The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-11-03
HOPEFUL VIE "
Of SITUATION IN
COAL STRIKE.
uo,,,.' 's ,1,assr.e,y 1s,sr.e,y Arbitration
Offe. u Open
GOMPERS is IN NEW YORK
Engineers Brotherhood Thinks 1t Can
Solve Situation with New In
dustrial Board

Washington, Nov 3-Labor officials
declined today to discuss reports that
Samuel Gompers, president of the
American Federation of Labor, had
suggested a way of settling the coal
strike. Gompers is in New York. In
some labor circles there was a hope
full view of the situation. At the
White House it was said President
Wilson's offer for arbitration still was
open.
Meantime preparations for setting
up commission on industrial unrest
as recommended by the public group
in the recent industrial conference
are progressing, and the selection of
the personnel is expected to be com
pleted by the cabinet tomorrow. One
of the first effects of the coal strike
has been the curtailment Of passenger
trains on some railroads. Director
General Hines has given the regional
directions wide discretion in this
matter. The freight service will not
be disturbed unless the coal shortage
becomes serious.
Attorney General Palmer today in
formed the coal miners who protest
ed against strike injunction that the
government stood ready to do every
thing in its power to facilitate and in
quiry into the merits of the controver-
sy, but in the meantime the law must
be enforced and combinations TO stop
production cannot be tolerated.
Chicago, Nov. 3.-DeYelopments to.
day in the strike of over four hundred
thousand soft coal miners throughout
the country were expected to clarity
the situation to the extent of determ-
ining whether production was TO be
stopped indefinitely in large part OF
the bituminous zone or whether any
considerable number of workers were
willing to return to work. This was
the first full working day since the
strike became effective Friday night,
and mine officials planned to check
their rolls.
Although operators admitted the
figures given out by the union lead
ers were approximately correct, they
pointed out that nearly one hundred
fifty thousand non-union men were
working in PENNSYLVANIA and West
Virginia fields, and that nearly twen
ty thousand were working in Kentuc
ky.
Springfield, H., Nov, 9.-Acting
President Lewis of the United Mine
Workers was enroute to Indianapolis
today to watch developments in the
soft coal miners strike from his posi-
ton as "onlooker" by reason of fed
eral injunction restraining him among
others from directing the strike pro-
gram He spent Sunday at his home
here. He declined to talk about plans
of the miners officials to combat the
order set for hearing
Saturday or to say whether any pol
icy has been formulated.
Chicago, Nov Information OBJ
tanned from the bituminous coal
fields of the United States, in which
more than 100000 members of the
United Mine Workers Of America
have been ordered out on strike, to-
night indicated that there would be
nothing which could check the momen
tum of the walkout despite the tempo
rary restraining order which was is
sued Friday in the United States dis
trict court at indianapolis. Deprived
Of the directing hands of its leaders
as a result of the injunction, the
of the union was prepar-
ed to enter the first full working day
since the strike order became effec-
tive. in an effort to demonstrate its
ability to halt the production of soft
coal throughout the nation
The operators so far as available re
ports show have not yet made plans
to combat the strike, notwithstanding
the fact that troops both federal and
state, have been sent in many instanc
es to localities from which they
might best guard the coal properties
in the contingency of violent efforts
to prevent non-union men from taking
the places of the strikers On the
other hand there has been no reported
activity by members of the
unions. Both operators and strikers
apparently had decided to await de-
before either of them
takes a further definite step in the
Reports from various railroad cen
ters showed that seizure of coal in
transit as ordered by the federal gov
had begun. Hundreds of
coal laden cars in transit were taken
over by the regional directors of the
fuel administration and were side
tracked to await possible distribution
under the administration priority
schedule.
DIcMANTI INC EOpTpEee