The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-09-28

opinion of the workingmen, makes 1t
necessary to have change in the wages
paid for mining coal in this district.
In the Wyoming and Lackawanna dis
tricts rates for mining vary per mine car
according to the seams OF coal worked.
as a general thing 1t may be stated that
so cents is the rate for two-ton car as
a basis rate. Changes since 1874 have
heel:
January 4, 1879, 10 per cent reduction from the
basis
September l. 1876. 10 per cent further reduction
April /. 1877, 10 per cent further reduction.
December I, 1879. 10 per cent advance from pre-
/ yiuUs rates,
May /, issO. 10 per cent advance from previous
rates
July l, 1852, 10 per cent advance from previous
rates
Ii will thus be seen that the rates are
back to the basis so-called. Many OF the
cars hold more than enough to give two
tons of clean Goa, at the breaker and it
is the excessive '.dockage'' claimed by the
operators TO be necessary that gives cause
for so much complaint. Some day labor
is paid thus: Mule drivers. S1.25; mule
drivers helpers, 80 cents; door tenders. 60
cents; all other laborers, S161. Outside
| there are: Slate pickers frst-class
| (t.dults), 81; slate pickers. second-class
! (boys), 60 cents; slate pickers third-class
!
! class (boysl, 40 cents; all other outside
laborers, SL45.
/ great variety of nationaiities are rep
! resented among the employees of the an
/ thracite regions, and while the total OF
each is not given in any of the ofi1cial re-
ports there is a gauge thereto in the cas-
ualty list, which specifies Americans. Aus
TRANS. English, Germans, Hungarians,
Irish. Italians. Polish. Russians, Scotch,
Swedes, Slavish. Welsh. Greeks, Surely
such an array furnished elements of dis
cord and discomfort AS showing the
classes into which the labor of the anthra-
cite regions is divided, the following sta
tistics are of value, and it shows an army
of employees whose vacations are so differ
ent that it is wonderful to note the una
nimity with which they have gone idle; at
the same time it is well known that the
idleness of mule drivers sets the whole
establishment idle. Inside help, 92,221, of
which 1881 are classed as miners and
+ % 946 as laborers or helpers. Outside
help, As. 433, of which 81 ,094 are slate pick
ers. the others being foremen blacksmitks,
carpenters, engineers, fremen. etc.
1t has been said that the number of
persons employed for a greater or less
time in the year-last year 1t was an av-
erage of $50 days-has been abnormally
increased in recent years. largely for the
Z
ing of the labor supply in this %ay giving
no opportunity for unorganized labor to
make a show of force against their many
grievances. The last year or SO many
people who could get away drifted to more
steady employment, and there was fall
ing off in 1899 as against 1898, and there
has been in 1900, as against 1899, of the
available labor. This and the organiza-
ton of the men under the leadership of
the United Mine Workers, hitherto known
only in the soft coal districts, gives the
situation a very different aspect to what
might be supposed. There have been or
CARNATIONS of labor ever since the old
Anthracite Miners Association and the
NJ and L. B. A., but the membership was
not so great as at present, even II no
great proportion OF the present employees
belong TO the United Mine Workers. The
table Of product and employees given here
with is of interest in this connection:
Tone