The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1913-10-16
PERTINENT QUESTIONS
REGARDING THE STRIKE
AND PRICE OF COAL
Canon city. Colo, oct. I. 1871

Editor The Record:
Dear sir:-Up till the present the
public sympathy as between strikers
and operators has rather leaned to the
operators. The miners are apparent
ly all able to flash checks running
well up toward $4,000 as the result
of last months work. 1t is pretty
hard to work up sympathy for a ma
who is able to show that amount to
the good among a class of people who
can not show up half as much for more
hours of hard labor To get concise
statement OF affairs from a miner
seems very difficult. They hardly
know what they have struck for and
answer most questions with ito better
conditions"
Aside from the contention that the
operators should recognize and deal
with the union the principal claim Is
for ten per cent increase in tonnage
payments. There Is also claim OF
what they call the inside men who
want s3.45 per day for what they have
received $500. These inside men rs
well as expenses for powder and re-
pairs on tools and possibly some other
expenses are divided pro rata as 10
tonnage and paid by the miners but
out OF their monthly pay checks,
The old tonnage rates as the infor-
nation given by the miners runs
T0c. soc and soc per ton. One miner
from whom most OF this information
Is derived said that his pay check was
for sl0s.00 after paying his pro rata
of these expenses he netted $500 for
12 shifts. Now the ten per cent ad-
vance would make the expense OF the
mining Z, s, SC more than under
the old scale. The advance in the
wages OF the inside men would add
possibly a cent or two more and I,
would be right for the operator to add
little more to his margin. say sc per
be approximately 15c. 1t is not un-
derstood that any more advances have
been made as nothing has been heard
of any demand being made by teams.
ters for higher wages. Now II thi,
statement is not correct 1t is the faul
Of the miner giving the information
and 1t is upon the supposition that 4
IL correct that the following remarks
seem pertinent just at this time.
The papers OF the state tell of the
advance in the price OF coal OF from
one to two dollars a ton over tn,
price that prevailed the day before
the strike.
The public has almost universally
condemned old Mother" Jones for
her stirring up of trouble. II is said
she has used very strong language
She does not love the coal operator
On general principles and no doubt
lets her personal feelings get away
with her judgment. This has pre-
JUDGED her cause and has done the
strikers much damage in the mind OF
the general public.
Perhaps Mother Jones has some in
side information that the public
should also have. II the miners just
ly or unjustly have held up the oper-
stors and Indirectly the public for Is
cents per ton In cost OF coal what
language can be too strong to use in
reference to the operators, who multi
ply this by 10 or 20 and pass 1t
on TO the consumer at a time when It
is case of Stand and deliver"
Any one who knows the situation Of
the working class can not but CEN
sure such a course. The poor are at
this season the greatest consumers OF
coal. They must have it, IL must
come in small quantities as they are
able TO pay for It, Is any language
describing such dealing too strong II