The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1908-03-11
THAT Is THE WAY THE MINE
OWNER Is SETTLING UP FOR
FLESH AND BLOOD WITHOUT
FEAR OF LAW.
special Correspondence to The rr.sa

Most of the widows and orphans
made by the Monongah mine hor
rors are still here.
They are cashing in, widows a
$3.50, orphans at SIS. Orphans are
cheaper than widows; there are
more of them. These amounts are
dOled out by the Paramount Goa
Co., in whose subterranean pas
sages the horrors occurred. This
pays for everything, and it gets re
ceipts for it-father, husband
tears, agony, despair.
There has been plenty of foot
and clothing, so far The nations
generosity took care of that. Of
the money raised $4,000 remains
This will be divided. Each widow
will receive $3.50, and every child
something.
The coal company will not be
sued. The prosecuting attorney
says so, the attorney general says
SO, the state mine examiner says
so, and so does the governor.
Some of them explain that there
isn't any law under which the com
pany can be sued. The thing just
happened and the men were just
killed. which is unfortunate, and
that's all.
Gov. Dawson Is franker. He says
the reason no operator has beer
punished for these deaths is be
cause the mine companies prevent
the prosecutors from doing theil
duty.
81 blame the big operators fol
the failure of the county prosecu
tors to do their duty" he said, bit
terly.
Everybody around Monongah is
satisfied now except the AIS wild
ows and orphans. This includes 9
score of widows with babes still
unborn, 20 widows without chill
dren, 80 widows with one child
each, % with two children each, q
with three each, 13 with four each
10 with five each, one with siv ant
one with seven little ones.
Three months have passed since
the great catastrophe.
| The little main street of unpaint
ed buildings is quiet again. The
women are not crying today. Theil
tears have run dry The market
price of a human life In West Vir
ginia has been fixed at $3.50. Thor
oughbred horses bring as much as
$4,000.
c. w. Watson, president Of the
Paramount Coal Co., fixes both
scales. Mrs. Watson wins blue
ribbons with the thoroughbreds
But he does more than fix the price
of dead miners; he regulates the
lives of the living ones. He says
what they shall pay for butter
sugar, -four, eggs and clothing. He
owns the stores. He fixes the rental
of the houses. They are his. too
He determines the hours Of the
men, and fixes their pay. He owns
the mines. He decides who shall
be the officers of the law. He says
now that there should be no prose
cution of his company.
Nobody condemns the president
His enemies leave town. Monongah
Is not healthy place for anyone
who does not stand for the system
No mine operator has ever been
punished for the deaths in the
West Virginia coal mines.
1t Is a matter of public knowl
edge that the mining laws are
| grossly violated day after day.
One law prohibits more than 20
men working in shaft mine with
| only one opening. On Jan. 80, 1907
S3 men were killed in the Stuart
mine, which was of this class. Nine
months before the officials of this
same mine had been indicted for
working more than 20 men, and the
case was whitewashed. Had the
law been enforced in 1906 there
would have been 63 less deaths in
1907.
And there has never been any
prosecution yet.
The state mine examiner finds in
stance after instance of violation OF
the mining laws. He turns his evi.
dence over to the prosecuting attor-
neys OF the various counties.
That Is the last he hears of it.
In nearly every case the prose.
cutting attorney Is either the legal
representative Of the mine opera
tors or is affiliated with their pc.
litical machine Otherwise he
would not be in office.
These are the SEASONS why Mo.
nongah is so quiet.
There is no use being anything
else.
The one radiant influence has
been Miss Margaret Byington OF
Pittsburg, representing the Red
Cross. She Is still here. Young
pretty and comforting she goes
among the grief-stricken, a real
angel of mercy in this valley OF
misfortune.
But the mourners have shut
themselves up in their little gray
houses on the great hills. That is
where the mine agent finds them