Evening star., 1915-01-30
John R. Lawson Charges
Rockefeller With Ignorance of
Conditions in Colorado.
SCORES THE FOUNDATION
AS AN ENEMY OF JUSTICE
Assures Federal Industrial Commis-
sion That Workers Seek Only
to Obtain Square Deal.

NEW YORK. January 3o.-John n
Lawson, executive board member 1oi
Colorado of the United Mine WORKERS
of America, who yesterday denounced
conditions in the Colorado mining
camps in his testimony before the leu
eral industrial relations commission
and sharply arraigned John ID. Roche
Teller. jr, for his alleged failure TO III
form himself as to conditions there' re
sumed his testimony today.
.~rhere is no social life in the camps,
Mr.. Lawson said. The companies own
all the houses, ground, Schools
churches and stores. Complete des-
potism exists in the mining camps.
Long List of the Dead.
Mr.. Lawson read into the record a
long list of the various accidents III
coal mines and list of the men killed
by violence in the Colorado mining
camps in 1918. This was done, he said,
SO that the commission might know
how many widows and fatherless chill
dren there were in Colorado.
And they get an average or s9c';4o y
if the father and husband is killed., he
said. What can they do in life with
S3O5.40? What chance have they got!
Men worked in the mines, the witness
said, because they were 1orceo, not pe-
cause they wanted to.
"If they complain. it is down the
canyon for theirs he said. And II the
man who does work Is hurt ne is taken
to q company hospital. II he dies.
company coroner conducts the inquest
over the body
Unfavorable Verdicts Rare.
"As long as 1 can remember only two
yerdicts unfavorable to the Colorado
Fuel and Iron Comapny have been
found-and 1 think the company fur
nished the cemeteries. The coroners
have a habit of giving a verdict of sui
eide or death due to carelessness. one
coroner wrote, in a certain case, tnat
the victim of an accident had no rela-
tives and damned few friends.
No coal miner. Mr. LAWSON so1.c.in sa,d has 1ias
and the interests OF the operators.
Company detectives and gunner con-
stantIy spied on the men to see thar
they did not get together. TINS ap-
no unions. In union camps. Mr. Law
son testified, conditions were entirely
different.
The University of Colorado. he said.
had promised the United Mine work
ers of America that 1t would extend lts
work into the coal camps SO that !ne
men might have an opportunity 70 eau-
cate themselves: ,an IN s,dne,,y ,ne non, DANCE
the witness said, but no other amuse-
ments or recreationS.
Quotes Alleged 1914 Threat.
Mr. Lawson directed the commissions 8
attention to a statement which he said
vas made by John D. Rockefeller. jr-,
Anril 8. 1914, in which Mr.. Rockefeller
was quoted as saying that the Colorado
EueI and Iron Company would never
recognize the United Mine workers oi
amaIica and that it was a Tight TO the
finish. ~. a.,,
came Ludlow" Mr. Lawson said. Il
do not know whether there was any
Connection between these two things: l
hone not. A man like Mr.. Rockefeller
should be careful of the things ne
says, however -
the witness discussed the payment OF
workmen in scrip, redeemaoie ior me, .,, =
chandise at company stores. and the
enployment of check weighmen, VINO
are paid by the miners to see that the
company does not cheat the men III
weighing coal at the tipple There was
a law in Colorado. Mr.. Lawson SAID
nroyiding for check weighmen; In spite
of that. the law frequently was Violat-
ed by the operators. w men Weishheh
are selected, he continued. the COM
NAMES see to II that safe men from
their viewpoint are seieeteo DO "S'oA
men.
Mr. Lawson thought it was mistake
on the part of organized labor to re-
elect union officials who had been con-
yicted of violence or the use of dyna-
mite.
Urges Government Ownership.
Amos Pinchot. New York attorney
the next witness, declared that govern
ment ownership of mines and other
natural resources which are the foun-
dation of industry and labor was the
"oniy doctrine in which there Is any
boper' for the alleviation of industrial
evils These resources were at present
controlled by monopolies. he said, anc
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