Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-24
ANSWER TO MITCHELL
THE COAL OPERATORS DENY
MANY STATEMENTS.
Declare There VIII Be No Arbitration
and Men Are Anxious to
Return.

The New York Herald of today SAYS:
Charging misrepresentation OF facts and
Inaccuracies to President Mitchell the few
coal operators found In the city yesterday
decidedly declared that the demand for ar
bttratfon made by the head of the striking
miners was not to receive consideration.
Some OF the operators said they had not
even read Mr. Mitchell's statement. which
was published yesterday, in answer TO an
earlier statement issued by the operators
"Mitchelfs statement, said r. NJ. Oily
plant OF the Delaware and Hudson Coal
Company, lis misleading and unreliable as
to facts and figures. If Mitchell proposes to
call out the bituminous miners and paralyze
the entire industries Of the country he will
find he has taken upon his shoulders a job
bigger than he is able to cope with.
There will be no arbitration; that is GER
tain We will operate our mines again with
the men that are on strike now. They will
be only too glad to come back, and no strike
leader will be able to keep them out
Thomas P. Fowler of the New York. On
tario and Western said: II have not had
time to read Mitchelrs statement There
fore, of course, have no comment to offer.
When l have read it L may have something
to say"
George F. Baer of the Philadelphia and
Reading and William H. Truesdale of the
Delaware. Lackawanna and Western are
both out of town.
One of the leading operators. who would
talk only on condition that his name would
not be used, said:
"Mitchelrs statement is full of generali-
ties and Misrepresentation of facts. The
whole question in the anthracite region to-
day is whether the mines shall be managed
by the operators, who have millions invest
ed or by Mr.. Mitchell and his union.
THE companies in the anthracite region
are willing to pay their employees as much
as is paid anywhere else for labor requiring
the same degree of skill and intelligence
THE whole question of wages resolves it
self into question of supply and demand.
We pay our outside laborers in the anthra-
cite region 16 cents an hour. If they could
obtain anywhere else for work of the same
nature better wage the result would be
that We would be short on men. This, as a
matter of fact. is not the case. Instead, We
have a surplus of men,
"Mitchell's offer to arbitrate will not be
seriously considered by the operators. They
have agreed to adjust all grievances with
their own employees, which fact Mr.. Mitch
ell seems to entirely lose sight of. AS set
forth In our earlier statement, any arbitra-
ton or agreement purporting to cover the
entire anthracite region would not be prac-
tlcable on account of the different conditions
that obtain in different localities.
The plain, unvarnished fact is that in
1901 the miners at mines had an OPP
pOrtunity to increase their earnings over
and above those of the previous year all
the way from 10 to 30 per cent. That they
have not is entirely due to the policy of
restriction in hours of labor imposed by
the union of which Mr.. Mitchell is presi-
dent.
Mr.. Mitchell would not dare to come to
a practical mining man. familiar with the
conditions in the anthracite region. and
make the kind of statements he has made
to the public and to the Civic Federation"