The state is divided into five districts
for the purpose OF equalizing the scale,
as follows:
Wayne and Appanoose coun-
ties in Iowa and Putnam county. Mis-
souri,.
Second -Wapello. Marion, Monroe
and Lucas counties.
Third-Mahaska and Keokuk coun-
ties.
Fourth-Polk and Jasper counties.
Fifth-Boone and Webster counties.
Officers cfthe Association.
The officers of the Iowa Coal Opera
tors association are as follows:
President H. L. Waterman.
Vice President-C. II. Morris.
Secretary r. Rosebrook.
Recording Secretary-T. w. Carpen-
ter.
The above officers also constitute the
executive board or committee.
Delegates and Alternates.
The following delegates and alter.
mates have been selected to represent
the operators of Iowa at the Joint con-
vention at indianapolis:
First district-B. ]. johnson, Men
dota; alternate, Alex Dargavel, Cen
Serville.
Second district-H. L. Waterman, OF
tumwa; alternate, Mr. White, What
Cheer.
Third district-W f. Garrison, Des
Moines: alternate, G.. H. Morris, Des
Moines.
Fourth district-H. H. Garfield,
Boone; alternate, I. w. Carpenter,
Boone.
1t is expected that both delegates
and alternates will attend and that
they will be accompanied by large
number of operators, who will caucus
in Indianapolis the night before the
meeting with the mine workers rep
resentatives.
with the members of the union as indi-
VluudlSs oHly ana isst y ear was Ine HrSl
time that the union has been recognize
ed to any extent in the state. During
1899 the mine workers made strenuous
and successful efforts to organize the
states and the result was short-lived
strikes in several of the districts that
resulted in The general recognition of
the union and the enactment of scales
for mining approved by the unions
state board. This agreement will ex-
pire April 1, and the agreement that
it is expected will result from the In
dianapolis meeting will go into effect
at that time. There was very little
opposition expressed yesterday when
the proposition to deal directly with
the union as an organization was taken