Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1906-02-06
FAIL TO AGREE
ON WAGE Scale
MOTION THAT PRESENT ONE BE
CONTINUED DEFEATED AT
JOINT CONFERENCE.
MEETING OF OPERATORS
AND MINERS ADJOURNS

AND MINERS ADJOURNS
President Mitchell Immediately Is
sues Call for Cow elit.on-Is Firmly
Opposed to Any Concession-own-
ers in Fighting Mood.
Indianapolis, Ind, Feb. 3.-The joint
conference OF the operators and the
miners of both the central competitive
and southwest districts adjourned Fri
day sine die without an agreement on
wage scale. The adjournment was
Immediately followed by call for a
meeting of the national convention of
the United Mine Workers of America
for two o'clock.
A motion made by f. l.. Robbins,
the spokesman for the operators, that
the present wage scale be continued
was lost, as it required, under the
rules, unanimous vote to carry any OF
the principal propositions. Operators
of Ohio, Indiana and Pennsylvania
voted for the motion; Illinois operators
declined to vote. The miners of Ohio,
Indiana and Illinois voted against the
proposition. Patrick Dolan, president
or the Pennsylvania miners, voted his
state for the proposition which caused
an uproar among the miners. His
right to vote the Pennsylvania miners
for the continuance of the present
scale in spite of the fact that the Pitts
burg convention had voted for an in
crease was challenged by several other
Pennsylvania miners, but on an appeal
to the chair the vote was so recorded
The motion to adjourn sine die was
made by F. L. Robbins Immediately
following the announcement that the
proposition of the operators as en-
bodied in his motion had been de-
feated
President Mitchell has declared that
under no circumstances would the
miners accept any agreement that did
not carry with it an increase in wages,
and the miners convention has unani-
mously, with the exception of three
votes, Endorsed the action of the joint
scale committee, which refused the
proposition of the operators that the
present wage scale be continued
Mitchell Announces Refusal.
When the conference was resumed
Friday President Mitchell, of the H.
ers, announced that the miners had re-
fused to accept continuance of the
present scale.
F. L. Robbins, of Pittsburg, moved
that the present scale be affirmed with
the same prices and conditions for the
year beginning April l. Mr.. Taylor, an
Illinois operator, moved an amend
ment, which was the same proposition
that had been previously offered and
rejected. The amendment was lost,
the operators and miners voting SOL
Idly.
Fighting Speech by Robbins.
F. L. Robbins then took the floor
He said he wanted to go on record, as
it seemed the future of the interstate
movement was in peril. He reviewed
the difference in the condition of the
miners now and when the interstate
and joint conference movement went
into effect. You have advanced wages
and shorter hours said he. With
out argument and in the face of all
fairness you yesterday met and repu-
dated fair proposition. want to go
on record as protesting against such
methods. Yesterday coal sold in Chi
cago at price carrying an S0-cent
freight rate because the railroads were
demanding the cars, and yet you re-
fuse to allow one district to sign an
agreement unless all sign. We don't
propose to have miners of other states
with conditions entirely different from
ours dictate as to the settlement of our
affairs in our district. Your PROPOSE
ton adopted yesterday is absurd A
little section up in Michigan could re-
fuse settlement and tie up the whole
country. You have conference with
the anthracite operators coming. If l
were an anthracite operator would
refuse to deal with you."
President Mitchell Replies,
President Mitchell took the floor In
reply. Said he: 1T is kind of Mr..
Robbins to say that we have presented
no argument. We refuse to allow the
operators to have the final say as to
whether we have presented any argu-
ment or not. We have shown that coal
is selling at the mines at from IS to
So cents a ton higher than it was sell
ing seven months ags. We showed
this by their own circulars. we have
shown by their circulars that the con
dition of their own trade is highly
prosperous.
The country IL In the highest degree
of prosperity. Stocks and bonds are
selling higher than ever before. And
yet, notwithstanding this situation, we
are asked to continue a lower wage
scale than We had two years ago. And
Mr. Robbins will remember that two
years ago, when we accepted a lower
wage scale on account of an unfortun-
ate situation existing at that time, he
promised that the reduction would be
restored at the next conference"
Women Form Civil War Order.
New York, Feb. 3.-Only daughters
Of officers In the civil war are eligible
to membership ID the new patriotic
society known as this Daughters of the
Military Order of the Loyal Legion
The society at its first meeting elected
Mrs. W. B. Hotchkin president. II