The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-08-12
serves the difference in favor of the

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 serves the difference in favor of the miner.
 Answer-This rule was made last fal when the Tennessee company advanced coal 25 cents a ton. You can have coa hauled by any one at Wylam, but al Pratt City 1t must be hauled by the com pany. I don't know whether they sell tC outsiders at the mine or not
 On cross-examination by Walker Percy
 Miners get special prices and it is special agreement with the miners to give them now prices on the coal that they use. am a Scotchman. I worked in the mines in Scotland and England and ir Indiana, Indian Territory, Tennessee and Alabama. Have been working In Pratt mines for ten years. l trade at company store because I can buy checks and sc get the benefit of the discounts. have all ways traded at companys stores. l never draw store checks. l have accumulated a little property. I own several houses My actual work has been mining. Have pursued no other calling. Am raising one of my boys to be a doctor. He took his degree at sewanee, Tenn.
 Judge Gray facetiously remarked You ought to raise him to be miner
 Witness continuing-I don't know the circumstances of other miners. l never had to draw store orders. Cannot tell what a, man can make. I always worked in narrow work have taken it easy for i,atra t1nt nXnppdAn for any one month, and worked steadily for last year. By steady work mean twenty-two days a month. It Is harder work going to my work than doing the actual work Best earnings l have made cannot remember. Have been working on coal in No. 4 slope at Pratt City for the last ten years.
 Edward Flynn testifes--At No. mines the company tries to work every day In the year except Sundays and holidays. Three out of five of the men are white.
 Powell again testlfes-Pay day is an agreed idle day. Pay day always comes on Saturday. Twenty-two days work Tn A month is a full months work for me.
 Some miners don't work much and don't make much. I don't know Of any rule concerning how many days man must work 1 never knew any man 10 be discharged for not working but II d man stays out day or two no other man would be put in his room. There is a rule at Pratt and other mines that any man being absent for three eonsecu- tive days may be discharged. There Is surplus of miners at Pratt in all mines but No. T.
 FIynn's Statement.
 MT. Flynn stated-The company can discharge any man. They do it when ever they want to- If a man is discharg- ed and the bank committee thinks he is unjustly discharged the matter is taken up with the mine superintendent, ana possibly taken higher. Never knew any trouble about discharges. What the men object to is hiring new men. There IS a great surplussage of men at Pratt There Is an agreement that men must not take advantage of the day in three rule. There are some men who do not work more than IA days month. Not a great number.
 Powell against TtSuilltS ltoblliAOAA9f
 have bought cheeks as low as 5O cents on the dollar two or three years ago. Men had to have money and said if I did not buy some one else would. The Tennessee company has recently bought up checks. My discount at the store has varied and I suppose 1t was eecause of a fiuctuation in check market. re ... .<...,,.o,,,, l,,,xra checks at S5 cents on the dollar that is a guarantee that the men can always get that price. Checks are cheaper at Ensley. l have purchased them there for 70 cents The company prohibited the sale of time as credited in pass books. The men, were obliged to use the books at the store, at the time of the book system. The store managers gave me some discounts. They knew I would trade same where else unless they did. I paid cash at the end of the month and always got a discount. If you go with dollar check and a dollar in cash you would get the same value in goods for one as for the other, but where employees has credit and runs bill the company buys checks to his Account.
 Day After Pay Day.
 On the day after pay day a large num- Der of negroes lay off. I mean on the Monday after pay day. Some white men lay off It makes no difference in coal output.
 In Pratt seam there are only two men 1h a room. If one man stays out the man who stays in can put in a buddy of his own choice.
 The negro miner and laborer is indis- posed to work with money in his pocket. He is much less thrifty than Scotchman. Many of the negroes draw. their store or ders and sell them. Never knew Scotch man to do 1t. Cheapest cheeks are to be bought at Ensley, where negroes work in mills and furnaces.
 There is regular time to shoot the A 1o !, o v,1 a unnxnfn Gn