The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-03-31

Dr. Cunningham has not arranged all of his dates for April but so far has completed his itinerary for the coming week
 Thursday he will lay the corner stone of the new Shelby county courthouse at Columbia. Friday he will deliver an ad- dress at Ldneville and Saturday he has
 
 You shall know what policy l believe would best conserve your interest said Mir Mitchell. "I am concerned for the people who mine coal and who de- pend upon coal mining for their liveli- hood I am also concerned about the peo- pie of this country. l believe the best interest of the miners would be con served by signing the scale wherever it is paid. I know how popular it is to talk strike, but I also know what a difference there is when passion has cooled. I know there have been large operators who have opposed an advance who will wait ten days before signing the scale. It is for us to decide what will be best for the interest we repre- sent and what is our duty to our coun- try.
 My best Judgment is that we should make settlements with those operators who will pay our scale and employ union men. I shall not be a party to and there shall be no signature from the national office attached to any coll tract if the Perry resolution is adopted that does not carry with it the employ ment of union men. the scale of 1908 and in the southwest an advance of 3 cents per ton at tho basing point, run-of-mine, and the full enjoyment of every priv ilege heretofore enjoyed. Every person here shall have the right to speak before the session is closed"
 In closing MT. Mitchell s9d: Let me make this matter SO plain, SO that there can be no possible misunderstanding Just as soon as I fail 10 have the confidence and sincere respect of the miners not only to my personal integrity but as to my judgment as to what is best for them then I ask you men to relieve me Of my responsibility. Let me- go home. Let me live as you live with your wives and your babies.
 Gentlemen. my judgment is with the reservation and the explanation and the qualifications stated as to the policy this organization should pursue that this reso- lution Is the best-the very best that we can or will adopt.
 Fairley Makes Protest.
 w. R. Fairey of Alabama denied the statement that the strike in his state lad been lost
 Delegate Germer said in many cases miners were willing to continue on strike even after the strike was lost He said a national board member had told him the Alabama strike was lost.
 President Green of Ohio vigorously op- posed the resolution.
 Secretary-Treasurer Wilson said for several years the organization had been working to secure a condition where all the contracts expired at the same time. Immediately east and south of the Pitts burg field lay non-union fields. With an advance in wage offered there 1t would for any length of time.
 What reason have we to know" said he, that these operators who want to pay the advance might not form a rival organization of miners and our men could justify themselves by joining that organ ization getting the increase and going to work. We could not go against public opinion by trying to defend a situation that did not allow men to work where the advance demanded was paid at a time when the country would be suffering from lack of coal and the industries par aylzed in consequence. I am certain as business proposition the signing with some operators will force the others in line. If we adopted this resolutions we can go to the outlying districts such as Iowa. Kentucky. Michigan and the Kanawha valley, where we have not yet met the operators and have valid argument" A recess was taken until o'clock.
 Afternoon Session.
 Following the recess the national con vention of miners resumed the discussion of the resolution offered by President Perry of the Illinois miners, allowing mi ners tO sign the 1Q(S scale wherever if is offered by the operators.
 President White of the Ohio opera tors. speaking personally, and not for his colleagues, said be believed the Iowa miners would not be confronted by compact organization of employers 9and his firm conviction was that the best interest of the miners organization was the adoption of the resolution.
 Vice President T. l.. Lewis said he considered the question one of the most important that had ever come before the miners. He referred to the appeal to President Roosevelt by some of the oper- ators for a commission. The proposed investigation by a commission he said. had no fixed basis and some of the privi- leges of the Indiana miners might be taken away by it. 1t was customary, he said, that both parties agree before an arbitration commission was appointed and
 
 always specifically set forth. This had not been done by the operators in their proposition for such an investigation
 MT Lewis referred to his long and ac- tive labors in the interest of the na- tional miners organization. There were, he said, fully s00O0 unorganized miners and efforts to bring them into the union had been unsuccessful. It was true that one or two operators in Pennsylvania. Ohio and Indiana and Illinois had re- fused to sign the scale demanded and they were asking the miners national organization to allow the men in their mines to go to work. He referred to the vast sums aggregating s1, 100000 that had been paid out of the miners treasury to support the West Virginia situation and bring the men into the union. The his- tory of the union was filled with strike failures due to allowing men to work in some of the fields while others were on strike.
 Would Jeopardize Organization.
 The resolution, Mir. Lewis said. meant the miners would give up their solid organization which had been perfected at the expense of so much time, energy and money. And all said he, because a few operators offered to pay the advanced scale If Pennsylvania operators are not required to- sign the scale at union and