The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1902-06-18
Convention Is Called for tho
Purpose of Ordering All
Miners On Strike.
PRESIDENT MITCHELL
is UNCOMM!!NIcATIVE
Date OF Meeting Not Vet Fixed, but II Is
to Be Held at napolis-Utteriy
Impossible to Forecast What the Ma
tional Gathering viii Do--Deleaatcs
Not Yet Elected--MitchelI Said to
Have Plan Of Action Figured Out.
Iny ASSOCIATED rRrss. |

Ihf ASSOCIATED fRtSSl
Wlkcsbarrc. June iS.--rhc long cx-
peetcd call for a national convention of
United Mine Workers OF America was
issued today by President Mitchell &C
strike headquarters, to be held at lndiaii-
apolis the earliest possible date.
The date oi the convention will be
fixed by w. Il. Wilson. national sccrc-
tary at indianapolis who has charge of
the machinery by which the convention
is arranged.
The convention will be called for the
purpose of discussing the advisabiity Of
involving all the soft coal miners ia the
United States in the strike now going
on IN the anthracite coal fields.
Under the constitutiou OF the union five
districts must join in the action before
the national president can Issue n call
for a national convention. The five dis
triets that applied for the convention
were the three anthracite districts, the
Michigan district and the West Virginia
district where strike is now on.
Mitchell Slow to Act.
President Mitchell has had the CON
sent Of five districts for some time. but
for some reason did not see fit to issue
the call until today. The request ior
the convention was made al llazelion
four weeks ago last Friday.
President Mitchell was extremely I'M
communicative as 10 what the action of
the convention may be. II the delegates
should agree 10 naugurate national sus
pension OF coal mining everybody at
strike headquarters believe it would have
disastrous effect upon the industries of
the country
The supply Of coal would become so
short that large and small industrial es-
tablisbments would he compelled to sus-
pend operations and many railroads would
also seriously suffer. There are approxi-
matcIy about 100000 coal miners in the
United States. OF these about $50, 900,
Mr. Mitchell says, are affiliated with the
union and an additional 10000 comply
with the legislation Of the miners union
II Is utterly impossible at this distance
10 forecast what the national gathering
will do, because not one delegate has yet
been elected. The anthracite delegates
will go into convention with $4,000
striking hard coal miners at their back
or n general strike.
Instructed to Strike.
The West Virginia delegates will have
approximately $4,000 behind them for a
strike and in Michigan, where the union
has been having trouble, the delegates
will also be instructed for a national
strike. Central Pennsylvania will also
contribute a certain number Of delegates
who will want a general strike
II is thought Western Pennsylvania,
Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky and Indiana will
Offset this, as il is stated that the miners
in these sections are not very enthusiastic
for general stoppage Of coal produc-
ton.
There is a general belief here that
President Mitchell has some plan 10 sub
nit 10 The delegates and this belief is
strengthened by the fact that he delayed
the call so long. He had a conference
with President Patrick Gilday, Of the
Central Pennsylvania bituminous district,
ON Sunday and has been in frequent COM
munication with other soft coal leaders
in the West.
The barrier 10 be overcome in the
campaign for national suspension is the
yearly wage scale agreement that many
Of the soft coal miners have with the
companies.
1t is generally accepted by the strikers
that the real object Of the anthracite coal
owners is to break up the union in this
part Of the country at least.
May Compromise.
1t is not improbable that the conserve
tive element will be able to prevent a
general suspension and carry through the
convention some sort of a compromise.
One plan that is talked Of Is to have
only the Central Pennsylvania and West
Virginia help the anthracite workers, and
another is to have the soft coal miners
work only certain number of days each
week. Failing to gain either of these,
then, as a final card they will stop pro-
duction altogether.
The coal coming East now is from
Central Pennsylvania, West Virginia and
Maryland.
There will be about one thousand dele
gates to the convention, Secretary Will
son has already started to send out the
call for the convention.