Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1912-03-29
STRIKE MAY
Be kVERTED
Miners and Operators Nav
Compromise on Less Than
Twenty Percent
PRESIDENT TAFT INTERESTED
Temporary Suspension of Work
Cannot Now Be Avoided,
Officials Say.

! (Ry opecIal Leased Wire to New Mexican
Cleveland, Ohio, March 29-As {
means of preventing a strike in tn,
bituminOus coal fiends, the miners
proposed to the operators today tC
abandon all original union demands
and to ask only for an increase of five
cents a ton over the present scale anl
for five hours on Saturday instead OF
eight.
The operators will argue on the
proposition with a prospect that an
acceptance or rejection will be reach
ed before night The miners propo
sal was made al a conference TO-DAY in
a final effort to fix a new two-yeai
wage scale 10 take effect April |. and
thus prevent suspension or possibly 4
strike
Both Sides Conciliatory.
New York, \. Y, March 2g.-The
anthracite coal operators are not i'll
clined to reject Absolutely a demand
tor small increase in the wages III
the opinion expressed today by per
son authorized TO speak for one of the
leading coal operators. He also said
the operators are ready to meet the
miners and resume negotiations and
would welcome any efforts looking
towards the avoidance of a strike.
The demand for a twenty percent
increase, however never will be grant
ed, he said, and as the miners declin-
ed to submit compromise PROPOSE
ton, the consideration of smaller
increase had not come before the OPP
orators. He added that the miners
had shown unwillingness to cOmpro,
mise on a small increase and in view
of this any further overtures should
come from the miners.
IF the miners should ask for a
small increase, would they get it," he
was asked.
In my opinion they would"
President Is Interested
The statement reiterated by The op.
orators in the anthracite region that
they are ready and willing to grant al
immediate hearing when the nine
workers should desire to communi
cate with them, may result in another
conference looking to a settlement o.
the wage scale and other questions. A
suspension OF work, however, OF
April l, will be regarded today by op
orators as practically certain.
President Taft is said to be keeping
in close touch with the situation il
both the hard and soft coal districts
through Commissioner of Labor
Charles B. Neill, who is conferring
with the operators and miners at
Cleveland
Suspension Orders Issued.
Cleveland, Ohio, March 29.-Forma
orders for suspension of all opera
tions in the anthracite mines begin
ming April l, were issued by the United
Mine Workers of America this after
noon. President White said the sus
tension would be equal 10 a strike, eX
cept that the men at the pumps anC
Others necessary to protect mine prop
erty would be kept at work.
Miners Submit Proposal.
Cleveland, Ohio, March 29.-Tht
miners put this proposition TO the oper
ators in concrete form after they helt
ali Independent meeting. The unior
men pointed out that only two days re
main before the expiration of the pres
ent wage agreements in both the an
thraCite and bituminous fields an(
that suspension on next Sunday a
midnight, involving almost five hun
dred thousand miners, would bring
about strike possibly of prolong9t
ration.
The miners said they were willing tt
yield bur were determined to hay,
something in the way of an increase
however small, and all demands fo
changes IN working conditions wer,
accordingly abandoned.
The compromise offer probably will
De voted on at meeting this after
noon President White of the unjoI
said if the offer were accepted. i
would nave to 90 into the hands 0
the unions policy committee and b,
submitted to referendum vote of tn,
union. Meantime, he said he did no
see now short suspension in bitum
nous mines could be avoided pendins
The referendum vote.