The Savannah morning news., 1902-09-29
PRESIDENT MITCHELL
VIZ ANSWERS STATEMENT OF COAI
OPERATOR BAER.
STRAIGHT FROM SHOULDER,
HE HITS THE COAL TRUST IN IT'S
WEAK SPOTS.

Anthracite Region Are Paid Much
Less Than in the Bitumfnous
Fields-The Increase In PrOduc-
ton for Several Years shown.
Union Emphatic In Its Condemnn-
ton Of Every Act of LawIessness,
Philadelphia, Sept. 28.-President
Mitchell of the United Mine Workers
tonight gave out statement in which
after stating that the public must be
the final arbiter of the coal strike. he
says in part:
The recent utterances of Mr.. Baer.
spokesman of the anthracite coal trust.
Mr.. Hewitt and other interested per-
sons disclose we'll defined purpose to
confuse and cloud the real causes
which resulted in the coal strike and
an attempt to divert attention from the
actual issues involved
Mr.. Baer states that the wages paid
in the anthracite coal regions are. COM
pared with the wages paid in like en-
pigment fair and just. BY like en-
poyment Mr.. Baer must refer to btu
prepared to demonstrate that wages in
the bituminous coal fields are from 20
to 40 per cent. higher than those paid
for similar classes of work in the anth-
racite fields. The minimum wage re-
ceved by any class of adult mine
workers in the soft coal mines is 26A
cents per hour. while the minimum
wage paid to boys is 121k cents per
hour; in the anthracite coal mines men
performing precisely the same labor
receive from Is to 20 cents per hour,
while boys are paid as low as 5 cents
per hour and rarely receive to exceed
scents per our. The bituminous miner
works a maximum of eight hours per
day, which is two hours less than men
In the anthracite field are required to
work; moreover, the anthracite mine
worker labors under the further disad-
vantage of being more liable to be kill
ed or injured the casualties being so
per cent. greater in the anthracite than
in the bituminous mines.
Mr. Baer is equally incorrect in his
assertion that the miners only worked
from four to six hours per day and
that the lowest scale of wages was IS
cents for boy slate pickers. will
addresses of thousands of slate pfckers,
each of whom received much less than
IS cents per day.
The next misstatement of Mr.. Baer
to which 1 shall give notice. is that
which claims that for some mysterious
reason,' the miners restricted the out
put of the mines. The fact is that in
stead of loss of 100000 tons there
was an increase in the year 1901 from
the mines operated by the Reading
Company of 8SS.243 tons. and a total
Increase from al the anthracite mines
Of 5000, 900 tons. The output of coal in
1901 was far in excess of that of any
year in the history of coal mining and
even a paper so avowedly and bitterly
hostile to the mine workers union as
the Engineering and Mining Journal
admits that virtually the only restric-
ton on output was a shortage of cars.
-
Per Capita Production.
The production per miner was 1,271
tons in 1897: 1926 tons in 1898; 1888
tons in 1899: 1891 tons in 1900, while in
the year 1901 it was 1.5S5 tons. We take
this opportunity to repeat specifically
that we do not seek to interfere with
the management of the coal properties
Or with the proper discipline of the
working force: but we do demand:
Tristan increase in wages for men
employed on piece work
"Second--A reduction in the hours of
labor for men employed by the day
"Third-Payment for a legal ton of
/ coal
Fourth-That the coal we mine shall
be honestly weighed and correctly re-
corded. and
'Fifth-We favor Incorporating in
the form Of an agreement the wages
mat shall be paid and the conditions
OF employment that shall obtain for a
specific period. AS to the reasonable
ness of these demands we have pro-
posed to submit to and abide by the
award of an impartial board of arbl-
tration -
There could be no grosser perver-
Sion or truth than the assertion of the
operators that the mine workers I'M
ION is lawless organization. During
1ae past twenty weeks the whole power
VI the union has been exerted to pre-
s @rve the peace among voluntarily
lie population of three-quarters of
mlilon, and 1t is tribute to the ac-
WY OF our officers and the loyalty
Snd self-restraint of our members that
We nave been more successful in al
@ylng violence than the coal and iron
ounce in melting it. Despite all our
%tcautions we regret that occasional
!oence has resulted. but it would be
~, logical to charge. any one OF the re-
asious social or political organizations
eV even the United States government
hth being an unlawful organization
sseduse some of its adherents trans
rTss the law as II is to charge the
nited Mine Workers of America with
ING an unlawful organization be-
use some of It's members violate the
sa "' The officers of the union are as
.efe as the opcre tors in their earn
az ' condemnation Of any and every act
violence upon the part OF striker
w no attempt has been made or Will
8 Sort A"'
q t.,s SHmes Of violence sometimes are
~. ~ inc doors of the strikers when
~ imported guardians OF law and or
~ ne armed coal and iron police, are
ny and Enthusiastically az fault. and
s..lisnge the operators or their
a Hs 70 point 10 one single utferauce
n. I part IN disapDr0val Of she law
H. FN}pns % their hired guards. Some
~ ago the Beiisyue y'ashsry az
"hion was destroyed By lightning.
~ Yard was offered BY the coal com
49, fpf the arrest ana conviction ~
y, b'ffon sh0 set Ore ~ the washfTY.
f4 ne sfaNUie ~ TIE manner 60
ma SiFikeFs ere msligneo.
70 Beers Nsens Assusspfisas
hasf essunas fhnf fhe psmn.
~ nteff ane nfefnap were eaiifq
a fhaf fNR agfNNn Maui9 ~ las
u NNF mlfN ahNtf aeefFueiiaU 4fa.s