The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-27

with concrete difficulties, American read
ers will regret 10 And that a relatively
small proportion OF the space at the suthor's
disposal Il devoted to the iron and steel
trade. Only ono lecture n allotted to this
subject, but many uluminative documents
ere added.
II tho greater part Of the volume u con.
termed with tho coal industry, this 10 BE-
cause the coal situation IN Great Britain and
the United States has for some time ohal-
eneed anxious attention. Mr.. Ashley shows
himself alive to the significance Of tho ap-
pointment OF the anthracite strike commits
sion and OF tho decision rendered by the
United States Circuit Court In the Northern
Securities case. He Is inclined TO think
that the former will DO regarded In tho
future a. . distinct step toward tho cor
porate negotiation Of wages or collective
bargaining with reference thereto. He
points out that with respect to tho tmme-
diate and specific causes OF contention
wages and tho hours Of labor-the anthra-
cite commission simply granted to the
miners one-haK Of their formal demands,
or exactly what the miners had professed
themselves ready to accept months before
The Presidents Intervention. He deems
II noteworthy that neither In the miners
statements Of claims laid before the COM
mission. nor In the answers Of the opera
tors, docs ono meet With the arguments
based on tho price of coal which are familiar
In England. The questions which were
raised b. the claims and replies, and to
which. accordingly. tho commission felt
called upon TO address itself, were only
those Of the relation Of anthracite miners
wages TO, Hrst, the American standard OF
living; to, secondly. an alleged recent in
crease In the cost Of living; to, thirdly.
wares in the bituminous fields; and ,fourthly.
10 wages In comparable occupations Tho
omission Of prices 10 pronounced tho moro
remarkable. because the commission pro-
peeded to create sliding scale. following
the prior Of GOAL. for the future regulation
Of wages.
Mr.. Ashley regards a. Of paramount
importance the commissions utterances
on the subject OF recognition. For British
observers It b here that the interest Of the
coal situation In the United States centres.
The commission felt constrained to decline
making an award which would compel N
agreement by the operators With tho United
Mino Workers of America on the ground
that this body was mot = party to this SUBJ
mission Nevertheless. the commission
felt It incumbent upon itself to give soms
expression to It's views ON the general
question: Accordingly. 1t proceeded to
express belief that "a working agreement
between employers and employees embody-
ing the doctrine Of q collective bargaining
contains many hopeful elements.' The
reasons for this opinion which wero set
forth by tho commission In tn report har"
monte with the general line Of argument
pursued In tho lectures here printed. The
reasons, in brief. arc these: that unionism
is . natural outcome Of community Of
thought and that to recognize . union
when it actually rspresents the men en-
ployed Is now coming to be simply q matter
Of business The commission established,
It will be remsmbered. the Board of
Cancellation, representing the operation and
miners in tho anthracite region. Further
than this its award did not 60, but The hope
was expressed that when the parties
brought together on the Board Of ConciliA.
tion should have learned to deal With each
pther, trade agreement bstween operators
apn tho ono hand and An anthracite mi, .
workers organisation on the other NIL hi
Commend itself to both sides. Apparently
the commission did not regard such an
. anthracite organisation - necessarily quits
separate from the United Mine Workers
who. II must be borne In mind. include
bituminous miners. The commission pointed
but two grave defects In the rules Of the
United Mine Workers, but Mr.. Ashley hold
that neither Of them u inherent In miners
union and that both could be remedied
Attention was directed by the commission
to the fact that the recently revised con.
btitution Of the United Mine Workers hat
given the districts Of the anthracite regior
Fquite independent powers relative to thu
initiation Of strike and thus had removed
tho chief objection Of the operators Hence
the commission concludes. in language o
obvious significance, that -an independent
and autonomous organization Of the anthra
cite mine workers In Pennsylvania, how
ever affiliated, In which the Objectionable
features above alluded to should be absen
would deserve the recommendation Of IT,,
commission, and, were II within the scoI,
Of its jurisdiction, the fourth demand Of tn
statement OF claim put forward by tn
anthracite miners. the demand. namely
for collective bargaining and atrade agree
ment, might then be reasonably granted.
Mr.. Ashley shows that precisely simila
broblem Is presented to trade union leader
in England and In the United States. Tn
problem before the Miners Federation Q
Great Britain and the United Mine Worker
OF America 10 To concede An autonomy ,
a district--in the one case TO South Wales
in the other to eastern Pennsylvania
which shall sufficiently correspond to locs
conditions and at the same time to retail
an .afYiliation' which shall be source Q
mutual support. That no solution can. !
the nature OF the case, be theoreticall
satisfactory need not, In our authors juda
ment, hinder the adoption OF workabl
compromise, and II such q oompromis
puts obstacles for the time In the way q
an all embracing national policy its post
ponement will, at any rate. allow OF tn
acquisition OF some useful experience.
The other recent incident which ID cor
sidsred briefly In the work before us ID tn
decision OF tho United Sta ~ Circuit Court q
Appeals At 81. Paul, doc lirins illegal and 9
sctionabls offence tho merger Of tn
n .sar - nr~at NnrthArp