New-York tribune., 1912-03-31
COAL PRICES NEAR JUMP
Strike Puts Local Dealers on
Guard Against Shortage.
STEAM PLANTS IN DANGER
Atlantic Ports and New England
States Involved in Suspen-
sion Order.

| The announcement that the suspension
| Of work I'm the anthracite districts would
start tomorrow. though no strike had beer
| declared. caused a run on the coal dealers
| yesterday. Some OF the largest dealers who
| had been selling anthracite at circular
prices informed their customers that after
april they could not give any guarantee
as to what the prices would be. The min
ing Of coal would cease on that date, and
they would have to buy coal at premium
from Spectators and charge the premium
| TO their patrons.
| representative OF Burns Brothers said
that when the suspension takes place the
small steam sizes will be out Of the market
II expect" he said, that the carrying
out of the order If it were risidly enforced,
would make some kinds of business impos-
sible. Steam plants would have to STOP
and many would be thrown idle in case OF
It's rigid enforcement"
The following statement was made last
evening by a prominent operator. who was
identified with previous conferences with
the mine workers:
The action of the leaders Of the mine
Workers indicates quite clearly that their
policy is the same as heretofore under
similar circumstances. The anthracite in
terests are being sacrificed to the bitunln-
GUS the latters representation In the union,
as compared with the anthracite, being
about three 10 one -
With one stroke Of ,he pen President
White and his associates sign an agreement
with the hituminous operators granting an
advance per ton in the labor cost OF mining
equal to about one-eighth Of what they are
demanding from the anthracite operators
and with the next stroke of the pen they
order an automatic suspension Of mining
in ti,n nrnth sit fol
There is nothing automatic about this
suspension, Is It would not occur had the
union officials not ordered IT. Ihe auto
matte course Of procedure would ungues-
tiOnably have been, mad the union ofhclalS
moi ordered differently, for the miners 10
have continued work after April |, pend
ing further negotiations. and have been
paid under the same conditions and rates
Of wages those which they have been
satisfied with during the last ten years.
being those fixed by the Anthracite strike
Commission Of 1902.
As matter of fact the automatic sus.
tension, so called. is merely the first anu
lghtest turn OF the screw which is being
put upon the public and the operators 10
force the latter to acCcde to the terms
formulated and demanded by the union Of
cias.
A representative of the officials Of the
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Rail-
road said that the principal coal-carrying
companies had so far made no prepara-
tions for strike.
THE principal companies" he continued
have not even put up stockades at their
collierles. They do not know whether there
will be strike or not. They have not en-
gagged guards, or done anything in antici-
patton of a strike"
Ii was stated that some independent con-
Germs are likely in case Of strike to keep
their coleries working, paying the miners
special rates. They did the same during
the last strike, selling, their coal at hign
prices when it was brought to market
1t was said Yesterday that the settlement
between the soft coal miners and the oper-
ators in Cleveland will not relieve the New
York market. A representative OF the
American Coal Company, which is ship
per Of soft coal. said that the conferences
In Cleveland only represented the Illinois,
Ohio and Indiana soft coal districts.
The Atlantic ports and the New England
States are supplied by the Central Penn
sylvania fields and the Central Pennsyl-
vania miners who form a separate branch
of the union, hold their own conferences
and conventions. These miners are expect
ed TO hold their convention tomorrow and
confer with the operators over their de-
mands on April s. A suspension OF work
bv these miners is expected in the mean
time,