Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-12-22
PUBLIC IS PUZZLED
BY DEVELOPMENTS
IN COAL SITUATION
Age-0I Game of Barter and
Bargain-Operators Have
Next Move.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

by DAVID LAWRENCE.
The government is having its first
critical experience in trying to put into
vague phrases handled about in con-
Sressional speeches and presidential
messages. so often about ''harmonizing
the rela tons between capital and labor. "
For while the coal miners were the
object of bitter criticism and the oper-
atOrs seemed to be the reasonable folks
willing to do anything to get coal for
the country. Even the delicate power
or injunction was used in an effort to
bend the will of the miners-and. they
nnally agreed to negotiate. Out of the
series of negotiations has come another
plan, sponsored by the government The
miners like 1.-THE operators do not
SO. in executive quarters. one finds
opinion veering-now it is the operators
who are blocking settlement
The layman may be puzzled, but
the observer close at hand is no bet
ter off. For both sides are making
contradictory statements and init
mating that the other isn't telling
the truth. For instance, the OPP
orators claim they weren't consulted
in the latest memorandum for set
tlement of the strike. The officials at
the Department of Justice say the
opposite. 1t appears that +. NJ. Bogart
received. for the operators, "A copy
OF the Palmer memorandum just be
fore the miners convention received
1t at Indianapolis. The operators, on
the other hand. admit that, but say
they called attention to the fact that
the pan was a change from the Gar
field scheme of settlement. They deny
that anybody approved it for them.
Old-FashiOned Game.
The many ups and downs of the
filled with technical de-
tails and charges and counter charges
simply give one the impression that
the whole thing is merely the old
fashioned, age-old game of barter and
bargain.
First the miners cry out that they
must have 40 per cent increase in
wages or starve. The operators offer
81 per cent is right. Along comes
DR.. Garfield and insists upon IA per
cent. The operators, being trained to
the art of bargaining, squirm- and
make it appear that they are hard
hit by that II per cent. but that to be
good sports and to stand by their gov
eminent they will absorb the II per
cent. But no big increase in coal
comes.
The state governments become
FESTIVE and begin negotiating sepa-
rately with the miners. The situa-
tion becomes serious. and the gov
ernment tries it's hand again. this
time with President Wilson himself
appealing to both sides to accept
to settle the dispute The
miners repeat that they are Ameri-
gAdn cod &c<AHt. They, too, mil Ia 2fzs
appear that tie settlement ism alto
gether satisfactory-their' Convention
remains in session long and the rad
icals" are represented as terribly
stubborn. Finally the miners are on
record as accepting. Then it is the
operators turn again.
The viewpoint of the operators is
that commission of three is too
bestow upon 1t sweeping powers over
the coal industry. especially when at
any time within the near future. the
Lever act, under which the commits
sion would have the same powers as
the fuel administration had, may come
off the statute books. They are con-
sidering seriously whether to agree to
the plan as commission Of 'fnves-
tigation" and not as body whose re-
suits are binding upon them.
Meaning OF Proceedings.
What does it all mean? Simply that
the operators imagine even before the
sits down to work that 1t
will recommend higher wages for the
miners and that an attempt Will be
made to make the operators instead
of the public absorb the increased
wages.
The miners are confident they are
going to get more than the IA per
cent already guaranteed them
The commission itself would have
power to increase the selling price
Of coal so that the operators would
not have to bear all the burden of
increased wages. but the operators
claim to be unwilling to see the cycle
of selling prices increased. 1hey
deny that they have made exorbi-
tant profits but the obsession which
one finds in administration circles is
profits and should be required TO
stand the raise. There's the real rub.
The operators will fight such an
idea tooth and nail.
AS for the profits of the operators,
it is true that the administration
C. McAdoo claimed in a public state
cused him of quitting in" and he
was criticised by certain newspapers
for "blabbing" facts that he got in
confidence while Secretary of the
question as to why Mr.. McAdoo in
terjected himself into the contro-
yersy, the fact remains that he didn't
reveal any condolences. but simply
refreshed the public memory on a
Senate document which didn't receive
much publicity when it was made
public.
Response to Senate Resolution.
That document is entitled "Corpo-
rate Earnings and Government Rev
euue," and is accompanied by letter
from the Secretary of the Treasury in
response to Senate resolution Of June
:. 1918, being certain facts, figures,
data and information taken from 1916
and 1917 income and excess profits tax
returns to the Treasury Department
1t is Senate document 259. and while
the names of the corporations are not
given, they are distinguished by code
numbers. Out of $50 companies en-
gagged in bituminous coal operations.
the percentage of profit on invested
capital as well as on capital stock
ranged from % per cent to 1000 per
cent for more than two-thirdS of the
number of coal corporations.
The whole debate resolves itself into
this: Will the operators agree to ad-
Indication by commission whose per-
sonnet or powers they do not approve
and thus pave the way for higher
wages taken out of their earnings, or
will they insist that the facts be dis
covered by "A commission and recon-
mendations be subject to their own
disapproval or approval later on? 1t is
the operators move. with both the gov