Denver labor bulletin., 1915-04-24
Observed From the Mine Tipp1e
BY J. D. RAMSAY

northern miners Offered to work at coal
digging and guaranteed to each produce
a given amount OF coal per day for six
days providing that the operator would
sell this coal in Denver at not more
than $3.50 per ton delivered and this
offer, it should be remembered, was
made by men who have suffered pow
erty for six years.
Disregard Their Promises.
When the strike was called off the
companies made quite a number. OF
promises from their chief offices and
yet they allowed lot of local off
cials to not only disregard these prom
ises but to openly sneer at them and
bray of what they intended doing and
for some reason the executive officials
do not interfere. 1t cannot be that
during the strike such. arrangements
We're carried out by these people that
render it inadvisable to have any dif-
ferences now If it is so. it might be
well to bear in mind that copies of even
the private papers effecting coal COM
panies have a habit of turning up at
inconyenient times.
The utilities commission has the pow
er to hold inquiries. examine records
and call witnesses in the matter OF
transportation rates and fix or alter
such rates, but it appears to have moth
! ing at all to say about the exOrbitant
rates charged for coal to consumers and
surely coal in this climate is quite as
much necessity as freight rates" II
ever the price charged for coal to big
consumers such as the Tramway COM
pany and the Gas and Electric company
of Denver. the railroads and the steel
works is published and compared with
the price charged the poor devil who
needs coat>to keep his family warm and
cook their food, there will be something
doing.
Under the initiative and referendum it
would be well to include a bill giving
the commission the power to fix retail
rates on domestic coal If the commits
sion could and would take up such
/ question the average man might begin
to feel that it was some real good.
Not the Lop-Eared Variety.
The new industrial commission is soon
I To be formed and labor is supposed to
have q representative. It, to be hoped
/ that 1t viii be a real one. not one OF
. those loug-haired lop-eared ~o-called 500
] Geological professors who knows les,
about work aud actual living conditions
/ than the ordinary person. but who ar
rogste To themselves the whole knowl-
edge Of how to settle everything IN
I twenty minutes. It, To b. hoped a real
man is appointed this time.
I The jefferson county grand jury ac-
tuallv indicted some Of the coal company
officials for offenses against miners We
promptly looked over the map to see il
I jefferson county was really in the state
I OF Colorado and it came a. shock when
We found it really was; even Vet We
cannot quite realize what it means If
Z grand iuries really do begin to indict
operators who break the law. no one
knows when such an unhc4,rd of proceed
! ing will he likely to stop.
We lhad come to believe that it was
only a miner who could break the law
aud that operators and other officials
were 4 class wholly immune from any
infraetions OF the law We could cite
cases in every coal mining district in
the state where operators have been
guilty OF crimes varying from actual
premeditated murder 10 petty larceny.
yet jefferson county grand jury is the
first and only grand jury to make any
move in bringing these offenders to JUS
tiee.
Can YOU fancy a Huerfano county
grand Jury returning an Indictment
against anyone in that county for sell
ing booze on Sunday Ii they did and
got conviction for each offens. of only
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