Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-03-25
Putnam County Transferred From
District 10.
SAVES A WHOLE LOT OF TROUBLE
Where the Difficulty Lies-Joint Con-
vention Will Have to Settle Matter
of Shot Firers and Uniform Wage
Scale.

coal miners and operators was done
away with today when the present
committee voted to take Putnam coun-
ty, Mo-. out of District Is of the Unit
ed Mine Workers of America and let
it become part of District 25, the Mis-
souri, district.
The question of changing Putnam
county from the Iowa district to the
Missouri district was brought up at
the Ottumwa convention, when this
same Putnam county caused no lit
tie delay to the proceedings of the
scale committee. The trouble lies in
the fact that the laws of Missouri pro-
vide that all coal mines shall be con
Quoted on strictly mine run plan;
that is, that the miners shall be paid
for the coal, and all the coal, that
they produce, which the Iowa laws do
not touch upon this point, and in this
state some mines are conducted on the
mine run system. while others are on
the screened coal basis, which means
that the coal is weighed after it has
passed over screens and thus the min
er receives pay for the lump coal, the
rate being higher, of course, on the
screened coal basis than on the mine
run basis.
1t was difficult to make satisfac-
tory price for the two kinds of coal in
the adjoining counties. Putnam coun-
ty, Mo-, and Appanoose county, Iowa,
both of which are on the same rail
road but are in different states. This
has always been hone of contention.
and in the present scale committee
convention it has hees carried along
without settlement until today or rath-
er. last evening, when the first steps
to do away with the evil We're taken.
3. H. Johnson, of Mendoza. Mo-. rep
resenting the biggest coal company in
Putnam county, has claimed all the
time that the price lie has been paying
during the past year, S334 cents, is too
high, and he has demanded a price of
81 ITO cents for mipe run This has
been steadily refused by the miners.
who stood out for at least the present
wage. BY the action taken today all
this trouble has been ended, and the
motion passed provides that the pres
ent mining price prevail until such
time as Putnam county shall be taken
into the Missouri district.
The reason Putnam county has been
in the Iowa district Tor so long is that
it was one of the two small territories
in Missouri which were organized
when the Iowa district was establish
ed. 1t was taken iEto the Iowa fold
and the western part of Missouri was
taken into the Kansas agreement.
Since Missouri has been organized and
a district No. %, has been established
thereby the United Mine Workers of
America, the state organization can
take care of Putnam county. District
ID will hereafter therefore. embrace
all of the state of Iowa and nothing
more.
Shot Firers Not Settled.
1t was practically mutually agreed
yesterday afternoon In the scale COM
mittee meeting that the scale commit
tee will be unable to settle the ques-
tions of uniform day wage scale and
of shot firers and that these two mat
tiers will have to be referred back to
the joint convention for settlement
This statement was made by Presi-
dent Reese Of the miners, and was
agreed to tacitly by many of the oper-
ators, when an attempt was made by
the operators from the first and fourth
districts to bring up the question of
uniform day wage scale for discussion
yesterday.
AS has been stated before in the
scale committee meetings, the miners
demand uniform inside day wage
scale all over the state. while the op-
orators of the first and fourth sub-dis-
tricts, which would be affected, say
that they cannot and will not grant the
increase in the cost of production.
These two facts were brought out in
the scale committee meeting yester-
day, and the two positions were stated.
When it was seen that neither side was
willing to yield it was decided to let
the matter pass until the remainder of
the scale, or as much of it as it is pos
sible to agree upon, shall have been ar
ranged.
Suggests a Plan.
H. l.. Waterman of Ottumwa, one OF
the most prominent operators in the
state. disagrees with the statement
made by President Reese, insomuch as
| it regards shot firers. Although Mr..
Waterman is not interested in the de-
mands regarding the uniform day
lwage scale. since his mines are in the
second district where the day wage
scale is all that the miners ask, he has
spent much time in a consideration OF
1.-THE shot firer question, and in CONVEX
sation with the Courier representative
| last evening he stated that the solu
ticn of the question lay in the adop.
ton OF the plan proposed by himself
when the miners and operators We're
before the house committee on mines
and mining a few days ago. This plan
was that the company employ shot eX.
aminers and pay them, and that the
miners pay thet shot firers whenever a
majority of the miners wished to have
such workmen.
However, it is very doubtful that the
miners will accept any such plan
1t is known that there are several rep
resentatives at the convention in this
city from the local miners unions in
different parts of the shooting coal dis
tricts who are instructed to vote first
last and all the time for shot tirers
and for once day firing, another point
which the miners want badly but
which will not cause much discussion
this year.
1t is hardly probable that the report
of the scale committee will go to the
] Joint convention until next Monday at