The labor advocate. [volume] (Cincinnati, Ohio) 1912-1937, 1916-11-11


with prospects for more in the near
future.
In about eight mines, miners of the
{. +. and |. have entered the union; in
fact, the first to make the break were
those near Ludlow in what is known as
Berwind Canon, a place into which no
one who was thought to be a union man
dared to go few years ago and a
week ago last Sunday Lawson and |
addressed two large meetings in that
canon, after which ifty-two miners
made application to join the newly or
ganized local union.
In Bowen (Tictor American Fuel
Coz the mine guard Camp Marshal,
to he polite) attended the open meet
ing at our invitation and was asked to
address the meeting, and in spite of
this seventy-live mel. of about eight
six working there, joined the union.
Mr.. Welborn, the president of the
Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, has
been visiting the camps of his company
and speaking to the men, and am in
formed by the miners that he has told
them that the company has no objection
to their joining any union. but that there
would be no increase in wages until
January 1, 1918. the time the plan" ex-
pires.' He also asked for complaints. if
any, and of late he has been given
large number of matters to pass upon.
In Starkville the boys say he gave
them a book in which the complaints
were to be written, and there was not
room enough in it to hold all that were
made.
One miner said that he complained
to Weiborn that the boss had taken him
from a day job and put him into a min
ing place of such conditions that he re-
ferred to it, when telling me. as Rock
Quarry and that Welborn said that
of course the boss had right to place
men where he thought best. Now in
another camp a miner called Welborns
attention to the fact that for nine days
he had sought to have the company
furnish him with rails, and asked if
Welborn thought that reasonable time
to wait for them. to which Welborn re-
piled that he thought it most unreaso1r
able to have to wait that long Then
he inquired as to who was pit boss in
that place (attempting to handle cases
and does not even know his agents }
and upon being informed, called for
him; although the boss was present, he
did not respond, and after three calls
miner, pointing him out, said aloud,
There he is" and when asked by We'll
born in the presence of the men, if he
would see that this miner got rails he
said he would, and it was attended to the
next day. Now the point is, what may
this active man expect from that boss
for daring to bring up the bosses neglect
in the presence of the president of the
company? And in light of the answer
of Welborn in the other case, the boss
will have the backing of the company in
changing this man, and when Welborn
appears in that camp again. he may ask
if this miner is getting along all right,
and get as an answer from the pit boss,
"Oh, Mr.. Welborn. that young mar has
| left the employ of the company, and |
understand he is employed at such and
such place." never telling that he was
compelled to quit
The same meeting at which this case
came up, Slav got up and wanted to
know why he was compelled to push his
cars in and out of his place, when form
erly they were pulled by mule and
the boss answered that three mules had
been killed on that run and that it was
too expensive to keep a mule there. This
man tells me that he then said Gin his
broken way) /: Cost too much for mule
when he get killed. No cost too much
for man; All, plenty Dago in this coun-
try Ali" And at this, he said the
two representatives got up and said
that this man who just spoke had no
complaint; that wages and conditions
were good now in these mines. 1t is re-
ported that some time during that or
the next night, an explosion occurred on