The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1919-11-02
CONTINUED from First Paze.l


had opportunity to see another side
OF the miners life.
A little raven-haired girl about ten,
with dark. dreamy eyes. stood on her
toes and peeped over the rail in the
ofrice OF the superintendent Of the
coal mine and said:
Il want my pap's pay"
The clerk smiled at her and began
conversation, but the smile was not
returned, as she repeated. this time
with a show OF feeling that she
wanted her pap's pay.
How much Is it," asked the clerk
Eighteen cents" the child an
swered.
How do you know he inquired.
The child produced a soiled slip OF
paper and gave IL to the clerk.
a. Yes. that's what the paper says,
Sbut let US see il there Is such a
name as that on our books" the clerk
remarked as he began looking
through the payroll
/ Had Drawn His
Pay In Advance.
The name was found. 1t was that
OF an Italian miner. The payroll
showed he was due eighteen cents.
He had drawn scrip between pay
days, and eighteen cents was all the
cash he had coming to him.
The daughter was given an order
on the company store for eighteen
cents
Don't take a trip to New York and
spend all that money having a big
time, the clerk admonished the little
girl as she started for the door.
The child turned In her tracks, gave
al -
looks that she had exhibited during
her visit and then went away.
/ had a practical demonstration of
the working OF the scrip system with,
in the next few minutes. for a miner
came in and asked for $50 in scrip.
signs Hs Name
r the Book
The clerk passed him a big bound
oooks In which were perforated sheets
OF black scrip. The miner signed his
name to ten Of the s5 blanks. They
Gear numbers from 1 to 200, each
NUMBER representing / cent
rms scrip Is good only at the com
pAny store. II a purchase is made at
sf-zo, for example, the storekeeper
punched the IS scrip at the number
40. There is still rs cents credit on
the scrip.
A miner, ordinarily. does not draw
out in scrip more than he has a.
ready earned. according to the COM
pany's books. There are exceptional
cases however. where he is permit
teo 10 exceed what he has already ac-
tnally earned and has due him.
mere Is . twfce-a-month pay day
III miner has urgent needs for food
and clothing from the store, he NAV
draw from the company office scrip
TO purchase such articles. 1t Is
cash transaction The scrip system.
monopoly.
On regular pay days the men are
paid cash
Some OF the miners who are termed
oid-tmers, in that they have spent
their lives in the mines, are given
credit at the company stores.
In Debt to store
Fer Twenty Year,.
There are men in this district who
eave not been out OF debt to the conn
pAny store in twenty years" one
miner told me. The prices in mos,
cases are exorbitant and some of the
companies-of course not all of
enem-last summer charged 20 cents
q pound for sugar"
Throughout the coal district. he told
=
the company office.
have seen many cases where
miners got their pay envelopes and
found them to contain no money" he
said On the outside he saw this in
RED ink, Balance due to the COM
pany.'"
Larg mining corporations have
enain stores For example, the Pitts
ourgh Coal Company, the largest oper-
ating company in the world. has
branches OF the Federal Supply Com
pany at each OF its mining camps.
mining town is a desolate town.
MOST or them are isolated. They are
planted on the side Of hills and noun
tains overlooking a railroad. THE ne,
look wistfully at the trains as thew
speed by. Few OF them stop at min
Ing towns.
As / walked about the town after
seeing that little girl who would mot