The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-04-09
AT Coal Conference in PhiIadeI-
phia Tomorrow
$4,000 MINERS AWAIT IT
Entire Hard Coal Industry Remains as
Securely Tied Up as Ever-Several
Meetings viii Probably Be Nee
essary to End Trouble.

Philadelphia, April 9.-The district
presidents and secretaries who, with j.
T. White, national president Of the
United Mine Workers, comprise the COM
mittee which will have a further con
ference with the anthracite operators
here Wednesday in an endeavor to adopt
a new wage agreement, will hold meet
ing here to-day to put in shape their
arguments for presentation at the con
ference. The officers at the district head
quarters in Scranton, Hazelton and
Shamokin are in hopeful mood and ex-
pect an amieable settlement will be
reached They look for some conces-
sion from the operators and are pre-
pared to meet them half way. The en-
tire hard coal industry remains as com
plttely tied up as IL was last week.
Many local unions held meetings yester-
day for the purpose of admitting new
members. None of the coal companies
expect TO make move until after the
conference of Wednesday. If eonces.
sions are made it is expected series
OF meetings will have to be held to
come to a final agreement.
One hundred and seyenty-fve thousand
anthracite mine workers and number
less thousands Of other interested per-
sons hope that the conference will re-
suit in new agreement and speedily
end the suspension of mining that was
begun on the first of April. The eager
ness shown by both sides to meet again
and talk over differences has raised the
- Al o,,I o1I tknf
with concessions on both sides there will
be little difficulty in reaching salts
factory working agreement
When the suspension began there was
a strong impression among the men that
a compromise increase in wages would
be granted them This would have been
satisfactory enough to many of the min
ers, but during the past week evidence
has cropped up that the union officers
will insist upon some sort Of recogni.
ton of the United Mine Workers or
gaEization If the conference splits on
this question, long suspension and an
other deadlock or strike is likely.
In any event, il is expected that sus-
pension will last at least two weeks
longer as there will have to be more
than one conference and if an agree
ment is decided upon, the matter of its
acceptance will be left to the men at
convention that may he held in
Wilkes Barre probably on April %. if
working agreement Is reached before
that time.
Strike Region Has Been Very Quiet.
The entire 500 square miles of hard
coal territory, with population of a
million and quarter, has been unusual
Is quiet in view of the large num-
Der of idle men and boys. With the
exception Of the dynamiting of mine
engineers house and an explosion of
dynamite on the Reading railroads
tracks, in the extreme end OF the Schuyl-
kill region, there has been no violence
of consequence anywhere in the coal
fields. The suspension Of mining has
been complete, and there has been little
occasion for the mine workers to do
picket duty. There has been some fric-
tion over the employment of men to do
temporary repair work in the mines
willie the suspension is on but in most
cases an amieable arrangement has been
reached. There is still some friction in
the Philadelphia region and in the Scran-
tor territory. The mine workers have |
looked upon the suspension as a vaca-
ton and they are making the best Of
il. During the first furry most of the |
men gathered about the headquarters Of |
their local unions to hear how things |
were going, but after that they seat /
tered and took advantage of the good /
weather to enjoy their holiday.
Despite the fact that the suspension /
he's been in force for a week. and there /
IS no telling how long it will last. bus
mess throughout the coal fields is said /
to have never been better. Stanton, !
Wilkes Barre, Hazleton, Pottsville, |
Shamokin and the smaller towns have |
that business has been brisk. I
Thousands of mine workers and their /
families have come into the towns, |
either on sightseeing or shopping tours.