Arizona republican., 1915-11-01
(By Ernest DouqIas)

(By Ernest DougIas)
 When l arrived in Clifton, on the fourth day of october, I was under instructions from Mir. Dwight B. Heard to cover for The Republican the daily events in connection with; the strike and also ascertain the underlying causes of the industrial warfare which at that time had tied up one of AriZona's principal mining camps for nearly a month. I had not been told to favor one side or the other; in fact l had been warned to be strictly impartial in delving into the merits of the controversy.
 Before I had been in the strike zone week I became convinced that there was much justice in the demands of the men, also that prev iouslY published stories of conditions in the district had been greatly ex- aggerated. Nothing that have learned. or which has occurred. since has changed that opinion.
 The men are terrible in earnest. thoroughly believing that they are fighting against oppression and for industrial justice.
 In the first place. they had not been receiving wages as high as were paid in other mining camps. This is an incontrovertible fact. and dissatisfaction was inevitable on that score alone
 Dissatisfaction had been growing for twelve years, not only because of ioW wages but because of various other abuses. If the mine managers aid not know of that dissatisfaction it was because they listened only to what they wished to hear frori sub Crdinates who had axes of their own ;o grind.
 When committees called on the managers to present grievances they were cirber not received at all or were coldly referred to the -ery s'thordinates who were responsible for the abuses
 It is claimed that many men had to pay foremen for jobs. Tn numer- ous instances, it is said, a part of every pay check went to the fore men, In some cases jobs were sold to the highest bidders.
 It cannot be supposed for a mo- ment that the managers knew of this. But they would have known of 1t, and of many other things. had they cOndescended to meet their em- ployes as men and talk things over with them in a spirit of fair play But they appear to have had the Europcan idea that a man who re- ceives salary is a creature superior to the one who tolls for a daliy wage.
 The charge is also made that a short time before the strike was called the forcmen were urgel by the managers to make the plen do in six days what they had been ac- complaining in seven. The foremen were to receive seven days pay for six days work, but the mcE were to do more work for less fnCrey This. of course. would be hard to prove. Probably no foreman could be persuaded to make affidavit to that effect for it would mean the loss of his position.
 The strikers assert that scores of men have been discharged merely for making complaint of some abuse. for asking increased p1y. or telling their fellow workers tLat they were not being treated right. Ami no man discharged by one company. if is Cla med, has ever succeeded l.. getting 6 job with ore of the other tive concerns. As there is prac- tically HOthing else to ,io in that dis trict except work for the Arizon8. Shannon or Detroit. al employe who has lost his place has no choice bat to Gave.
 When two working men get to- gether and talk abou. their wages, i they're agitators but when two cap italists get together and reduce 1 wages. they're final ciers.' remarked 1 one olG philosopher
 This is a Scottish province. noti:- ing more" said a workingman who i claimed that for twenty years he had been trying to save enough out i of his wages to take himself and his ! family out of the district.
 The companies own and operate ! the stores. and the prices charged 1 at those stores are outrageous. On the average they must be 25 per cent i higher than Phoenix prices. and the | cost of common necessities of life | laid down in Clifton, Morenci or | Metcalf can be little, if any, more 1 than in Phoenix There are inde- ! pendent stores 1t is true, but tlIe i merchants say that if | they sold under the companies they