The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-12-18
Operators Say the Question of UnioniSn Has Not Been
 Considered,
HAVE NOT DISSEMINATED
 AGAINST ANY WORKERS
Independents Say They Could Have Operated Mines With Non-Union
 Men Had Not the Union
 Miners Prosecuted Them

Scranton, Pa, December 1Z-The an- thracite coal operators opened their side of the controversy with the mine work CTS today before the strike commission, and the attorneys who are on record be- fore the commission as representing the non-union men, who have been admitted to the arbitration scheme, began calling witnesses. The sessions today were prob- ably the liveliest yet held by the com mission. In the afternoon Lawyer Darrow had a spirited discussion with Chairman Gray as to whether or not the miners had a right to know who is paying the law yers representing the non-union men be- fore the commission. MT. Darrow assert ed they were employed by the coal oper- ators. Preceding this Simon P. Wolvei- ton, counsel for the Reading company, who delivered the opening address on be- half of all the large coal companies, made the point in his address that the recognition of the union is not an issue before the commission, which brought out a protest from MT. Darrow. The latter asserted that if 1t were not, then the operators should be forbidden from pre- senting their testimony that tended to show the union was responsible for all the alleged violence committed during the strike.
 Alleged Unfalrness.
 The alleged unfairness of the wage statements cssA-e 0 the notice of the commission as a result of It's inquiry Into tbo abf1a 1otor o,astior t,, ft,ia xyiofnirv Several little girls testified on Monday that they worked all night In silk mill in order to help their fathers, who were employed in the mines, and received poor pay. Yesterday Evrett Warren, who rep resents the Erie company which controls the Pennsylvania Coal company in whose mines some of these fathers worked, handed to the commission a memorandum showing that one father last year received about S1400 for him. self and laborer, and that the other father received $1600 for himself and la borer. At the opening of the session to- day the miners placed the two parents on the stand, and they swore that the earn ings mentioned were divided among from four to six men. This testimony sur- prised the commissioners, and Judge Gray asked if the figures on the memoran- dunn were taken from the wage state ment already filed by the company with the commission, and MT. Warren replied in the affirmative.
 Chairman Gray then requested counsel for the company to indicate in it's state ment, handed up, whether the figures given are for one, two or more men.
 We don't say it shakes our faith in the statement" he continued. Unless Uot that fhPra ia none of these cases, such as are sug gested by this testimony, II will very materially shake our faith in it."
 Manager Makes Statement.
 The company, through it's general man. ager, w. A. May, was permitted to make g. statement. He said:
 'The Pennsylvania Coal company has two systems. one where there are four men in a place and known as a four handed place, and in which there are another known as the two-handed place. There are places where only one man works, but that fact is not known to the company itself The company does not keep a record of the individuals in a contract or the number It only keeps the name of the man in whose name and the place is run, and 1t pays only him.
 MT. May said he did not know whether two four or six men worked to earn the money indicated on the memorandum handed to the commission, adding that he got the figures from the auditor of the company.
 The miners here resting their case. and MT. Wolverton read a statement which represented the views of all the large coal companies
 Independent Talk.
 Ira H. Burns, one of the attorneys for the independent operators. then presented the opening statement Of the individual companies as follows: "The object of this commission Is probably without any pre- cedent in this country. It Is not based on the common or statute law, but has for its foundation only the agreement of the operators and workmen. It has no power to enforce its judgr; ents and its findings must necessarily bs largely ad- visory.
 Tt seems to us that the questions, so far as they concern the individual opera tors represented by us, may be consider ed under three general heads-First, wages; second. hours of labor; third, non- union men and discrimination.
 "As to wages 1t may be well to refer to the terms as stated by the coal e. orators in their suggestion of the ap- pointment of the commission, as follows:
 I've suggest a commission to be ap- pointed by the President of the United States, if he is willing to perform that service, to whom shall be referred all questions at issue between the respective companies and their own employees, whether they belong to a union or not. and the decision of that commission shall be accepted by us.
 I've are not discriminating against the United Mine Workers but insist that the miners union shall not discriminate against or refuse to work with non-union men; that there shall be no deterioration in quantity or quality of work. and that, owing to the varying physical conditions of the anthracite mines, each collierY is a problem by itself"
 It will be noticed that the questions at issue" are not between the operatorsI