The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-12-06
GOV. ROBERTS
SERVES NOTICE
Mine Owners Must Exhaust
Every Effort to Bring
About Production.
EXCEED RIGHTS
Tennessee's Executive Holds
IL KIT. n..k-. a. r
STRIKERS EXCEED RIGHTS
Tennessee's Executive Holds
It His Duty to Intervene
Behalf Public.

KNOXVILLE, Dec. GA. PA-In an
sddrest before large Al sbIy Of
eitirens here this morning Rob.
erts served notice on bot Al oper-
ators and coal miners s the coal
strike in Tennessee m s % termi-
mated. He appealed {. nom both
upon the ground Of : ! .terest and
the higher ground es[ triotio duty
to state and natIors., I'd declared
that should they. to heed this
appeal, then the notIs~-is served upon
them that shall forthwith take such
steps and employ such means as may
seem best calculated to produce the
desired results"
The governor spoke in Market hall,
the city auditorium. and was heard
by very large audience. including
many miners and operators, as well
as interested citizens from Knoxville
and other points in East Tennessee.
He was accompanied to the city by
Atty. Gen. Frank M. Thompson and
Adjt. Gen. E. b. Sweeney, with both
of whom he was in conference this
morning before the address, and
again this afternoon. Several oper-
ators and miners also called upon the
governor and discussed with him the
strike situation and the coal supply
In this district.
II deeply regret" said Gov. Rob-
erts in his appeal to the miners and
operators of Tennessee, to compose
their differences and begin the oper-
alton Of the mines forthwith, that
the time has come in the development
of the coal strike now on in Tennes-
see when feel impelled by sense Of
duty to the public to take an active
interest in the operation of the coal
mines in Tennessee. The people Of
Tennessee ar. now facing a coal
famine which not only threatens great
financial loss. but imperis the health
and lives of the people.
"The coal deposits of Tennessee are
impressed, measureably, at least, with
a pubic trust and use, and this trust
and use are so vital and necessary
to the very life of the people them
selves that it constitutes, in my
Judgment. such a right as should be
protected and enforced on behalf Of
the public.
"As governor I shall not tolerate
any such use Of property to be made
as will result in serious injury to
the public, The right to use prop
erty ~isgsnots absolute. but ,isz relat tive
only. The owner of a gun has no
right to use it to the injury OF his
fellows. Neither has the owner of a
coal mine the right to use his prop
erty, or decline to use it to the detri-
ment and injury of the public. Notice
is ..ereby served upon them that they
must either exercise their corporate
powers or forfeit their rights to do
so to the state VIII ch conferred them.
In other words, they must either mine
coal or exhaust every effort to do SO,
or be prepared to answer the state
for it's failure through it's courts or
military power as the state may
elect.
"On the other hand, the right to
strike is not in any sense an abso-
lutte one; indeed, the moral right does
not exist at all in favor of citizens
engaged in certain employmentS.
Here is great coal strike where a
large number of men have arrogated
unto themselves the right for the
mere sake of comparatively small
increase in wages to freeze the world
INTO SUBMISSION TO thelf demands,
throwing hundreds of thousands of
laborers out of employment for want
of material with which to work, and
thus wrecking our entire industrial
system"
The governor announced that since
the situation had become acute and
both sides in their stubbornness and
have manifested a dis
position to stand out against all en-
treaties, "it became his duty to inter-
vene and assert the rights of the pub
lie. ITO this end" he declared, II
shall employ all the resources of the
state of Tennessee in both men and