The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-11-17

Not necessarily ff that coal IL market ed
that goes to tho culm piles. the miners
should be paid for It, lie should be paid
for any part OF the coal that the com
panles market.
Mercliantable Coal.
q. If n man mines coal and sends out a
eur or coal that has To be nut thro,,ph h
the breaker In order to produce mcr-
chantable coal does It not? A, Yes. sir.
y, And therefore the ton which the COM
panics sell and ship Is mercliantable coal,
, while the substance which the miner
| sends out contains a large amount Of i'm
rurites. or a considerable amount Of i'm
phri,ies. and therefore 1t has TO be put
| through the breaker? A. Yes sir O. So
that they are really two different SUBJ
stnices. are they not? A. Yes. 1t Is true
that the foreign substance that IL sent
| out with the miners coal should not be
| paid for We do not ask that. and we
propose to reduce the general price OF
| mining so as TO compensate the company
| I"r it, Hut the coal that is sent to the
! culm piles, and that Is afterwards mar
| keted through the process of Washing
the miner should be compensated for
| that q. Is there any sent to the culm
| piles now" A. ] understand there is. q.
| To any extent? A. | am not sure to
what extent. q. TO Il very small extent
| Is 1t not. A. I do not know.
| q. We'll, have YOU computed the re-
suit cf these demands with reference to
| tile operation of any particular colliery:
| a. Personally. have not Our commit
| tees from this district or the district
where we hope to have 1t applied. and
where we believe II Is practicable. have
made calculations, and of course will be
able 10 explain that better than can
| myself g. Well. the result OF the twen-
ty per cent. demand would he. OF course
an addition of twenty per cent. to the
wage cost. the labor cost of the coal,
would it not? A. Yes. sir.
g. Do YOU know that the wages that
are paid now I'm the region here are
about sixty million dollars? A. T have
seen that statement made. q. Do not
YOU. or your committees know It? \.
No. sir: we do not. q. If it is sixty mil
lion dollars, this is a demand of twelve
million dollars To be added to the cost
OF production. is it not? A. Yes. Sir. on
that calculation. that Is true. That
would be about twelve or thirteen cents a
ton. q. You say YOU will furnish to the
commission and to us. Il statement Of
these demands, worked out with refer
ence t" some of the collieries? A. We
propose to ask Mr.. Nichols to testify
upon that very phase of it, as he is
thoroughly familiar with the subject
and he would probably be able to eX-
plain IL much better than | can myself.
y. Now. YOU spoke of the average pay
per Gay upon which YOU are basing your
testimony and your views as sl.0l. A. No:
! simply said that on a calculation. tax
ing the statement made by Mr.. Baer, it
amounted To sl.Ol day for 365 days in
the year. q. It Is upon that you are
hasing your. A. lnterrupting) Not
by any means. 7 do not know whether
that is correct or not. II may not he as
high as that. or it may be more. have
examined the earnings of The ani tn
n,ne workers-all classes of them-and
find they are Insufficient. q. To what
point do you expect to bring them up. if |
these demands are granted? A. At what |
time?
A Twenty Per Cent Increase.
g. 10 what point do you expect to
bring them up" A. We ask TO have them |
brought up twenty per cent. q. II the |
wages average only sl.O1 now, do YOU
1nean that sl.21 would strike YOU as
proper? a. | do not think that the |
miners have asked for enough. sup
pose if they had known that the matter
was going to be submitted to Il board OF
arbitration. they would have asked 10
have the wages fixed up right when they
are doing it. U.aughter)
q. Well. | suppose that we will all
agree that that would have been likely.
U aughtc") But you testified, and You
J.
age earnings are $1.0l per day. and you
say there Is a demand for Il twenty per
cent increase. Now, ] want To know up
TO what roint you expect to bring the
wages in order TO make them what
would be considered sufficient? A. You
must remember that I took Mr.. Bacr's
statement: quoted it. and then analyzed
IT, @. Yes. a. That it is his statement
that ] am treating with in my articles:
that I simply analyzed the statement
given out by the president of the Phia-
ielphia and Reading Coal and Iron COM
2any. and analyzed it, 1t amounts 10
slOl per day. at ;'65 days in the year. so
lhat the average income Of the miners Is
SH6S, and that Is insufficient.
@. Your computation includes sundays
lso, does it not" A. Yes. sir; | explained
hat. MY statement itself is fully ex-
'lanatory of all that.
c. The 800 days include Sundays of
curse. Iaughter). And holidays. Iaugh-
er) Now. how much do YOU think that
he average pay ought to come up to? A.
think it ought TO come up to 5000 a year
or each adult employed in the anthrl-
lite mines. I think that evcrl boy under
iXteen years of age ought to have not
ess than 81 a day for eight hours work
q. And 3,i5 days?
A. No, sir. For each day that the mine |
works., the boy should receive, for eight |
ours work, not less than 81 a day; that ;
:. boys under sixteen years Of age-your
reaker boys, | mean. I
q. Do you think that all day 'aborars !
ught to have 5000 year?
A. think that all heads of families {
ught to have $500 year. '
q. You make distinction between I
eads of families and those who are NOT 5
larried"
\. | would ask that for all adult EN- ,
loyes.
@. All the laborers of every kind you
mink ought To have 5000 year?
A. | think that should be the minimum I
age of all men working. 4
q. Now you have your ideas as to Mr. | |
aers statement not being high enough, 7
/ low enough, or whatever it is? $
Slate Picker's Wages.
\. do not know about II. The state n
ent itself is susceptible of several inter +
relations. For instance, Mr.. Baer SAYS "
lat the lowest wage paid is boy slate
Ckers, at So cents n day. That would n
Dpear to be an incorrect statement, al n
lough / have no doubt that Mr.. Baer n
IN explain 1t satisfactorily. We know n
lat they do not pay s, cents a day for h
,y slate pickers. We do know that some O
,ys receive that, but they receive much /,
IS than that also, If
Q, Then you think the average is less q
IAN Sl0l day: II
\. ! do not know. n
O. Well if the wages are S6s don't /,
III think your statement that the aver n
;e wages were less than 500 was not al n
gethcr correct? \. My first public state II
ent was made upon information from n
her sources. 1t was not upon Mr. | Al
ler's statement. In my first statement 4 |
I'd made that calculation by dividing n
hat l understood to he the total amount q,
id in wages forget now just how n
uch II Was, but IL was something like ",
, ln