Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-23
STOP SEEMS LIKELY
Suspension by Anthracite
Miners Deemed Probable.
MAY LAST FOR SIX WEEKS
Advantages to Both Sides of Re-
framing From Peace.
UNIONS GAINING STRENGTH
Wholesale Dealers Increase Profits.
Scranton, Center of Industry.
Suffers From Lack of Coal.
UNIONS GAINING STRENGTH
Special From a staff Corresponds t.

| scranton is covered with snow and it i:
| cold Furnaces must be fed and kitchen
ranges kept going. Therefore Scranton
needs coal. and one of the most singular
features of the impending crisis in the an
thracite industry is that Scranton is hav
ing very hard time getting it. TIN.
| wife OF one of the leading citizens Of
this hard-coal metropolis, surrounded by
mines, with thousands >of tons stored II
great piles. and pouring into cars an6
moving out over the hills to tidewater
| said to her husband last evening in m,
hearing:
Il was able to get only one ton today
and at % cents advance at that
III you will telephone to me in the
morning." he replied, II will see what
can do. think 1 can persuade Blank
| to let us have two TONS"
| We had been talking about the Goa
situation-everybody does here, in signif1-
cant contrast with New York, where no.
| body mentions 1t outside of the realm OF
| the interests naturally, an expla.
nation was given to me.
Scranton on Short Commons.
| 1--WE are all on short commons" said
my host. THE big mine owners are rush.
ing anthracite to market as fast as they
can. and the only shortage so far is felt
right here at the source of the supply. It
| is always like this when strike is
| threatened. We are the first to suffer,
and we are hardest hit. In a community
| like this, founded upon single industry,
the menace of stoppage Of work in that
| industry affects every line Of business. .
On my way to pay this call I heard
| two men talking in the street car about
! the situation, evidently men in a small
trade
II wish they'd hurry up and decide.
The uncertainty is hurting business seri-
| ously."
oh, don't believe they'll strike" said
the other. "All this is just a bluff
Yes" was the rejoinder, "but the agita-
ton is almost as bad as the strike itself
Nobody's spending money"
Suspension, But No Strike.
The prevailing sentiment here is that
there will be no prolonged tie-up of the
anthracite industry. There may be a
suspension of work. but no strike, is
the way one Of my we'll posted informants
puts the case to me. This suspension, he
explained, will be for short period,
month or six weeks. to enable the opera
tors to work off their reserves at adj
vanced prices. Then when the great
mounds of coal in the store yards Of the
Understanding companies have been
lowered at good dividend-paying rates the
mines will be reopened and some sort of
agreement reached with the men. perhaps
an increased rate of pay, or maybe short
Ter hours-in either case the consumer pay
ing the difference-and everything will go
forward as before.
Baer Controls Situation.
This forecast ignores the miners them
selves, ignores the union. AS matter
Of fact the situation appears to be square,
ly up to the operators, the big fve'
have heretofore described as sitting on
one end of the see-saw supported by the
back Of the public. And here in Scranton
they have blunt way of reducing things
to lowest terms. and speaking Of George
F. Baer, president of the Reading and
Jersey Central railroads, as the moving
influence in all this matter. If George f.
Baer wants to force a shutdown he can
do it. II he wants to keep the mines
working after March 81. he can do it.
In the former case, he has but to refuse
to conduct any more negotiations and de-
clare the case closed for the present. The
union leaders will have to order strike
to save their own faces-they will call 1t
a strike, but it will be virtually a lock-
out. But if Mr.. Baer, who IS here reckon
ed as one of the smarteSt men in the busi-
ness world TODAY, deems it best to con-
tinue operations he will pass the word to
grant a wage increase. and perhaps an
hour reduction, and the union leaders can
not possibly hold their men in line.
Free Swing Given Operators.
A significant thing has just occurred
At the instance of the big operating cor
porations. all contracts which they and
the coal-carrying railroads have had with
the individual or independent operators
have been suspended for three months.
This means that the little fellows are to
be permitted to go out after strike-threat
profits while the getting is good. The big
fellows can always take care of them
selves. but the small fry of the anthra-
cite field have "A hard time to- Keep going
when the mines are closed. 1t Is evil
IDENTIFY good policy to hold them in line.
Recently one or two have shown truly
independent spirit and been inclined to
drift off into private agreements with
their men. Now comes this contract Sus-
pension to make them feel better. to fill
their Golfers with strike-price profits and
thus prepare to join, If needs be, in "a
struggle lasting into or perhaps through
| the summer. For. of course, while it may
be possible for Mr.. Baer and his assoc
ciates to force a strike or a suspension.
they cannot be sure Of stopping HOSTILE
ties when they wish. Things have an
ugly way of development sometimes up
here in the black-lined hills Of Pennsyl-
vania. Human passions are primitive,
and there is a great latent force OF po-
tential evil In the tens OF thousands or
non English-speaking laborers. Po.es,
Italians, Slavs and what-nots or Europe.
Mr.. Baer may, through his two cor
porations, control more anthracite coal
than all the other interests put together,
and he may manipulate the situation
perfectly up to the point of bringing
about dividend-paying shutdown, but
he cannot guarantee against disorder, ar
son, murder, riot and martial law. So
the question today is whether he Will
take that chance and let the case go to
default of settlement and then risk bring
ing the men back into line when their
savings have been exhausted and they
are hungry for the slight advance in
wages that will in such circumstances
perhaps be offered.
Policy of the Union.
What of the union? 1t is generally re-
garded as the dominant factor. but as far
as can learn it is NOT as strong that.
III the first place, the union is Il shifting
body. comparatively few men stick to
it through thick and thin. Under its
wisely flexible rules. when a man once
joins he is a potential unionist until he
has been expelled for cause. and the non
payment of dues Is not regarded as cause
Hence my adverb wisely" for nothing
less than the compulsory collection of
dues would insure every member pay
ing his dollar month, and If a man
were expelled for non-payment and then
required to put up a new admission fee
when he wanted to get back. few of them
would rejoin. AS it is, all that is needful
,e ny~t ,tvuy q 1n11