Omaha daily bee., 1906-02-26
NO STRIKE OF The MINERS
Vice President of the Union Makes the
Positive Statement.
OPERATORS HAVE YIELDED A POINT
Men to Have Increase Equal to the
Reduction Made Two Years Ago
and Great Labor Conflict
Is ANerted.

INDIANAPOLIS. Feb 3.-In a state
| ment issued tonight to the Associated Press
| Vice President T. L. Lewis of the United
| Mine Workers of America declares there
will be no strike of the mine workers on
April /. saying the operators will restore
the reduction accepted by the miners two
| years ago and perhaps more.
The statement is as follows:
| You may accept one proposition
/ fixed fact-that there viii be no general
| strike in the mining industry April ].
Tho operators will restore the reduction
| and perhaps more. F. L. Robbins Of
| Pennsylvania and Mr.. Taylor of Illinois,
untenable position at Indianapolis and
| have gracefully submitted to the inevita-
| bic and will pay an advance to the miners.
A general strike will be sverted. Business
| will mot be paralyzed by industrial strife.
| An era Of peace will be established FOR
period of years and the trade agreement
| new friends to it's standard.
| The anthracite operators must now grant
an advance In view Of the action OF the
The details will be worked out later
Snd PTgbaby 6 ,b through na special national
| For two years II has been my determined
purpose to have wage agreements of the
miners terminate on the same date so
| that unity Of action might be secured
without violating existing agreements on
April !. 1905. The .frst move in this di-
! the summer of 1904 when the expiration
date of the contract was extended from
h the end OF august to the end SI Masoh
expire March n next. BY virtue of this
| arrangement the mine workers of the
country are now in a position to compel
the operators to deal with us justly.
| At the recent joint convention In In
diana.olis I advocated an advance for the
miners because l believe they are entitled
to n.
The iron and steel industry and the rail
| roads of the country-very large consum-
ers of coal-were never more prosperous
| than now. From admissions made by
those engaged in the production Of coal
and dependent largely upon the above
named Industries II must have been ap-
parent that a few cents per ton advance
TO the miners was not to stand in the
| way of the continued prosperous condition
of the iron, steel and railroad interests.
The operators at the recent Indianapolis
Of the weakness of their position when
they ignored our arguments that they
could pay an advance to the mine workers
at the present selling price OF coal H:.d
still make a large profit. Developments
will prove additional facts. namely:
tions represented at the recent Indianapolis
joint convention were not in position
to make a successful resistance of the
second-That the great coal consuming
public will not materially suffer by reason
OF the advance which will be granted to
the miners.
Mitchell Declines TO Talk.
NEW YORK, Feb. 2.-The anthracite
mine workers subcommittee of seven was
in session here today for short time. II
was announced that nothing further was
to be done with regard to the demands
which have been presented to the oper-
ators. The operators will have tomorrow
and Tuesday in which to go over the situn-
ton and it is believed that a conference
between the workers and the mine owners
will be held on Wednesday,
President Mitchell Of the United Mine
Workers of America tonight would not dis
cuss the statement given out in Indian.
apolis by Vice President Lewis. which said
there would be no strike.
Operator Takes Different View.
PITTSBURG, Feb. 25-Francis L. Rob
bins chairman of the executive board OF
the Pittsburs Coal company and one Of the
! operators who was a party to the inter
state agreement was not in the city to-
night. but earlier in the day he said:
. There has been no change in the situa
tion between the bituminous coal operators
, and the United Mine Workers regarding
the arrangement of a new wage agree
ment for the year starting April / next
There can be no compromise offer to thu
miners without meeting of the operators
. who are members of the interstate agree
inent. and no such meeting has been helC
nor has one been called The dispute be
tween the miners and the operators re
mains identically as 1t has been since TIN
: adjournment OF the joint conference IL
: Indianapolis.