The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-02-14


Called Upon to Decide Between
the Operators and the Miners.
Evidence and Arguments Are All
in-DarrOw Touched Upon Every
Phase of strike-OperatOrs' COmbi-
nation VIII he Destroyed by the
PeOple-EnouGh to Exasperate the
Miners, He Said.
Philadelphia, Feb. 13.-The Anthra-
cite Strike Commission. after being in
public session for more than three
with an all-day argument by Clarence
S. barrow in behalf of the miners.
The commission will meet in secret
in Washington next Thursday, and be-
gin the consideration of it's awards. 1t
is expected that by the end of this
month the arbitrators will be ready to
make their announcement. If an in
crease in wages is determined upon,
the increase is to date from the first of
last November. the commission having
decided upon that date on Oct. 81.
After the session to-day the commits
sion held a short conference with the
lawyers for the several sides, and asked
them to hold themselves in readiness in
case they are called upon by the COM
mission. The crowd that heard Mr..
barrow speak to-day was fully as great
as that which listened to Mr.. Baer and
Mr.. barrow yesterday. He took up the
entire time of both sessions-five and
one-half hours. He touched upon al
most every phase of the strike, and
when he closed he was greeted with
long applause. which Chairman Gray
did not suppress. President Mitchell
was in court all day. but did not have
anything to say to the commission in
parting.
Mr.. barrow first discussed the cause
Of the strike. The responsibility for
the coal famine, he said, rested with
those who were responsible for the
strike. If the men struck without lust
reason, then they were responsible; but
If the men were right and the operators
not broad-minded enough to see the
business of their claims. then the lat
ter were responsible for the trouble. He
believed the strike was due to the
blind, autocratic.. stupid spirit of the
operators. They believed the issue was
who should be the master-the opera
tors or the men. ! say neither should
be the master of the other"
Not Fair Proposition.
Taking up Mr.. Baer's sliding scale
proposition made yesterday. Mr.. OAR
row said that if Mr. Bear believed he
made nice, fair proposition, he pro-
posed TO show that it was not. With
the assistance of the miners expert
statistician, the l per cent. raise ON
cents. suggested by MIR. Baer. would
give the operators an increase of So
per cent. in profits, and the miners
only 112 per cent. on the $3.50 basis.
Mr.. Darrow's remarks on the propo-
sition plainly indicated that the miners
hatly rejected the proposition
Mr. barrow said the miners resort
ed to every means to avert a strike.
Every appeal, and every prayer, of the
men was contemtuously rejected by
the operators. They forced the strike.
he said, that they might demonstrate
TO the men and to the generations to
come that the owners are the masters
of the workmen.
The people do not believe in such
an absolute ownership of the riches of
the earth as that which the anthracite
coal combination possesses. The time
nation will be destroyed, not by the
miners union, but by the people, who
will take possession of the riches I'M
der the ground, and relieve them
selves of the tyranny of these men,"
Mr.. barrow then launched into de-
Tense of the men who committed crime
under passion, and said the conduct
of the men was due to their condition
and environments. The fact that the
operators called the men Criminals.
cut threats and assassins," he said.
was enough to exasperate them.
Chairman Gray interrupted to say:
THE commission does not believe
the mine workers are criminals, cut
threats and assassins."
Mr.. barrow said 1t was a wonder If
the operators had insolently and
cruelty rejected the requests of the
men, that there was not more violence
among this population, which was re-
duced to a condition bordering on
starvation. He paid a tribute TO the
foreigners in the coal regions, who,
he said were warm hearted. emotion
al, sympathetic, religious people
Mr.. Darrow then took up the thirteen
evictions on the Markle property and
with language that was extremely
strong he pictured the eviction of a
sick wife, and of a blind woman 100
years old. You may roll together all
the cruelty and violence committed in
the anthracite region" he exclaimed,
land you cannot equal the fiendish
cruelty of John Markle, when he turn
ed these helpless people into the streets
to satisfy his hellish hate!"
Brig. Gen. Goblin, who commanded
one brigade of the state troops in the
field during the strike, came in for
severe criticism from Mr. Darrow. He
read various reports made to Gen Co
bin by his regimental commanders
and severely condemned the generals
now famous shoot to kill" order.
Turning to the boycott, Mr.. barrow
said there was one ilIustrious example.
at least, in the United States of the
boycott, and that was in the American
Revolution.
There Is not one specific act that
is charged to the mine workers but
what was charged to the Loyalists,
whom we teach our children to love
and venerate. Let me say there is
the legal side and the moral side The
boycott is an ancient weapon 1t is
respectable when the operators use It.
but not respectable when we use it,"
Scabs Always Hated.
He then spoke OF the non-union
men, whom he termed "scabs," al
though he remarked he did not like
the word, but used II because II Is
commonly used. These men, he said
have always been hated. Sometimes
they are good men, often they act from
necessity, but they are traitors to their
class. They are men who are used by
the capitalists 70 destroy the right and
lContinued on Fifth Page)