Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1918-02-08

lChtcAeo; 22J Fifth Ave., rev LII.
city: SOB Victor Bldg, Kansas e''''
No.
SOME INSIDE HISTORY.
Henry NJ. Hyde of The chicago
Trfbune.s staff is an interesting and
usually dependable writer. But last
summer Mr.. Hyde permitted himself
to get started on the wrong tangent in
discussing the coal situation. Watn
him he carried his newspaper and, De-
cause he was the dean Of the Writers
assigned to the coal stories by the
various Chicago papers, the other re-
porters took their cue from Mr.. Hyde.
The result was that when Samuel In
sull. chairman of the Illinois council
Of defense, and J. Ogden Armour, one
of the councils members, undertook
to solve the coal problem in their own
way, they had the support Of the Chi
cago newspapers and Of most OF the
others in Illinois.
1t happens that Mr.. insult is the
head of the company which serves
Chicago with electric light and power.
He and Mr.. Armour are two OF the
most extensive coal consumers in the
middle west. and Levy Meyer, legal
adviser for the Illinois council of de-
tense, represents several large cor
porations in Chicago which use
great deal of coal. All of these have
to do almost entirely with steam coal
for industrial use. Of course, and for
many years they had been purchasing
their fuel at prices which were often
less than the cost Of production. In
normal times they were able to COM
mand these low prices because they
purchased coal in winter and summer.
The coal operators were glad to sell
their output at low price in the sum-
mer so they could keep their mines IN
operation. They were accustomed to
making up for any loss experienced
then by charging high prices in the
winter But the big consumers OBJ
tanned the same low prices all the
year around. The small consumers,
notably the householders. really paid
for the operation of the mines for the
benefit of the big industries, because
they bought coal only in the winter
months.
But when the wartime demand
created profitable coal market
throughout the year the big consum-
ers objected to paying increased
prices which the operators demanded.
This really was the cause Of the far
cial investigation" by the Illinois
council OF defense, which was at bot
tom the cause Of the strike which
crippled Illinois coal industry and re-
duced he output of that states mines
last fall
But to return to Mr.. Hyde. He
sfell" for the InsullArmourMeyer
charges against the Illinois coal
operators and wrote series of stories
which The Tribune published and
many other Chicago and Illinois pa
pers initiated, and which accused the
Illinois operators Of realizing fabulous
profits on coal. The profits actually
were large. They were larger than was
proper. But they were not as large as
Mr.. Hyde was told and as he told the
pubic. Also, he neglected altogether
to explain that in paying an advance
over the figures they had enjoyed for
years, Mr.. Insull, Mr. Armour and Mr..
Meyers clients were only making up
. portion Of the big profit they them
selves had reaped at the expense Of
mail coal consumers for many years.
Figures were quoted, showing in
creases in the prices Illinois operators
were receiving as compared with
those they had received in former
years. But these figures dealt with
steam coal not with household coal.
They did not touch the whole coal
situation and therefore they we're mis-
leading.
However, they Indicated that the
coal operators of Illinois had been
pocketfng huge profits and were
pocketing profits even greater than
ever before. Naturally, these facts
were retailed to their employees with a
great deal Of enthusiasm by certain
busy l. w. w. agitators, pro- Germans
and other busy bodies. The officials
Of the miners union knew the truth,
but they we're unable to impress it on
thousands of unschooled workmen
many of them foreigners and others
of them anxious to find an apparent
excuse for idleness and unrest.
A troublesome strike followed. 1t was
not authorized by the miners union
but before the union officials could re-
gain control of the situation weeks
had been lost and along with them a
great quantity of coal which should
have been taken from the ground and
distributed just at that time, when
railroads could move 1t and when the
weather was not severe. Work was
resumed only when the Illinois coun.
ell of defense and the Illinois governor
were overruled by the federal fuel ad
ministrator.
This is the inside story behind Chi
Cages coal famine. The Illinois coun
Gil Of defense and certain Chicago
newspapers are to blame. not for. the
famine itself, but for the fact that the
householders were not forewarned
and prepared to meet the winter
season with cellars full of coal. They
were advised to wait for lower prices
but they failed to get either the price
cuts or the coal.
All of which would not be worth
worrying about in Iowa if it were not
for the fact that Clifford Thorne. who
was a participant in the Illinois In
Snat;~afin0 brought The idea into