The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-01-05
REPLY To The MINERS
MARKLE & COMPANY MAKE THEIR
ANSWER.
MAKE A GENERAL DENIAL
OF THE CHARGES MADE AGAINST
THEIR BUSINESS.

How the Claims of Inhumnn and Tn
ers Are Met by MnrkIe & Company.
Explanation of the Firms Methods
Is Mnde-AccOunt of the Relations
That Have Existed between the
Firm and Its EmplOyes-strike
Commission He-assembIes.
| Philadelphia, Jan. 4.--The answer Of
@. 3. Markle & Co, independent coal
operators, to the demands OF the min
ers, was made public here to-day. The
answer will be submitted to the An
thracite Strike Commission, which re-
assemblies in this city tomorrow. It
was written by John Markle, manag-
ing partner of the firm.
The statement says the firm en-
ploys about Z, 400 men, and many of its
employees reside in the villages of
Freeland. about two miles distant, and
Hazleton, about seven miles distant
from Jeddo. The lessees erected and
own all the Improvements upon the
property. including breakers, stores,
shops and tenement houses. 1t says
the company always has maintained
two physicians for the men, deducting
40 cents a month from the married
men and so cents month from the
single men therefore, and paying it
over to the physicians without charge
or deduction. This arrangement was
not compulsory upon the men or FAM
lilies.
Stores for the sale of general mer-
chandise and of miners supplies have
| always been maintained upon the
| property, and have been and are an
accommodation to the men and their
| Families. The men have never been
required to deal there. 1t says in
| september, 1897, a committee of min
| ers presented certain demands to the
firm. An agreement was then in ex-
istence between the company and men
to settle differences by arbitration.
The company replied to the demands
and received no further communica-
ton from the miners. Work at the
| mines continued uninterrupted until
| the LETTER part of 1900, when John
Mitchell made his headquarters at
Hazleton and endeavored to organize
the Markle employees.
Negotiated with the Men.
In September. 1900, another list of
| grievances was furnished to the firm.
which, he says, it offered to arbitrate,
| but the men struck
! Between 1900 and 1902 many requests
were made for the correction of alleged
| grievances, which We're all taken up
and considered and acted upon but
| neither individually nor collectively,
\ orally or in writing, says the state
ment, did the men make any complaint
| in reference to the method of collect
| ing the dues for the doctors or the
/ priests; nor was attention called to
! any defect in respect to ventilation:
or unfair treatment at the store nor
as to the size of the cars; nor as to the
slope cleaning; nor the docking, until
April, 1902, and the firm had every
| reason to believe that, taken as a
whole, the men were entirely satisfied
with the conditions of their employ
| ment
1t says in the hearings at Scranton.
complaint was made of the size of the
| cars, but IN reality the size has not
been changed, as will be proved by
the testimony of the builders. 1t was
also alleged that the docking was ex-
cesslVe. but the accountant will testify
that 1t is less than 2 per cent. Objec-
ton Is also made that the full 10 per
cent. advance was not given. The
manner IN which the advance was
computed was repeatedly explained to
the men, and IL will be shown by the
expert accountant that il was correct
ly calculated.
Matter of the Evfctions.
The statement goes into the matter
of eviction of men from the firms
houses after appointment of the Arbi-
tration Commission, and says the
twelve men evicted were so treated
because they had been active in pre-
venting men from resuming work No
attempt was made to,collect from them
arrears Of rent accrued during the
strike. The evicted men in 1901, it is
stated, each made net earnings rang
ing from $3.50 to $1,000.
Specific denials are made of state
ments before the commission. alleging
harsh treatment of various. individuals
whose names had been given.
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