Arizona republican., 1912-02-29
Efforts to Reach an Agree ment Between Miners and Operators With
 out Result.
PREMIER GIVES
 UP IN DESPAIR
Men Absolutely Refuse to Treat Unless They Are All Granted a Mini
 mum Wage.
I [ASSOciated Press Dispatch

| LONDON. Feb 2S-The govern ment acknowledges tonight it's failure to settle the dispute between the coal 1 owners and miners.
 Negotiations will be resumed to- morrow but little result is expected The deadlock is graver than antic- { ipated IL had been supposed the greatest hostility would arise from the Welsh mine owners. SO that pub llc opinion was veering in favor of the miners. who it was thought would be satisfied with the concession of the minimum wage. Now it seems the miners themselves are placing the greatest Obstable in the way of peaceful solution by insisting upon their own interpretation of the terms of the minimum wage. This aspect of the situation renders the outlook it is felt the governments efforts ere not wasted. The government has secured the assent of sixty per cent of the owners of the country to the principle of the minimum wage. thus greatly facilitating the task should it be deemed advisable to re sort to legislative enforcement of the minimum wage According to the opinion of lobbies in parliament to- night this will be the next step should the conferences. which will he resumed tomorrow. show the dead lock is iusuperable.
 Breaking over the silence heretofore observed. an official statement was
 rH.
 mitted by the prime minister to rep resentativeS of the owners of mines.
 The statement begins by declaring the government is satisfied there are cases in which the underground wnrkers are not able to earn a req sonable minimum wage. The govern ment is satisfied that the power to earn such d wage should be secured by an arrangements suitable to the special circumstances of each dis trict: adequate safeguards being pro- vided to protect employees against abuses The government is prepared to confer with the parties concerned as to the best methods of giving practical effect to these conclusions hy means of district conferences. representative of the government be- ing present in the event of failure to arrive at a settlement within req sonable time and the representative of the government to decide jointly any outstanding points. These pro- pOsalS. continues the statement. were considered by representatives of the owners this afternoon with the result that the owners from Yorkshire. Lan- cashire. Midlands. and North Wales. accepted Ie is expected the govern ment will make such arrangements as will secure the agreement for a reasonable time Durham and Cum berland employers also accepted the proposals They were rejected. how ever. by Northumberland. Scotland. and south Wales owners. also by representatives of a number of small Ter districts.
 The National Miners Federation re- piled to the proposals by adopting a resolution saving. there can be no settlement of the present dispute un- less the principle of the individual minimum wage for all underground workers be agreed to by coal own CTS" The federation it added. was willing to meet the owners any time to discuss the minimum rate to be adopted for each district. The rates agreed on by the federation vary. No underground worker would receive less than five shillings shift.
 LONDON. Feb. 2S.-A meeting of the cabinet has been called for tomor- row to discuss the governments pol icy The general expectancy is that the government will introduce mini mum wage bill in parliament. There is also talk of an intention by the crown to purchase some of the collier ieS in Wales. so that henceforth it will be impossible to jeopardse the navy's supply of Welsh coal By to- morrow night it is believed nearly a I