Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-11-08
j. S. STRIKE.
VIEW PART OF.
|WARON REDS
First Stand Taken in Mine
Tieup to Put Curb on
Radicalism.
BIZ DAVID LAWRENCE.
(SnAcial IN Thu Ar~nal

(SpeC1eA 70 Iu0 Ar8ub.5 ~.
Warrington, d. c.. Nov. 8.-The
United States government ref0ses,t0
surrender its power Of Injunction
and insists that the coal strike be
called OF. That in q nutshell 10
what Attorney General Mitchell
Palmer told Samuel 0ompers,
president Of the American Fedora
ton Of Labor, who came ~ an In
termediary In the hope Of settling
the coal strike. UnQuestionably he.
was acting with the knowledge Of
the head Of the coal miners union
though b. was careful In his con-
ference 70 rspresent himself only
- . go-between.
The attorney general listencd to
the argument Of Mr.. 0ompers. who
was accompanied by Frank Morri7
son and Mathew Well, vice prssi-
dent and secretary respectively Of
the American Federation of Labor.
They pointed out the dificulfies
and dangers Of the restraining
order. whose character is to be
made permanent or not, according
to how Judge Anderson rules in the
federal court at Indianapolis to-
day. But 1t seems certain that un-
less the coal strike IL called on.
the injunction will be made per-
manent and the difficulties of the
coal miners in extricating them
selves from legal entanglements
will be increased.
Has ~Abiaing Faith"
Mr.. Gompers was unable to prom
ise definitely that II the govern
ment withdrew its application for
= permanent Injunction the coal
strike would be called on. He could
present no guarantee to that ef-
feet, NO assurance on behalf Of any
organization. He had simply an
abiding faith" that Il the govefn-
ment withdrew the Injunction the
coal strike could be settled in 48
hours. ~
The attorney generals answer
was characterized by q spirit Of
firmness and flnality that was un-
mistakable. He declared that In
his opinion the miners were doing
an illegal thing by striking. He
said they had been asked not to
strike, but; had ignored the request
Of the; president Of the United
States and had fiouted the author
ity Of the government. So long as
the strike was in progress, the IL
legality was present, and the Unit.
ed States government could not for
q moment countenance Illegally.
He would not request the miners
to call on the strike by promising
them that the injunction would be
withdrawn. He would make no
promises. All he would say was
that II the strike were called of,
illegality would cease.
End Strike; Injunction Ends.
The situation resolves itself
therefore into this: Should.the coal
miners present to the federal court
10 statement saying that the strike
order had been revoked, the gov
ernment would simultaneously pre-
sent . request that the Injunction
be vacated. s
Messrs. Gomperss Woll and Nor
rison retired to think It over Just
- the attorney general motored
from the department of Justice to
the executive mansion where he
dropped fn . few. minutes on the
president prior to the beginning Of
the cabinet meeting in the adjacent
Fomces Of the White house.
The attorney general is just back
from q brief visit to Pennsylvania
where he went to vote and also to
make . speech to the mayors Of
Pennsylvania cities and state oflic-
ials 1t Harrisburg. He used the
opportunity ito drive home an at
tack on James Maurer, president
Of the State Federation OF Labor Of
Pennsylvania, who had Just per-
suAded the state convention Of his
organization to call general strike
throughout Pennsylvania.
Flays Radlcalisn.
The attorney general drew q dis
tinction between labor leaders of
the radical type like Maurer and
the conservatives like Gompers.