Rocky Ford enterprise., 1907-08-16
MINERS WIN VICTORY.
HIsksr Wages and Better Hours Bring
Dove Of Peace.

HIsksr Wages and Better Hours Bring
Dove Of Peace.
Cheyenne. Wyo.-Permanent peace
in Wyoming coal fields.
Eighthour workday effective Sep
tember /. 1907.
Wage increase Of approximately 20
per cent more for eight hours than
formerly paid for ten hours work.
Improvement in working conditions
all along the line.
Companies to furnish the check-on
men, insurlng union control Of mines.
Increase affects 1900 men.
Wyoming fields completely organ.
lied. the southern fields always having
been non.union.
These, In brief. are the terms Of set
tlement agreed upon at the joint con
vention OF members OF tho United
Mine Workers Of America and the op
orators. representing every mine In the
Wyoming district. II is one OF the
greatest victories ever achieved by or
ganixed labor In the West and puts the
Wyoming miners on the same basis as
the wellpaid fields Of the middle and
central West and the organized fields
Of the far East.
~ N olho huotueV tIlDute W Sblo vs.
plomacy OF the president Of the min.
leader. Thomas Gibson. who. together
with J. J. Hart of the southern Wy.
oming fields and James Gridley Of the
northern. composed the hnal sub-com.
mittee that brought about an agree
ment satisfactory to both sides. The
negotiations lasted four weeks. and At
NO tme has there been danger OF .
break.
J. J. Hart, representing the Union
Pacific mines and employing about
5000 men. has done for the miners
OF southern Wyoming what no other
mine manager has done for twenty
years In that iicld. and he has acquired
the reputation OF the great compro-
miser."
Tho scale committee on both aide1
was pared down several tines In OF.
der to expedite tho work.
Tho miners OF the northern fields
have been organized for some time. hut
the agreement In tho first that has
becn entered Into In the southern
camps for nearly = quarter Of n cen
tu5y. While tho contract only runs fos
= year. Il has paved tho way for per'
tnancut peace. A. the demand for wy.
Il
danger OF shutdownx or tho necessity
Of reducing tho force or tho mems
wages.
The increase applies to every mau
who works around tho mines. both n
| tn hours and wages. and tho working
| conditions arc changed. 20 that the
mon Will have vastly Improved condi
lions.
Wares will be added tn tho rolls
that will amount TO hundreds oi thou
sands OF dollars each year. and I,
means prosperity to Wyoming miners
II puts ttcm on tho same plano ~ the
AonlAna fields and leaves only vir
.inia and southern Colorado miucss
working under enaditions which ID
some Instances arc considered BY the
minors leaders NJ for dask asc days
Tho 20 pr cent In figured ~ an AZ
esasr. ~ tho increase varies II shs
di6crcnt fields. and In diycrrai classes
of work. In some instances demands
wcso made that represented an In
crease Of - pcr cent. and these wcrs
| srantcd. Other workers wcrc In
creased 10 and ls per cent. and cvcry
| cmptoyc. from tho smallest boy 10 the
/ hardtcst miner. comca In for nomc sori
| Of . raise.
The cixht.hour day and tho addition
OF the chcck-o6 men In tho company
| once arc tho two features that ths
mon fought tho hardest for. They sue
eccicd In having the eight hour passed
In Wyoming. but Il was docsorcd 80
thoroughly that the frat time II uas
put 10 . Test II was declared unconsti
tutioaal.