The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-10-14
SUBSCRIPTION TERMS
The Cruel War Almost Over.

At last light begins to dawn in the dark
and gloomy coal war. The pressure or
public opinion and the powerful influence
of the President Of the United States nave
made an impression.
The operators who, in the words OF
President tTruesdale had nothing to arbi-
trate. have now agreed to arbitrate, and
disclairn ever having had any opposition
to arbitration with their employees. They'
save their position, to certain extent
by insisting that they will not arbitrate
with the United Mine Workers Union. In
other words they will not recognize the
union as the mouthplece and agent Of the
mine workers.
Arbitration without formal recognition
of the United Mine Workers Union
should. and we believe, will be accepted
by President Mitchell. 1t should be sut1-
Gent recognition for him and the union
that this arbitration cannot go on unless
they agree to it. The mine operators
proposition amounts to this: If the United
Mine Workers Union is agreeable, we
bind ourselves to arbitrate certain differ
ences between our employers and our
selves.
This is no time for Mr.. Mitchell to stand
on a bubble of recognition. 1t may seem
very important to him and the union, but
It does not seem important to the public,
and Mr.. Mitchell must accept the general
terms of the offer Of the operators If he
wishes to hold for the men. that public
sympathy the men have undoubtedly had
ever since Mr.. Baer's bad break. The
operators concede the great point Of spe-
cific term agreements. 1t amounts to
Joint bargaining. They bind themselves
to run their mines for three years in &C
cordance with the decision arrived at by
the arbitration commission they propose.
When the operators declare that while
they do not discriminate against the
United Mine Workers. they insist that the
miners union shall not discriminate
against or refuse to work with non-union
men; that there shall be no restriction or
deterioration in the quantity or quality OF
work, they are taking high ground. P ub-
lie opinion vii! be with them on this. 1T
simply amounts to this: That employment
in the mines shall be free to all qualified
corners. The men may join the union or
not as they please. Having seen the
power of the union most Of the men will
continue to belong to the union or will
Join it, The operators also lay down a
condition that will meet with public ap-
prevail when they stipulate that immedi-
atelyupon the arbitration commissions be-
inc cd he sha tn
That is where public necessity is consult
ed. The public wants coal and wants it
at once. While arbitration is in process
the mon must go back to work. That is
no more than President Mitchell has al
ready offered.
AS to the composition Of the commission
to be appointed by the president, there
may be some room for negotiations. There
will be little objection, we take it, to an
officer of the army or navy engineers, an
expert mining engineer and an eminent
sociologist; but there will likely be objec-
ton by the men to the inclusion Of a Goa
operator unless there is also on the com
mission Il mine worker; and there may, on
account of suspicious of bias, be objec-
tons to judge or a united states court
of an eastern Pennsylvania district.
But now that the operators have ex.
pressed their willingness to arbitrate anG
have made a definite proposition, there
ought to be no insuperable difficulty in de-
termining the composition Of the court
Both Mr.. Mitchell and the operators owe
1t to the public to dispose of details anc
prelmlnaries with al! possible speed ant
start the mines at once. 1t ought not tt
be necessary to take more than two OF
three days to make suitable arrange
ments. At the farthest the mines ough
to be running with full forces by mex
Monday.
The coal operators have not surrend
cred. They have just given up.