The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-12-11


interesting, if not the most impor-
tant. testimony brought out at to-
days sessions OF the coal strike COM
mission was to the effect that an al
legged attempt was made by a former
mine foreman TO bride two presidents
of local unions of the miners 10 have
ten men n each local use their inf1u-
ence TO have a resolution passed send
ing the men back TO work, thus max
ing d serious break in the solid ranks
of the strikers. Each CT the presidents
was TO receive s., 500 and good positions
as mine fOremen, and each of the ten
men was to get from 500 TO 800. The
names OF no company was mentioned IN
connection with the bribery scheme.
and none of tine lawyers cross-examined
/ the Witnesses.
The large coal companies have taken
notice of the testimony which has been
presented as TO the conditions at the
/ Coke and Markle mines. During the
afternoon session David Wilcox, first
vice president of the Delaware & Hud-
son and general counsel for the COM
pany, addressed the committee and
protested vigorously against the COM
mission holding his company response
bic for the conditions that may exist at
the Coke or Markle mines. He was
quickly stopped by Chairman Gray, who
to hold any company responsible for
whatever special conditions may exist
! in other parts of the coal fields. While
none of the attorneys for the other coal
! carrying roads said anything TO the
commission, they stated privately that
Mr.. WilcOx's attitude in the matter had
their endorsement.
Technical Testimony
A large amount of technical testi-
mOny was heard on the various phases
/ of the questions at issue. Two check
weighmen produced figures which tend
/ ed TO show that at two Delaware x
/ Hudson collieries the miners produced
/ liz, S39 tons of coal more than they were
paid for. The miners must bring up
/ S.136 pounds of coal and dirt TO make
/ a ton of 2,240 pounds OF pure coal ana
/ the union claims that the company gets
more than 2,240 pounds OF coal out OF
each miners ton of 3,136 pounds, and
1 produced official figures TO prove it.
/ The Delaware & Hudson company
presented its figures to the commission
/ today, they being the FIRST certified
/ statistics to be handed in. They show
/ average earnings of the miners in 1901
4 to have been, S622.2S, and his labOrer
/ $449.47.
When Mr.. Mitchell was on the stand
/ he said that $500 should be the mini
mum of American living wages
/ Among the visitors at the commits
/ sion's HEADQUARTERS today was Michael
| Davitt. the Irish leader. He came here
/ from Washington especially to listen TO
/ the proceedings.
An Old Miners Story.
The first witness was Alexander Nc
| Veiger. a Delaware & Hudson miner,
who told the same story that dozens of
/ others have told, to the effect that he
was not given back his old place in
\ the mine but was placed at work IN
a more undesirable part Of the cOlliery-
/ On cross examination he denied that
the miners boycOtted certain breasts
and chambers by marking half moon
near them.
/ The miners, through Mr.. barrow, an
nounced that they were prepared TO
pile up cumulative evidence on their
/ claim that members OF the union are
| being Disseminated against by the
/ companies. but they did not wish TO
! take up the time of the commission
/ Mr.. barrow asked that ia case the
/ companies, when they present their
/ side of the controversy, piled up cumu-
/ lative evidence on this point, II the
union could put on more witnesses on
the same line of evidence.
! Mr. Torrey, for tie Delaware <
/ Hudson, said that that cImpany had
/ a large number of witnesses to testify
on the violence phase Of the case,
which has direct bearing on the rec
ognitiOu of the union.
Chairman Gray. in reply, said he
hoped both sides would do the best
J they can not to produce too much
cumulative evidence, and concluded by
/ saying:
/ I think that matters growing out
/ of the mere exhibition Of feeling Will
not have much weight with this COM
/ mission"
G. w Phillips. city superintendent
I Of the public schools Of Scranton. was
then called He testified that children
OF mine workers leave the school earh-
/ er than the children Of parents engaged
/ in other occupations.
John Archibald of Hazletcn, who is
So years old and said ne had worked
in and about the mines for ffty-five
years. added that some of the, miners
employed in the Lehigh Valley mines
receive only s. a day
Sensation Sprung.
After the superintendent of schools
IN LacksWanna county, J. C Taylor.
and Superintendent of Schools NJ w
Cummings, of the borough of Ohphant.
had told the commission that p l-2
per cent of the children in the mining
region were out Of school. a sensation
/ was caused by the testimony OF John
Early. a check weighman employed at
the Gypsey Grove colliery of the Erie
/ company. who was president of the
/ Gypsey Grove local. Early said he was
/ introduced to former mine foreman
named Michael Grimes, in the Lack