The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1906-01-20
THE MINING SITUATION.

While the anthracite coal miners
| have determined upon getting better
conditions ana shorter hours at the
expiration of their present agreement
| with the bosses, neither they nor their
! leader, John Mitchell, are clustering
I about what they intended to do, as the
| daily press would make it appear. In
deed, much Of the talk about the
threatening attitude Of the miners
would seem to have it's origin in Wall
Street. and to be made for the purpose
of manipulating stock. According to
a recent Wall Street report it is de-
clared that the anthracite coal roads
are making money at prodigious rate
they are making more money than
ever before in their history. Their
| properties are soaring sky high, and
In this very fact lies danger to the
mine workers. It is more than barely
possible that the insiders have effect
ed a distribution of their stock at
high figures and that they will en-
courage a strike in order to break
the stock market, make a. Wall Street
coup and get back their stock at low
er prices. It is an old trick of high
finance. There has been an extraor-
binary manipulative advance in all the
anthracite stocks during the last six
months, accompanied by the widest
possible advertisement of enormous
earnings. This has excited the Gu
pldity of the mine workers."
Commenting upon this report, the
United Mine Workers. Journal says:
THAT states the method boldly
They began this campaign as soon as
President Mitchell went to Pennsyl-
vanla. Interviews that never took
place, words that were never uttered,
were shrewdly broadcasted through
out the country to cause the public to
become uneasy about their coal sup
ply Their idea for doing this was to
cause the coal consumers during the
rail- and winter to lay in large and un-
necessary stocks of coal. This will
give unwonted and unnatural stimulus
to the trade, cause large dividends and
increase the price of the stocks they
hold. Then next spring, come peace
come war, there would be little or no
demand for fuel, as all were we'll
provided. Then the consequent dull
ness will form their hour and weapon
The coal stock will be attacked, raid
ed, demoralized and the vultures will
enjoy a feast.
The duty of all three interests con-
cerned-miner, stakeholder and public
is clear. Let the miners solidly or
ganlze, the stockholders cling to their
holdings and the public refuse to be
stamped. The miner must not only
organize, but he must cling to every
penny he can. To spend nothing fool
lshly, and then he will be prepared
ITO the public, The Journal would
say that the leaders of the United
Mine Workers of the nation and the
districts have not lost one iota Of their
common sense and sense of equity.
They are still the same clear headed,
right minded men, and are not secret
ly or openly plotting to wrong you.
Let the public remember that all these
interviews, the incendiary language,
the warlike attitude and the belliger-
ent spirit attributed to the United Mine
Workers are as false as hell itself and
originate with set of as remorseless
and as relentless and as conscience
less pirates as ever hoisted the black
flag on the Spanish Main, or originated
a sWindle in Wall Street."