Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-01-19
MINERS WARNED
By John Mitchell To Be Moderate
and Conservative in
Their Action
his ADDRESS TO THE U. M. W.
Insists on the Mine-Run Basis-Anti.
Injunction aud Eight-Rour
Bills Favored.

Indianapolis. Jan. 19-The fifteenth
Workers began here with approximate
ly 1,OO0 delegates. Brief addresses of
welcome We're made by Mayor John
HoltZman and President Barry. of the
Central Labor union. which were re-
SpOnded TO by President Mitchell, who
then announced the committee on rules
and order of business. While the con
VentiOn waS working on the credentials
the rules committee returned and am
nounced that the reports of the officers
would precede the report of the ere
dentialS committee. This was adopted
after short debate and President
Mitchell delivered his annual address
Moderation and Conservation Urged.
President Mitchell urged that the
convention be moderate in speech and
conservative in action, adding we
should keep in mind that the enemies
of labor and the opponents of trade
uniOniSm. as represented by the Manu-
facturerS' association and the Citizens
Industrial Alliance. are every ready to
make capital out of any small indisCre
ton. and to magnify out of all reason
able proportion the slightest mistake
that trade unioniStS my make" The
report then outlines the situation in
each district
Anti-IniunctiOn and Eight Hour Bills.
Mitchell insists upon the universal
adoption of the run-of- mine basis. Wig
orOus support of the anti-injunctiOn bill
and the eight-hour bill now before con-
gresS is urged, and of federal injunc-
tiOnS he says: The evils which have
grown out of the indiScriminate isSu-
Rnce of federal injunctiOns and the III
siduOuS attempts on the part of some
of our federal Judges to deprive us of
right of trial by jury are so well
known to the trade uniOniSts of our
country as to require no elaboration
in this report" President Mitchell
voices his earnest support of legiSia-
ton prohibiting boys under 16 from be
ing allowed To work in the mines and
asks the convention to indorse if.
Over a Million in Bank.
Vice President Lewis in his annual
report reviewed his work of organiza-
ton during the past year. During the
year sixty organizers were regularly
employed, in addition TO the national
bOad members. SecretaTy-TreaSurer
Wilson's report said he had hoped to
report Il larger amount of money on
hand, but the large number of strikes
requiring aid from the national organ
iZatiOn had been Il great drain on its
resources. The net increase in the
funds of the national organization for
eleven months ended Nov. 80. was $T9.- |
07S On that date there was in Indi- |
banks belonging to the or
sanizatiOn SLED. l31.
Aggregate of the Membership.
The pafd-up membership is 2S9. $50. |
The total membership is approximate |
ly 100000 To avoid the loss of rev !
enue from these 10000 members rot |
paid up. which would amount TO S96.-
OOO annually. the stamp system is ad-
vOcated i'm the report. Wilson rec
Ommends that the Mine Workers Jour
nal he made monthly publication in
stead OF weekly. and that the per
capita tax he increased , cents per
month to pay for extra copies TO he
10 locals. This closed the
part of the days work.
United STATES FLEET