The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1913-07-08

Obliged to trade, just as they were
Obliged to work for the operators IL
case they occupied company houses
The rent and store expenses were
deducted by the company from the
wages of the men, and the latter
neva saw much ready money. When
he strike began the miners were
avfctnd and forthwith took up their
abole in tents and shacks in the
mountains. Mep, women and chill
dren were huddled under the same
roof with domestic animals and the
kind of life which is born of idleness
aud poverty and none too high mo-
rality was the result.
Treated as Poems.
Poor as were the miners they
found means of arming themselves
and they knew how to fight. When
Governor Hatfield succeeded Gov
ernor Glascock as chief executive of
the state he made earnest efforts to
effect a settlement and to a degree
succeeded But the indignities to
which the miners had been subject
6d-the belief they entertain that
they had been treated as poems, that
civil rights were denied them, that
there was not even freedom of the
mails-raised other questions great
er than any question of industrial
right or wrong, When men were
being tried by court martial might
made right and liberty was denied.
And so the conditions in the West
Virginia coal fields duly found their
way into the United States senate,
where Senator John Worth Kern of
Indiana became the champion of the
miners, strongly contending for the
appointment of a committee to in
vestigate the whole matter. In this
attitude he was ably sustained by
Senator Root of New York, and the
committee was appointed. 1t con-
sists of Senator Claude A. Swanson
of Virginia, chairman; Senator John
s. Shields of Tennessee, Senator Jas.
e. MARITIME of New Jersey, Senator
VIM. e. Borah of Idaho, and Senator
S. Kenyon of Iowa. This
committee is now sitting in Charles
town and taking testimony and will
visit every corner Of the coal
fields. It's inquiries are being di- |
rected into the existence of peonage
in the coal fields; into the alleged in |
reference with the postal facilities |
of the government; into alleged Vio-
lation of immigration laws and in |
word into the whole disturbances, |
their causes and their workings.
More Trouble Likely.
Very likely the committee may
be called upon to put a probe into
conditions in the New River coal
district, where some of the miners |
are on strike and where 10000 more
are liable to go out at any time.
While open warfare has ended in
the Cabin and Paint creek districts
there is still a possibility of future
troubles. The miners. are restless, |
and some of them are being denied
work because the operators fear them
as trouble makers.
Meantime another element which |
will lead to long discussion and a |
bitter legal battle has been injected |
into the West Virginia situation by |
the indictment of John P. White, |
president of the United Mine Work |
ers' Union, and Is other officials on |
The charge of violating the Sherman
antitrust law. The Indictment, |
which emanated from the federal /
district court at Charleston and |
which was issued without any con-
sultation with the department of JUS
lice at Washington, where such |
suits are generally instituted or in
5pired, charges that the defendants
with the coal operators of
Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana |
and Illinois to raise wages in West |
Virginia so as to prevent the latter
state from competing with the opera
tors in the other states in the West |
ern markets 1t is asserted by the |
United Mine Workers that the in |
dictments are intended as a back |
fire" to the senatorial investiga- |
tiOp