The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-02
EXPECT OLD HARD COAL SCALE
ANTHRACITE OPERATORS GET A
HINT THAT PEACE rs NEAR.
No steps Taken Which Might Offend HI
Mine Workers-Men Don't Regard shuts.
down as a Strike-Crlsis TO Tome To.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Are Undecided.

mOrTON- lnutIItIluChtS arc NHutChuNu'
SCRANTON, April THE coal operators
hereabouts were taking a very optimistio
view of the situation to-day. Some one in
authority appears to have limited to them
that the miners are likely to accept the old
strike commission scale at the session in
New York on Tuesday, and that the suspen-
sion is apt to be of short duration.
Even if a trike is declared. the local
operators hint to their confdants, it will
not be as strong and as stubborn as that
of 1902. Because of the likelihood Of an
agreement on Tuesday, it is stated semi
uthoritatively, the coal companies will not
be very aggressive this week in seeking to
start their operations with non-union help.
In the last twenty-four hours there appears
to have been a change of programme In that
respect.
1t was made very clear to-day by the
leaders of the miners that the union desires
it understood that Sno strike has been de-
clared. The suspension, they say, is merely
a business arrangement due to the fact that
the miners now have no working scale or
agreement with the operators and until
some kline of "A scale is signed they viii
remain away from the collieries. Said ons;
/ 1T is just as il a mar was furnishing you
80 many tons of coal under a co ntract.
When that many tons were supplied you
he would quit furnishing it for You until
you made another arrangement with him
We are idle pending another agreement
with the coal operators"
The miners of this region have been at
sea the last few days, owing to the absence
of their officers. The chiefs of the locals
expect to spend all of tomorrow morning
comforting with their chiefs, and the latter
will be very busy men previous to leaving
for New York.
President T. D. Nichols n Secretary
]. r. Dempsey Of District No. 1 got back
from Indianapolis to-day. Dempsey said
that all the members Of the scale committee
who have been in indianapolis in attendance
at the sessions. there will be present at the
conference with the representatives OF the
operators in New York on Tuesday. Some
will go to New York tomorrow and others
will not go until Tuesday,
Dempsey and Nichols will he among those
who will GO to New York tomorrow. Demp-
sey would not say whether the miners
representatives would hold a conferences
in New York previous to their sessions
with the operators, but 1t is believed here
that Mitchell and his most trusted leaders
will go over the situation carefully to-
morrow niAht or early on Tuesday.
Mr.. Dempsey evidently took a very
hopeful view of the situation and seemed
to believe that at the session with the OPP
orators on Tuesday the latter will make
some concessions that will avoid a repeti-
ton of the strike of 1902. He intimated,
without saying outright, that if such con-
c~essions are not made the miners Will not
be ordered to return to work.
Mr.. Dempsey said that the delegates and
| officials from District No. /, and in fact
from all the anthracite districts, were
unanimous in their support of President
Mitchell in the deliberations at Indian
apolis. They voted solidly with him in
his effort to have passed the resolution to
accept the offers Of the bituminous oper-
ators who nave agreed to restore the 1908
scale.
The indications here this evening are
that only one mine in this district will be
able to operate tomorrow, and that Is
the %pon-union colliery of the Peoples Coal
Company, which earned hundreds Of thou
sands of dollars for its owners by working
in the 1902 strike and selling its output at
a big profit.
The whistles will blow at all the other
mines, but practically no one will respond.
There does not appear to be any one here
who disputes the truth of this prediction.
The return of the district officials appears
to nave resulted in the correction of some
of the statistics given out at the miners
headquarters by clerks.
1t appears that there are 1902 900 mine
workers in the three anthracite districts,
three-fourths of whom are affiliated with
the union. There are nearly 81, 700 in this,
the first district. There are about 400
collieries and about as many locals OF the
miners. There are not quite l75 collleries
in this district and not quite 1870 locals OF
the miners. All reports from the different
sections of the Lackawanna district indicate
that the day has been very quiet, the best
of order prevailing among the mine workers
j, L. Adamson, in charge of all the police
and detective force of the Laokawanna
ompany gave out a statement this even
ing to the effect that his company has not
bought a cartridge or hired an extra police
man to date.
"Our miners are not dissatisfied aud there
is no criminal class among Them he said.
Even il a strike is called do not believe
that our men will cause us trouble
WILKEsBARRE, April 1.-The independent
coal operators of the anthracite region say
that they have not formally decided what
attitude they will assume toward the miners
in case a strike is ordered. They represent
about is per cent. Of the total output and
sell their coal directly to the coal carrying
companies. Consequently they have no
coal on hand, except for colliery use, and
will, in case Of a strike, have no source OF
revenue such as the big companies have
from the amount of coal they have stored,
Whether these independents will attempt
to mine coal to supply a local demand they
cannot say at present.
H. H. Ashley of this city, president OF
the individual operators and president OF
the Parrish Coal Company Associations
said to-day:
we cannot we'll "a until we know
whether there is TO be a strike or not what
we will do. We nave been so busy mining
coal that we have not had time to do any
- ii N l.