The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-08-30

President Lewis is quoted as saying that he wishes to get fully informed be- fore saying anything and will not ex-
 press himself for two or three days yet
 and that when his statement is issued the people will know just who is respon- sible for the trouble here.
 The genesis of the responsibility ought
 to be well understood by President Lewis in fact better known by him than by any other mortal man, for on June Soth, r last the following order was issued: The Order to Strike.
 To the Mine Workers of Alabama;
 For many years the mine workers of Alabama have been poorly organized, and in demorlized condition. The natural
 result has been sweeping reductions in wages and the imposition of conditions of employment that should not be toler-
 ated in any mining community in the country.
 The international executive board of the United Mine Workers has been led to believe that the mine workers of Ala bama are ready and willing to make an effort to organize and assert their right to be members of a labor union.
 Acting upon the information received the executive board of the United Mine Workers of America has decided
 through it's executive officers of District No 20 to appeal to the mine workers of
 the state of Alabama to cease work, and to make at once supreme effort to or ganize the state.
 Upon you will depend the success of this movement. If you respond to this call the United Mine Workers of America will assist you in your efforts to establish the organization in your state. If you are unwilling to help yourselves 1t will be useless for the United Mine Workers to make an at tempt to render any assistance: If you approve of this movement, if you are sincere in your desire to become organized, if you want an increase in about these conditions, then you should lay down your tools on and after July S., 1908. Yours very truly,
 T. J. LEWIS, President, JOHN P. WHITE vice, pres. w. D. RYAN, sec y-treasurer. By order of the international executive i board.
 More Promises.
 Under promises of President Lewis and with the conditions here existing well , known, especially to the local representa- tives of the union, the international ex- ecutive committee ordered the strike and it was done. MT. Kennamer and Mr. Farley and studied over the situation in this district. They knew how well de- termined the operators were to maintain the open shop. They knew of their strength and of the weakness of the thousands of miners whom they drew in to line caused by the season of natural depression. They knew that the mine ops erators and the miners themselves had just passed through a period of hard
 times and that the latter were in no con dtion to present a front for warfare. and that the miners had agreed to ac- cept d fixed scale temporarily, with the mutual understanding that it would be raised as soon as conditions justified. | The Shadow of Defeat But, with all this they saw a chance 1 to arouse passion and to force a fight ! against heavy odds. The union had here !, in Alabama already suffered a crushing i defeat and there was observation and ex- , perience to guide. or to warn No reason i able man can believe for an instant that the officials who were hereson the ground 1 had any hope of final success for the , misled miners. However, that does not [ seem to have been the question. It was simply an opportunity for agitation and confusion that might mean profit to those | who instigated 1t.
 Existing Conditions. ! Mir. Fairley long ago learned, and Pres
 ident Lewis should by this time know.
 roundings in, the coal mining district oi