Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-12-17
THE MINERS CLOSE.
Have Presented 100 Witnesses
to Strike Commission.
Chairman Gray Calls a Halt on Amount
Of Matter Put in.
II Operators Can't Pay Fair Wages,
Had Better Close.

presenting about 100 witnesses, closed
their case before the anthracite coal
strike commission, late Monday after
noon.
The afternoon session was one of the
most important sittings the commits
sion has yet held, because the question
OF whether the close relationship Of the
coal carrying railroads with the mining
companies snail figure in the commits
sion's effort to adjust the controversy,
came squarely before the arbitrators.
The decision of the commission. if
Chairman Gray's remarks can be so
called, was briefly this:
THAT the commission in general
way, is averse to widening the scope
of the investigation beyond the terms
of the submission of the miners and the
operators; that in carrying on the in
vestigatiOn it assumes the coal COM
panies can afford to pay fair wages;
that If the coal companies in pre-
senting their side of the case main
tain they cannot afford to give an in
crease IN wages then the commission
will hear what the miners have to say
on the ability of the companies to do
so, and that if q business cannot pay
fair wages the employer ought to get
out of it,
These points were brought out dur
ing the two hours consumed by the
miners lawyers reading documentary
evidence to which the coal companies
entered objections.
The mine workers depended a great
deal on the evidence they had to pre-
sent to show that the coal carrying
railroads control the coal companies
and that the railroads charge eXOr-
bitant and discriminating freight
rates, thus greatly decreasing the rev.
enues of the mining properties.
The early part of the afternoon was
taken up in hearing the testimony of
the remaining witnesses who are or
have been in the employ Of the Phil
adelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Co.,
after which Mr.. Darrow announced
the close of his case excepting that he
would call one witness tomorrow on a
matter entirely different from any
thing that has been offered. For the
remainder of the afternoon he said he
wanted to present documentary evil
dence showing the relationship be-
tween the railroads and the companies
and numerous other matters pertain
ing to the anthracite coal inquiry.
Continuing, he said:
I'VE may. at some future time-I do
not promise now but just wish to re-
serve the right if it should happen to
come-we may want to ask some
questions about the combinations
there are of various railroad presi-
dents when we get them before this
commission"
The chairman: well. of course, we
will have to decide when questions of
that kind come before us. The scope
Of our inquiry is to investigate and de-
eide upon the matters in controversy
between the anthracite mine workers
and the operators who have signed the
letter of submission, or those who have
interviewed since. The question of the
existence of coal trust cannot be in
vestigated here
James Fl. Torrey. for the Delaware
Il Hudson Co., said the companies do
not want 20 go into their case and then
after a while have the miners come on
with some production of tabuation
or of coal presidents or railroad presi-
dents or something else that will start
have to go back and meet
The chairman: II take It that this
commission will consider that it has
quite enough to do to decide the i'm
portant issues that now constitute the
controversy and without deciding any
thing until it is actually prepared.
can state as general opinion that we
shall be adverse to widening the scope
of this investigation beyond the terms
of the submission"
Mr.. barrow then proposed to pre-
sent the documentary evidence which
was vOluminous enough to fill a bushel
basket. Mr.. Lloyd was permitted to
proceed to read the documents with the
remark from Chairman Gray that
You may submit them to us, but |
do not think that the commission
would perhaps go into the relations be-
tween the coal carrying companies and
the miners unless you can show some
thing more directly bearing upon the
matters we have in controversy"
Mr. Lloyd read several reports of legis-
1ative and of congressional investisa lions
of the mining industry and read from
financial and trade journals and reports
of the roads and mining companies public
announcement of financial institutions to
show that a monopoly exists in the an
thracite industry. Hhe submitted five
points IN evidence to prove it.
Mr.. Lloyd began to present evidence
relating to the profits of the coal carry
ing railroads and the mining companies.
He was stopped by Mr.. Wolverton and
then ensued a colloquy over the question
whether freight rates and the profits of
the two classes of companies could be
properly heard by the commission. Chair
man Gray did not think so and Former
Congressman Brumm, one of the attor-
neys tor the miners. argued that it was
so that the coal companies and the rail-
roads were one and the same: that freight
rates We're much higher for anthracite
than for bituminous coal and that the
profits of the coal companies do not show
on Their books but instead on those Of the
railroad companies
1T is & case of robbing Peter to nav
Paul. he said.
During the discussion Chairman GRAY
made MS announcement that the commits
sion was assuming that the operators
could pay a fair wage and that If en-
Piovers cannot pay fair wages they ouphf
10 get out of the business
Mr. Lloyd seemed to be satisfied u;,,,
say,1