Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1912-03-30
$4,000 MINERS
READY TO STRIKE
Soft and Hard Goal Agreements
Expire on Saturday,
The SITUATION IS UNIQUE
Contracts With All Operators Expire
at the Same Time--There Is Stiil
Hope For Compromise.

The couutrs IS iacc 10 faoc with the
greatest coal strike IN its history.
Unless The unexpected happen and
ne operators aud miners arrive a.
some compromise in the meantime.
l5o,uoO anthracite miners will qut
work on Saturday OF this week and
according to President John T. White,
OF the United Mine Workers OF Amer
lea. 100000 biluminous miners VIII
wall. ont with them.
The demands Of the hitumin0us
miners viii be taken up again bl the
joint conference in Cleveland. where
the opposing sides were deadlocked
last week
The agreement under which the an
thraciie miners have been working Tor
the last nine Years expires at noon on
March ~ II no new agreement is
reached by that time the strike will
begin automatically. unless all nego
tiaiions between the representatives
OF OPERATOR and miners are broken off
entirely beforehand. in which case the
strike viii be dire tly and definitely
ordered by the union officials.
Anthracite operators awaited with
much interest tho result OF the dclib.
erations in Cleveland Of the policy
committee OF The United Mine Work.
crs. representing both the anthracite
and hiiuminous mine workers. which
purposes 20 act on the refusal c the
demands of both the soft coal and
hard coal miners
While tho operators are giving out
no Information concerning their prr
poses or plans. II was learned tha' n.
iluences were a. work 10 force them
and their employees 20 come 10 some
agreement The operators have fetrd
unoficially that the hard coal miners
would he quite satisfied to waive most
Of their demands IL ihey could -ecure
an increase IN wages bat TO raise the
wages. the operators say. viii make i
necessary to increase the price Of coal,
which they expressed themselves as
being unwilling 20 do
\ coal strike Of only few We" 8
would moan the paralssi of ever n
dusiry dependent upon coal. including
railroads factories steamboats, elee.
trio light power ami gas companies
entire cities wlll be plunged into ia H.
ness. and business In general will
come To a siandsiili
In the event thar he strike should
last for any number oi months the
total loss TO miners. operators and
business in general would amount 70
close 20 the almost unbelievable sum
OF sl0nn0o .0na.
Al &c the demands Of the hard rnal
miners for changes in the existing
agreement have heen refused by lhr
operators. who un their part have or.
fcrcd counter propositions that amount
practically "a tho old agreement
The miners demand ga per cent
increase in wages recognition of tho
union and that the operators collect
the union dues from the miners hy
deducting them from their waGes. an
cighthour day: payment by The ton
instead OF hy the carload aholshmcn;
Of the Cancellation board. which is
composed Of both miners and oper-
ators. and that the new agreement be
for ono year. instead OF for three. as
the operators insist
What is true OF the anthracite field
IN eastern Pennsylvania IS also true
Of the hi'uminous fields in western
Pennsylvania Ohio Indiana and III
uois rs well As in The twenty-eight
states in watch sof, coal Is mined be.
cause Tor the first time the agree.
mcnts OF the hard coal miners and the
soft coal miners end on the same day
Heretofore these agreements expired
q year apart. AMI there ore when the
hard coal men were striking the soft
coal men were mining coal and vice
versa. Consequeh II the situation was
nothing Ike as serious as Il will he
In the event that the strike now
threatened eveniuates
The hituminous miners are. Ike the
anthracite miners also fighting for
higher wages Re entity they asked
for 10 per cent increase In wages.
and weer met with cui OF i0 per
cent. Their discomfort in some quar-
tiers agains; the operators is greater
even than thar Of the anthracite work
ers