The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-11-04
SHARP CONFLICT IN CLAIMS OF MINERS AND OPERATORS AS
 ID NUMBER AT WORK
Both Mine Workers and Op- orators Claim Gains Made Yesterday-ManyMine Are Operating With
 Short Forces

district yesterday than on Sat
 urday.
 There was a sharper confiic
 in the claims than on the frs
 day of the strike, union official
 asserting that the ranks of tn,
 strikers were augmented yes
 terday and the operators con
 tending that more men were a
 work.
 Several telephone lines to outlying sec
 tions were down yesterday and for tha reason no reports could be received iron a number of the mines
 The Tennessee Coal. Iron and Railroad company. it was stated at the genera l offices, were operating all of the,r mine. except those at Blocton in Bibb county and Blossburg in Jefferson county. | was stated that the Biossburg mines hac | not been operated for d year or two anc that no attempt was made to operate al Biocton yesterday.
 The Pratt Consolidated Coal company one of the largest operating companies in the district, President Geodge B. Nc. Cormlck stated yesterday afternoon, was operating most of its mines, but with re- duced forces. The telephone lines to some of the mines were oown and no reports from these had been eceived up to .ate ir the afternoon
 The Empire Coal company was operat. ing It's mine with normal Monday force Walter Moore, president of the company stated.
 800 TONS AT SIPSEY
 Sipsey at f o'clock had turned out S tons of coal, normal run for the day Payne's Bend, the other mine opera ted by the DeBardeleben Coal company, could not be heard from yesterday afternoon put it was known that practically all oi the men were at work there, according to a statement given out at the company office in the Brown-Narx building Milton Il. Flies, vice president of the company who is at Sipsey, reported to the office at o'clock that none of the men had quit work there
 Reports from Acmar. Acton and Mar garet mines, operated by the Alabama Fuel and Iron company. received at the offices of the company in the Brown Marx building at noon, stated that the full component of men was working at each of these places, with no defections what ever among the working force
 Similar reports were made by other operating companies.
 President J. R. kennamer of District No 20, United Mine Workers sumndriz ing reports received I'D to 3 o'clock in the afternoon, stated that men at Coal Val ley, Patton, Corona, Oakman, ,Bankhead Parrish and many other Walker county mines were practically 100 per cent out.
 SAYS MEN LEFT CAMP
 At Sipsey and Payne's Bend, DeBardelc- ben Coal company mines in Walker county, MT. Kennamer said, many of the men refused to work yesterday Some of the men left the camps, he ssid and others would leave from day to day. the company being hostile to union labor
 At Acmar and Margaret, in St. Clair county, and Acton in Shelby county, all Alabama Fuel and Iron company proper ties, MT Kennamer said, many of the men were leaving because the company was hostile to union labor
 International Organizer William l.. Har- rison, who was at heaGquarters in the Farley building at o'clock, stated that he had been out to the Edgewater mines of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company during the morning and that only 120 men out of a total of about 700 were at work, and that Eayview, another T. c l. mine, was practically closed. He said that very few men were working at any of the T. c. I. mines and that Docena was entirely down.
 MT. Harrison stated that 25 men at Acmar and Acton had quit and were or dered to vacate the property occupied by them within two days and get out of the camps. He stated that this was the first instance, so far as reports received at headquarters indicated. where strikers had been ordered to vacate company houses.
 DEPUTIES STOPPED MEN
 MT. Harrison stated that deputy snerifrs had stopped several men who were going into the mine at Mulga, to get their clothes left there Friday. and refused to let them enter the mines.
 Mass meetings of miners were held yes- trday at Praco for Flat Crek, Maxine Powhattan and Praco miners; at Edge water, for Bessie, Republic, New Castle and Sayreton.
 : It was stated at the Tennessee Coal. Iron and Railroad company's offices Tn the Brown-Marx building that only IT
  yesterday, and that more were working in the ether mines than on Saturday and that some of the mines that were idle were operating yesterday with fairly good forces The prediction was made that the output at Edgewater. where union officials stated that only 12O out of 7c0 men were working. would be i05 per cent over Saturdays production.
 Vice President Milton H. Fies of the De- Bardeleben Coal company telephoned to the office in this city yesterday after noon that the normal force was working, and that Payne's Bend mine was expected to exceed it's Saturday record. which was greater than the average for October, the best month of the year.
 At Empire Walter Moore stated. about 65 per cent of the normal force was working, which is the average for Monday follow ng pay days. The fr.l force is expected to be on duty there today. Dolomite mines and and Mulga mine Woodward Iron company properties, it was reported during the afternoon, were working with fair crews.
 EVERYTHING QUIET
 Everything is quiet throughout the dis .rict and so far as present indications go here will be no trouble anywhere in this district.
 It was reported yesterday that at one of he mines where a large number of Ital- ans work several of them called a. the offices Friday and stated that Saturday was religious holiday and they were not permitted by their church to work on that lay Informed that they must report for iuty Saturday morning and then be ex- ,used, or lose their jobs every man was ,n hand at the usual time for starting work They were excused for the day.