The bee., 1901-04-25

deed an act of courage, and lis de-
serving of commendation.
The report is in circulation that
one of the agitatOrs, or home de-
streyers. has taken upon himself
solemn pledge, that If the st. Ber-
nard Company operated their mine
after II certain day, which has al
ready passed, he would take his own
life. and as he still lives lie must
have been perusing the Bible, and
discovered where n suicide goes.
Corporations who operate under n
state right as all large mining COM
panies do. not only have the state
at its back, but doing as it does an
honorable upright business, it has
friends wherever it is known. An
illustration of this fact was plainly
seen last week, when some friends
warned the Sebree Coal Company of
the approach of the invaders from
Indiana, just in time for prepara-
tions to give them a warm reception,
if they had attempted to use force to
compel the miners there to quit
work.
Foreman Toombs was among those
who were willing to take up their.
winchesters in favor Cf home and
family, and was therefore found on
duty at Sebree, after being duly
sworn in as an officer.
Some of the United Mine Workers
think they have spy among them,
who reveals secrets. but why suspic-
ion any single one, when ten min
utes conversation with half of their
number will secure enough informa-
tion to fill n newspaper about the
workings and intention of the or
der.
The st. Bernard and Empire Coal
Companies held their annual meet.
ings last week and of course found
that the past season has been n
prosperous one Notwithstanding the
fact that agitators have been both
thick and aggressive. They enter
upon the new year more determined
than ever that their business will be
handled by themselves regardless of
what the u. NJ. w. may do or say.
Business at the coal mine is bound
to show n falling off soon, as it has
grown to such immense proportions
that with the approach of warm
weather a decrease will follow, and
when this occurs the agitators will
send a big special report that Jim
Wood has succeeded in cutting down
the production in Hopkins county.
In his last letter to the L. NJ. w.
Journal, Jim Wood makes an apol-
ogy to the readers of that paper for
the defeat his organization met with
when the last scale was agreed upon
by saying they did the best they
could under the circumstances.
They could nos afford to inaugurate
a strike at Central City and other
points when he had undertaken such
a big job as to organize Hopkins
county. He also complains of the
deaf ear some of the Indiana and
Illinois locals have turned to his
appeal for help. The tone of Woods
letter indicates that he wants money
badly. s
A few days ago we met a young
colOred miner who was misled and
Joined the T.. NJ. w. He. said he
now realized that he had made a
mistake and that the order was not
what he was told 1t would be. He
said he had already observed that
the favored few were getting the pie
and that the cOlored man most es-
pecially was now seeing his rations
cut down before his eyes for the
the upper tens.
A bill has been introduced into the'I
House at Harrisburg, Pa, on behalf
Of the Chief of the Bureau of shines,
providing for the appointment of
four sealers Of weights and measures |
for the bituminous coal mines. The |
duty of these sealers shall be to
visit the mines in the respective dis !
tricts at least Jnce every six months |
and test the scales, ears or other |
vessel, used to weigh or measure |
coal.
Representative of Western coal /
mining companies are in Alabama |
trying TO induce negro laborers to go !
to Kansas, Missouri and the Indian |
Territory.
Mine / Inspector Charles, of Mis- |
souri,, states that the output of all /
the coal producing counties of that |
State for the last year will show an ,
increase of from 10 to % per cent |
over that for 1899.
The discovery of coal in the Klon-
Ion