Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-12-11
GREATER THAN SUPPLY. Working Days in Pennsylvania Re. duced by Holidays and Strikes.

~ esA0 souLucTu lmmlBTdLlOn congress
 he made some remarks concerning
 immigration and labor in the coal
 mines that did not appear in the con
 densed newspaper reports of his
 speech. On that subject MT Ellis
 said:
 The highly respected president of
 the United Mine Workers of America,
 John Mitchell, in an argument at a
 recent conference of the Immigration committee of the Civic Federation in New York city in favor of greater re- striction of foreign immigration, made statement. which has been in dustriously circulated throughout the country.
 If the statement is wholly true, 1t would be valid and strong argu- ment. But 1t is not wholly true. It states only a part of the truth and deserves to be corrected The state- ment is: There certainly must be room for improvement when in these days of unprecedented prosperity 6O0,000 mine workers are allowed to work but two hundred days in the year in the collieries, and are willing to work three hundred days
 "A high authority shows the falla- cy of MT Mitchell's statement as an argument in the following language:
 Tn the first place 200 days Is the average, and in arriving at this aver age 1t must be taken into account that there are some mines that are almost disqualified for service that they may not be operated more than 50 or 100 days year. The more modern mines. and those most favor ably located, are able to work, and do work practically every working day that the miners are willing to work
 Tn the next place, MT Mitchell, and the organization of which he is the head have repeatedly called the men out on strike, and these strikes continue anywhere from thirty days to six months. Even If these strikes were inspired by high motives and were intended to benefit the miners, the fact remains that they largely reduce the average number of days that the men worked in and about the mines.
 For example. during the present year there was a strike of some dura- tion in the anthracite region entirely due to the action of Mir Mitchell and his organization, and practically all the bituminous mines in Pennsylvan- ia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois. Iowa, Mis- souri, Kansas. Indian Territory and Texas were idle during all of April and May, and some of them during part of June, and others during the entire month of June.
 The average number of days the men work is also reduced by the diff ferent holidays observed by the min CTS. Labor Day, the Eight-hour Day, John Mitchell Day, Virden Day and other such days are more or less ob- served throughout the country. Then there are the holy days and saints days on which the mines are thrown idle in many sections of the country
 After each pay day there are many lmen who remain away from | work with an attack of payday | fever Frequent excuses are found | for either shutting down the mines. or for considerable percentage of the men to remain away from work whenever there Is funeral of some- one directly. indirectly or remotely with the mining fraternity.
 If. as Mir Mitchell says. the men really desired to work 300 days in the year. the mine owners would only too gladly operate their mines, for upon the steady operation of the mines their business success depends. Every coal-mining company is sub ject to fixed charges which must be paid on days when the mine is idle as we'll as on the days when the men work. There is every reason why the owners of the mines should wish to work 300 days in the year. and there is no good reason why they should wish to work only the min mum number of days. There Is to- lay a scarcity of good miners in many sections of the country, If not n all sections of the country.
 There is not time to go into complete examination of figures. but let us take as an example and illus ration some of the figures of the collieries of the anthracite .oal fields of Pennsylvania. The average days worked by the miners m 1905 were as follows:
 3. & H., first district .... 245 days D. & H.. second district ... 251 days -ehigh Valley .......... 239 days & Reading .. 260 days
 Now there are twenty-nine holi- lays in these districts which are ob- eryed by the English and foreign miners in Pennsylvania. The nature if mining is such that if any con iderable number of men quit all are brown into idleness, because the oIliery cannot run. Accordingly the loiidays observed by the English miners compel the foreigners to take holiday. and holidays which are ob- | eryed by foreign miners in turn ompel the English to lay on also. nd the work of the breaker Is in- errupted in both occasions by no ault of the operator.
 Besides the holidays. picnics. ex- ursions and circuses keep many way. make necessary frequent shut [ owns.
 The practice of quitting work I then a miner is killed. and also on he day of the funeral. is responsible or much more loss of time. although he funeral Is attended generally by one of the miners who quit work Idd to the figures quoted above the Ime lost of the miners own volition.