Waterbury Democrat., 1902-11-15
MITCHELL ON STAND again
Counsel David Wilcox Had Him
Under Cross Examination.

Under Cross Examination.
Attorneys Are Now Looking for Way
to Expedite Matters-Each Side Has
a Large Number of Witnesses They
Want Heard
Scranton, Pa. Nov 15.-The coal
strike commission resumed it's sessions
to-day. After a few preliminaries
President Mitchell, who was on the
stand all day yesterday, again Went
into the witness box and his cross
examination Dy David Wilcox, gem
eral counsel for the Delaware q Hud-
son company, was continued.
Some of the attorneys connected
with the case are of the opinion that
some arrangement will have to be
agreed upon to expedite the proceed
ings. Each side is anxious for a
speedy ending of the hearings, but
this will be impossible il the present
plans of She contending parties are
carried out The miners have a large
number of witnesses to be heard, and
the attorneys or each o the coal COM
panieS are anxious to croSS-eXamine
them. After the miners have closed
their case the companies will also pre-
sent a long line Of persons to testify
and it is the intention of the lawyers
on the miner side to crosS-examine the
witnesses of the companies.
Immediately after the opening Of the
,,,,i,,.r 5rncs;o1, Chairman Gray for
the commission, addressed John I.
Lenehan one of the attorneys for the
non-union men, who yesterday said he
represented the non-union men, who
worked during the strike and wanted
to know what their status would be
before the commission. Judge Gray
said:
1.-THE commission have considered
the matter Of your application and
have decided that it will ask you to
submit to them a statement showing
whom you represent, by what author
ity, what point other than those al
ready at issue between the formal par
ties to this controversy you wish to
inject into this hearing, and a concise
statement of what you claim or what
your position is in regard to the gen
and logical parties to this commission,
and also state that you guarantee sub
mission to the award of this commits
sion.''
Mr. I4enehan asked: How soon must
this be done?'
As soon as you can" replied Judge
Gray.
After Judge Grays announcement
10 fhn off 11r ifN11
Mr. Wilcox resumed his cross-exam-
ination Of Mr. Mitchell He put in eyi-
dence extracts from the proceedings
of the Shamokin convention which for
mulated the demands which caused the
late strike; a copy of the United Mine
Workers Journal, the official organ of
the union, and a voluminous copy of
the Federationist, the official publica-
ton of, the American Federation of
Labor
Mr. Mitchell, answering a question
by Mr. Wilcox, said that the local
unions or mass meetings may direct
the operations of pickets. Mr. Wilcox
then read from statement made by
President Gompers of the Federation
of Labor to the Chicago trust confer
ence in September, 1899, in which MI
Gompers is alleged to have said that
any trust legislation which did not
specially exempt organized labor from
its operations would meet the unques-
toned opposition of all the labor forces.
and asked the witness if that expressed
his views. Mr. Mitchell replied that
organized labor would not look with
favor upon any law that would legis-
late them out of business.
Mr. Mitchell, answering further ques
tions, said he regarded as living wages
for miner not less than 5000 per an
mum, which would cover his actual ne
cessities and permit him to educate his
children.
At this point Judge Gray asked the
witness, if he meant to say a wage suf
ficient to permit the children,to avail
themselves of the public schools or tt
spend a portion Of the family income
directly for education, and sufficient te
render it unnecessary to employ chile
labor to increase the income Of tht
4 family. The witness answered in The
affirmative.