The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-09-14
WORK DEVELOPS AT
 BLUE CREEK MINES Tennessee Company is IncreaS-
 ing Its Daily Output PEACE AND REAL ACTIVITY Contract Required By Company Rigid and Dlrect-Mlners Must Not
 Belong to UnIon--Many
 Leaving the District.
BY FRANK v. EVANS.

! Johns, September 13.-(Special).-Th wheels are turning in the Blue Creek dis trict of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company, and he who thinks to the contrary is much mistaken.
 From the best informaticl obtainable It is learned that about one thousand tons of coal per day are r-g being min ed at Johns and Sumter. That the Adger mines are uneergoing prepar- tion for opening and that before the end O. this week they will be in opera ton.
 l e Blue Creek district is remarkably peaceful. To be sure there are many striking union miners hereabouts; but they are not disorderly, and just now heard Superintendent Franklin decline the services of two additional deputy sheriffs, who had been sent down to him. He has only s.1 at each mine and say5 he does not need them This fact speaks well for the strlkers It shows that they are not, in general way. disorde-lS and are working no harm to mine owners.
 They Bear Arms.
 
 Winchester rifles and pistols are of course in evidence in the Blue Creek sec ton, arms being borne by both sides of the contest, but not concealed. This is natural under thS strained order of things, but not unlawful under the Amer ican bill of rights. Then firearms con- stitrte protection feature.
 The striking union miners come to the depot and upon the public highways at pleasure, but do not eneroaeh upon the premises of the company. They are a clever healthful looking set of fellows and seemed to be well fed and in good humor. The question of poverty does not seem to have entered into this contest and so long as 1t does not there is no teli- ing when the end will come
 Take a lot of negroes and ration them weekly, affording lAe lxury of idle wait ing, and they are not likely to suecumb to any pressure until the rations give out; but 1t is surprising that any number of white men should be satisfied with an allowance to themselves and families weekly rationed out as if they were men, dieants.
 Whites Leaving the District.
 And I understand that there Is dis pleasure among the whites, in conse- quence of which many are leaving the district and seeking employment in the mines of distant states, even under the red .ced scale, but where they are allow ed to be loyal to their unions In this they show much spirit
 Doing Business.
 There Is no disputing the fact that the Blue Creek division is doing business, and that this business Is daily increasing. There are 200 men at work at Johns today, 225 at Sumter and many more at Blocton. The increase here is wonderful. Resump- tion of work at Johns was begun with mine superintendent and a foreman. To these there have been many additions. Many of the new men are raw recruits, but there are enough old men to train the new.
 At first the Tennessee company was un- able to remove the striking miners from their houses under the statute of limita- tion, and built a boarding house. Now the company has full possession of all it's cottages and cabins, which are being leased to newcomers, and they are rap idly filling.
 Rigid Restrictions.
 It will hardly be possible to admit many of the old miners who are union
  company, under the rigid restrictions stip- ulated in the contracty Said Superintend- ent Franklin today: T wish the press would remove the impression that these are open mines They are not. We have certain rules as unalterable as those of the union."
 The superintendent then exhibited a contract setting forth the scale of wages and ending with an application for em- ployment, which reads as follows:
 T hereby apply for position with the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad com pany as at--
 T am not a member of any labor union or organization, and I promise not to be- come one while I am employed by the Tennessee Coal. Iron and Railroad com pany.
 ''Witness:
 This of course means an absolute re- nunciation of union
 From the best information obtainable the conclusion Is reached by the writer that the number of old union miners who have signed this contract at Johns does not exceed half dozen, yet the force of men here exceeds 200.
 The End Far Off,