The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-04-03
MINERS WIN 4
Bic VICTORY
Report Of the Anthracite Strike
Commission Is Made
Public.
MEN GET HIGHER WAGES
a Sliding Scale Is Provided,
Based on Coal Prices, for
Three Years.
MEN GET HIGHER WAGES
UNION NOT
Commission Says 1t Has No Authority
to Determine This Point-Recom-
mends Agreements by Employ
ers Meeting Employees.

ers Meeting Employees.
Washington, March 23.-The report
Of the strike commission was made
public today. It is dated March IS and
is signed by all the members of the
commission. 1t covers eighty-seven
pages of printed matter.
In brief the commission recommends
q general increase Of wages, amounting
in most instances to 10 per cent, and
some decrease in time; the settlement
Of all disputes by arbitration; fixes the
. minimum wage II q sliding scale;
provides against discrimination by
either the mine owners or miners on ac-
count of membership or non-member-
ship in a labor union, and provides that
the awards to be made shall continue
in force until March 81, 1906.
The commission discussed to some eN-
tent. the matter Of recognition or nom
recognition Of the Miners union, but
declined to make any award on this
matter. The commission alst, makes a
number of recommendations, which
may be summarized as follows: Discon-
%tinuance of the system of employing the
coal and iron police" because this
force is believed to have an irritating
effect; s%tricter enforcement Of the laws
in relation to the employment of chill
dren; that. both state and federal gov
m should provide machinery for
making compulsory Investigations of
difficulties, similar to the investiga-
ton which this commission has made.
The commission, however, takes a de-
cided position against compulsory arbi-
tration.
Sliding Wage Scale.
The increase of 10 per cent. in wages
dates from November l last, and the
rates paid during April, 1902, are the
basis upon which the increase is made.
During the life OF the award the pres
ent methods Of payments for csal
mined shall be adhered to unless
changed by mutual agreement. The
following sliding scale Of wages be-
comes effective April l next:
For each increase of 5 cents in the
average price of White Ash coal OF
sizes above pea coal, sold at or near
New York $3.50 per ton, employees
shall have an increase of l per cent.
in their compensation; but the rate of
compensation shall in no case be less
than tina fixed in the award. That is,
when the price of coal reaches $4.55
per ton the compensation will be in
creased l per cent; to continue until
the price falls below $3.50, when the l
per cent. increase will cease; or until
the price reaches $4.60 per ton, when
an additional 1 per cent. will be added;
and so IN.
These average prices shall be COM
puted monthly by an %ccountant or
commissioner named by one of the cir
cult Judges Of the Third judicial cir
cult of the United States and paid by
the coal operators such compensation
as the appointing judge nay fix.
A large portion Of the report is de-
voted to a review Of the controversy
which led to the presidents action in
appointing the commission, to the ap-
pointment itself, and the proceedings
committed. They review in a general
way the production Of anthracite coal,
refer to the small area Of country in
which it Is produced, n dwell at
some length on market conditions and
prices Of coal.
Losses by the Strike.
They also refer to the hazardous ma
ture Of anthracite mining, and give an
estimate Of losses occasioned by the
strike.
These losses they estimate as fol-
lows:
Mine employees, in wages.......... 25,000,0W
To transportation companies. 2S,0N0,0 900
The commission takes up the demands
of the mine workers and answers the
mine operators, giving in detail the
reasons for the findings. In a general
way they say the conditions of life of
mine workers outside the mines do not
justify, to their full extent, the adj
verse criticisms made by their represent
tatives. They also find that social con-
ditions in mining communities are good.
They fail to find wages so low among
the miners as necessarily to force them
to put their small children to work.
The commission also finds the average.
day rate of earnings in the anthracite
region does not compare unfavorably
with that in other industries.
Commissions Great Task.
The commission says, in making
their investigation, they have done
whatever it was practicable to do to
acquaint themselves with the condi-
tons which brought about the strike,
and they nave made h following sum-
mary of their work:
They lave gone through mines and
inspected various conditions which the
production of anthracite involves; they
have visited breakers, engine houses
and pumping stations; examined the
machinery by which miners are pro-
tected from water and foul air: have
talked with miners at their work and
in their homes; have given attention to
the economic, domestic, scholastic and
IeliSlouS phases u t1elr lives. Ihey
have listened to and directed the ex-
animation and cross-examination of
55s witnesses; they have given free
scope to counse who represented the
operators, non-union men and miners;
and they have devoted an entire week
to hearing their arguments.
The commissioners also say while
there have been differences of opinion
among themselves, there has never
been a time during the five months
existence of the commission when there
was an unpleasant word spoken among
them, "or any indication whatever of
q thought or desire Of aught save the
truth and justice"
As to Recognizing Union.
On the subject Of the recognition of
the mine workers union, the commits
sion say they do not consider that this