The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-09-04
Have No Animosity Toward
 Men Who Struck But Want to Keep Them
IF CONDITIONS WARRANT
 ADVANCE WILL BE MADE
Companies Are Requesting Miners to Select Check Weighmen-LiberaI Policy Will Be Pursued By
 All Companies,

Now that the miners strike is ended. l the operators are emphatic in saying that l the wage scale will not be cut. report has been circulated to the eff 1 feet that, the operators having won in the strike, the Tennessee company would re- 1 duce the mining rate. Touching this re- port the Tennessee company's president.
 George G. Crawford, was asked if It were true
 Tt is not true" was MT. crawford's
 prompt and unequlvocals reply. There is no desire on our own part
 said MT. Crawford, lever to take ad- vantage of our employees. It was with sincere regret that I learned that some l of our miners believed we were not treat 1 ing them fairly in the matter of weights. 1 We are requesting our miners to select l from their number check weighman at l each mine, whose duty it should be to
 see that each car of coal is properly 1 weighed and the scales are in good condi- l ton.
 1 "I wish to say furthermore that we
 have no animosty against those of our employees who struck. for we simply be- 1 lieve they made a mistake based upon transformation from parties whose inter- est 1t was to deceive tbem."
 l President J. c. Maben of the Sloss- 1 Sheffield Steel and Iron company spoke along a line similar to Mr. Crawford. We will ask our men to select check l weighmen," said MT. Maben, "and as for 1 the rumor about reducing the price for l cutting coal, there Is absolutely nothing l in 1t. On the contrary, the Sloss-Sheffield 1 company and all the other concerns will raise the price just so soon as business conditions will justify It. I believe in l high wages and it is only when the sell | ing price of iron is down that I would ask miners to work for reduced wages. l "We want those of our effecient men l who were in the strike to return to work; l we want all but the agitators who dis l turbed the peace
 l Our mines at Coalburg, Blossburg and l Brookside were shut down at the begin- l ming of the strike, but we expect shortly l to start them. While we notified the strik- CTS according to aw to vacate our houses 1 at those places, in order that we might l put new men In them should 1t become ] necessary to do so, not a single family l was made to leave. So long as we were 1 shut down we had no need for the houses l and told the strikers to stay until they l heard from us further.
 q am told that some of our miners | at Brookside are getting ready to leave the district. but if such are looking for work they will make a mistake to go l elsewhere. The mining business Is dull and outside of Alabama tn hous- ands of miners are out of employment. There is more activity in the Birming
 ham district than there is in other states"
 l W. A. Green treasurer and general
 manager of the Republic Iron and Steel company, when asked about the policy of his company with regard to taking | back the old men who were in the 1 strike, replied that 1t was the same as that announced by the Tennessee, the | Sloss- -Sh heffeld and other furnace com panies
 "Our company" said MT. Green, Twill re-employ all our good men. Wages will not be cut, and we will ask our men to select check weighman. so that all may be satisfied. Now that the strike has been called off I look for
 conditions to improve and become nor nal again very soon."
 l The statements made by the high of- | ficials of the Tennessee, Sloss-Sheffield and the Republic concerning wages, | weights, and the unemployment of those who struck fit substantially the
 other companies. All agree that just so l soon as improvement in general trade warrants wages will be advanced DEDT TDT TC KTC HEAD