The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-11-15

N.Ich cannot be settled between the
mine foremen and mine workers.
Ihlrd-Should the mine foremen
ana mine company fail to adjust the
grievance complained Of the matter
IN dispute should be referred TO the
company superintendent and a general
grievance committee. which should be
constituted of representative mine
workers from each coliiery operated by
any one company Should they fail to
ADJUST 1t. 1t should. be referred TO the
general manager of the coal company
ana the district president of the miners
organization, and should they fail TO
adjust il they should call on the serv-
ices OF some disinterested person whose
decision should be final.
Pending an adjustment in the man
ner set forth the mines and the miners
should continue at work.
Plea For Children.
Mr.. Mitchell concluded with a plea
for the children. He said: Our little
boys should not be forced into the
mines and breakers so early in life
our little girls should not be compelled
TO work in the mills and factories at an
age when they should be in school
These children are the future citizens
OF our nation; their parents should be
enabled TO earn wages sufficiently high
TO give them at least a common school
education so as to equip them to bear
the grave responsibilities that will ul-
timately devolve upon them. The
wealth and the future of the nation
are not to be measured by its palaces
ana mlllionaires, but rather by the en-
nghtened cOntentment and prosperity
OF Its millions OF citizens who conSti-
tute the bone and sinew of our land"
responding to question by Judge
Gray, Mr.. barrow said the miners
n 10 r%r-~-L
nesses, and that he would call Mr.
Mitchell first. 1t was agreed that all
witnesses should be put under oath.
Mr.. Mitchell was then sworn He said
that 80 per cent of the anthracite min
erS are members of the union, and that
the president or executive board never
ordered strike except on the affirma-
tive vote of the miners themselves.
Responding to several questions, Mr..
Mitchell explained the relations be-
tween the union and the bituminous
operators, and said that by reason of
the contracts entered into by them
there had been no strikes. Where no
contracts were made, he said, there
had been strikes Of considerable mag
nitude. Through the amicable relations
with the bituminous operators, Mr..
Mitchell said wages had been increased
since 1898 an average of so per cent,
and that there had been a reduction in
hours from ten to eight and in the
number of employed.
Hazardous Work.
The price of fuel. both bituminous
and anthracite, he said, had gradually
increased. The work of mining he
characterized as the most hazardous in
the world. Last year 513 men were
killed in the mines and 1900 injured.
The number of deaths in the bitumin-
Gus fields in proportion to the number
of men employed, was not so great as
in the anthracite regions.
Mr.. Mitchell said the wages paid in
the bituminous fields were from 40 to
90 per cent higher in some classes of
work, and from 20 to 80 per cent in
others, than in the anthracite region.
He had visited the homes of miners
in this region and in the bituminous
fields and, generally speaking the con-
ditions in the soft coal fields are better
than in the hard coal territory.
He said the agitation for high wages
was begun two years ago. This had
crystallized into demand to be paid
by weight which, in his opinion, was
the only honest method of determining
the amount the men earned. He spoke
of the increased size of the coal cars
and the demand of the operators that
more top" should be put on, which,
ne SAID, mad Deen source OF more
trouble than any one thing he knew Of
Were you willing to- submit to ar
bitration?" Mr.. barrow asked.
Always said Mr.. Mitchell.
Mr.. Darrow's next question brought
out the first public statement made
since the late strike was inaugurated
regarding the amount of aid given the
strikers Mr.. Mitchell said that 81. 50o,-
600 had been distributed among the
workers, and that non-unlon men on
strike had shared equally with the
unionists, although they had paid no
dues.
He said he did not know of a single
instance where his organization had
failed to keep it's contracts.
What do you say as to the ability
of your organization to maintain dis
cipline and assist in the settlement of
questions and help in the harmony of