The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-09-01
BROTHER BAER'S
PIT|FUL PLANT
Allowed Himself and His Com
pany to Be Used for Nc
Kinley and Roosevelt.
ANSWER TO FEDERAL SUIT
REPUBLICANS RESPONSIBLE FOR
ANTHRACITE TRUST.

Philadelphia, Aug. 5.-The Reading
company. the Philadelphia & Reading
Railway company and the Philadelphia &
Reading Coal & Iron company today filed
their answer to the suit of the federal
government TO break up the alleged mo-
nopoly existing In the anthracite coal min
ing of this state The answer of the three
concerns. of which George f. Baer is pres
ident. makes a general denial of the gov
ernments allegations and goes into the
first great strike in the hard coal fields and
its relation to the presidential campaign of
1890, when Mckinley was elected. 1t is
declared that the agreements to advance
the price of coal were brought about in
1890 by the violence and intimidation OF
striking mine workers by the failure of
the United States government and state
OF Pennsylvania to enforce the law and
protect the coal companies, and by the
opportunities of the late Marcus A Han
ma who. it is alleged, was anxious to end
the strike of the miners on account of the
Impending presidential election.
Forced to Quit Work.
General denials are made of the conspir-
acy charges in the answer OF the Read
ing company and that of the railway COM
Iany. The answer of the coal and iron
company takes up the strike of 1900 ami
says that substantially all the workmen
in the anthracite regions abandoned their
work under the force and effect OF vlo-
lence. turbulence and intimidation and the
employees and workmen of this defendant
and others in the same neighborhOOd were
Induced or compelled by like violence, tur-
b3lence and intimidation to abandon their
employment
Mark Hanna Appeared.
The answer goes on to say that shortly
afterwards it was. represented in sub
stance to the officials of this defendant
and the representatives of other mining
companies by one Marcus A Hanna, act
ing as chairman of the Republican nation
al committee in the then pending pOliti-
cal campaign, for the election or candl-
oates for president and Vice-president of
the United States. that il the said strike
should not be speedily settled by an ad-
vance in the wages of the wOrkmen IN
and about the mines in the entire anthra-
cite region, the strike would extend to the
states of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and
that the election of Mr.. Mckinley and
Mr. Roosevelt would be thereby endan-
gered
Agreed to Raise Wages.
That Mr.. Hanna represented to the
company that he was authorized to set
tie the strike through President Mitchell.
If the operators would agree to give their
Workmen 10 per cent increase in wages.
1t is set forth that the company did agree
TO advance the wages OF its mine and
colliery workmen 10 per cent and the Other
principal mine owners, who had been in
the same concession.
Price of Coal Boosted.
It was stated that thereafter confer
enCes were held between the officials or
representatives of the principal mine op-
orators who had heretofore offered the
said advance in wages and the represen-
tatiVes OF the principal mine operators,
this defendant was obliged to agree with
certain operators, severaliy, with whom Il
had pre-eXisting contracts and for the
purchase of coal TO be produced by them
respectively and who were seveTally the
tenants and lessees of the defendants 10
enter into new contracts with such as
should desire to do so, increasing the
prices to be paid for the coal to be pro
duced by them respectively and to be
sold and delivered to this defendant
Could Not Escape.
Continuing, the answer avOws that all
the conferences between the operators and
the contractors which resulted therefrom,
were wholly brought about, compelled and
forced upon this defendant by the turbu-
lence, violence ana intimidation aforesaid
I nited States arIl that of the common
wealth of Pennsylvania to enforce the
laws and protect the wOrkmen in the
peaceful and lawful prosecution OF their
work and by the opportunities Of the said
llama in the supposed eXigencies Of the
pending political campaign whereby this
defendant was obliged most unWiliingly
10 buy its peace and the price and prOter-
ton of its wOrkmen by an advance in
wages, and which said conferences were
in no way in the least whatever induced
l-y the motive or alleged unlawful result
80 Indefinitely alleged and set forth in the
plaintiffs allegations"