The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-09-22
In Appeal 10
Common Sense
An Individual Coal Operator Reasons
with Striking Mine Workers.
From the New York Sun.

| AN INDIVIDUAL COal operator neaSons
with Striking Mine Workers.
From the New York Sun.
TO the Editor of the Sun-Slr: Wheth
er of use or useless. nevertheless, /. az
individual coal operator, am constrained
| to address few lines to the mine work.
ers And these lines will be to give some
good reasons why the operators have re
| fused from first to last to deal with JOhr
| Mitchell and his union. First of all, you
| miners we'll know that the different con.
ditions at the different mines made it i'm
possible to grant the unions demand fol
a uniform rate or increase of wages for
all the mines. Next, you miners well
know that the miner who mines coal al
a fixed price per car containing a specific
number of cubic feet makes more money
in nearly every case than does the miner
| who mines 1t at so much per ton, and
that that demand. that all coal mined be
| paid for by the ton, was only made to
| catch the sympathy of the public. And
| as to the complaint about dockage, you
| miners all know that if. after cutting
your coal, you would but remain in the
mines to see your laborer properly clean
| 1t as he loads it into the car. that Il
docking boss would not be needed, and
| that this complaint is therefore charge
| able solely to yourselves.
Before the strike was ordered the one
thing most for you and your leaders to
| consider should have been that old but
very true adage> that you can always
catch more flies with molasses than you
can with vinegar" The strike itself was
| considered causeless and produced a very
ugly wound. and when John Mitchell and
his satellites were idiotic enough to pour
raw vinegar therein by the issuance of
that infamous ulase ordering out the
engineers, firemen and pumpmen, which
meant to flood, blow up and destroy
every mine in the anthracite region, they
thereby at once blasted their every
chance and hope of ever getting the OPP
orators to have any dealings whatever
with them or their union. Let me say.
in passing, that this order to flood, blow
up and destroy the mines was looked
upon as no worse than would it be to
put the torch to and burn down the
breakers, and forced upon the operators
the belief that John Mitchell and his CO.
horts would just as soon order the latter
as the former but for the law that to
order the torch would send them to the
penitentiary.
Is it any wonder that the operators
have refused to deal with Mitchell and
such a union as he conducts? No sane
man should expect it. And as if this
were not enough, they add the bludgeon,
the shotgun riot, murder and general de-
struction, and all without one word Of
condemnation from John Mitchell or any
of his leaders, and yet they and you ask
the operators ito kiss the hand that thus
smites them" Preposterous! And the
sooner you mine workers yourselves real
ize it the better it will be for you.
Yet with this state of affairs upon us
some of our newspapers cry Grant COLI
cessions"' "Arbitrate!" mine coal!' A
very large proportion would l know,
gladly mine coal but for fear of their
lives and destruction of their homes. AS
to "impartial' arbitration, so much ex-
plotted to catch the public. John Mitchell
was never honest in asking it. as I shall
prove out of his own mouth. In his
speech before the Allied Labor societies
in Philadelphia on Sept. u. he said:
Governor Stone is contemplating an ex-
ira session Of the legislature for the
purpose of having enacted a compulsory
arbitration law. The miners are willing
to have arbitration but they are not
willing to have compulsory arbitration"
This is "impartial'' arbitration with a
vengeance. Very willing is he to bind
the coal companies, but. oh, no. don't
make 1t compulsory to bind the union or
the miners.
And those newspapers that have been
so vociferously calling upon the opera
ring this daily before the public. that
John Mitchell has now said he don't want
1t If 1t Is to be compulsory and binding
upon him and his union?
Now, a little more to the mine worker
and the public in general. Supposine
and my friends should come around to-
day with the torch and burn or try to
burn down your homes and destroy all
your possessions. and then should come
tomorrow and ask favor of you? In
all honesty / ask you what you would
do and say? Would you not kick us out
of your presence. If not, you are not
human, and vet after all John Mitchell
and his union have done to destroy their
property you ask the operators to grant
him favors. You ought to know better,
and the sooner You realize 1t and return
to work the better off you will be. Your
leaders are at the end of their string and
their cause is lost and they know It,
Let me cite to you Just a few of the
instances In which John Mitchell and his
side lights have fooled you. First, John
Mitchell's seductive voice and false prom
ises made you strike. Since that you
have been told the Civic Federation
Hanna. Then the damnable order to
flood the mines would surely bring the
operators to time. Then a miners ma
tional convention was called to proclaim
national strike. That failed The big
fund of money that was to come from
the soft coal miners likewise failed, at
least In so far as much of it reaching you
poor mine workers. Then you were told
the clergy would settle it. Then Quay,
Penrose and Platt were all-powerful, but
you We're fooled again, Next, our great
governor runs down to New York and he
can surely bring Mr.. Morgan to time.
But Mr.. Morgan doesn't own all the coal
properties In the country and is not un-
Just enough to dictate anything that
would result in irreparable injury to
others. Then YOU were told the president
of the United States would settle It.
Fooled again. Next the taffy was spooned
out to you that the governor (oh, no,
not the governor, Mr. Quay) would con-
vene the legislature and pass compul-
sorry arbitration law (Which Mitchell now
says he doesn't wanD and other stringent
laws to compel the operators to settle.
Bosh! Where Is the Constitutional war;
rant for any law compelling them to hire
you 70 work II they don't want to? oh,
your leaders say, we will amend the Con-
stitution to warrant such compulsory
laws, Possibly they had better take a
"squint" at the Constitution of the
United States and see II that would not
have to be first amended also There are
several things in that good old instru-
ment that the states are prohibited from
doing, among which are the very laws
your leaders arc fooling you about.