Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-03-21
INTOC COAL
PRICES WILL BE
MADE BY STATE
Governor Sproul Determined
That Investigation Make
Facts Public

III coal operators representing one
third of the anthracite produced
in Pennsylvania who spent two
hours with Governor William c.
Sproul yesterday, had any hopes of
swerving him from his determine
tion to halt the proposed advance in
the prices of domestic grades they
Ialled, because the Governor reiter-
ated to-day that if necessary he
would make an inquiry as to the
causes for what he deems an un-
warranted and uneconomic increase
IN cost to consumers, even to the
extent of going to the Legislature to
broaden authority.
The conference was entirely
amicable and the Governor said aft
erwards that it had been mutually
satisfactory" but at the same time
he let it be known conclusively
that what he was interested in was
preventing the public from being
made to pay a higher price for hard
coal at the close of winter as un-
usually mild as that of last year
when the prices were put away up
was unusually severe.
The men who were here fortified
themselves with an array of fig
ures as to cost of production, but
the Governor said that he realized
that transportation and handling in
the final distribution stage played
their part in the burden of the
householder and that he intended to
go farther into the problems.
In the delegation here were w.
l.. Connell, Scranton; James B.
Neale, Minersville: A. B. Jessup,
Jeddo, and Alan c. Dodson and j.
- tI,l@ -. ln% 49,,
the secretary and assistant secretary
of the independent operators or
ganization. Attorney General w. T..
Schaffer was present during most of
the meeting.
Governor Sprolt said that he found
his callers were concerned about
the future of their industry as they
were confronted with federal regula-
tions and had problems of their own.
They showed a desire to cooperate,
lie said, and produced some figures
showing advances in wages of sew
enty-three per cent. in three years
and that railroad haulage had gone
up from twenty-five to sixty per
cent, big increases being made in
rates for transportation from mine
to breaker. The Governor remarked
that what had impressed him was
that the cost for handling and dis
tribution to the homet of the con-
sumers had jumped, some places ;hs
much as dollar n ton. In this con-
nection he said that his visitors had
shown disposition not to be hasty
about putting their advance into ef-
feet until the whole coal situation
was gone into. -
3 The railroad rates, he pointed out,
had been regulated by the federal
government and the distribution
system had not been regulated. 1t
would seem from his remarks that
these two factors will be given con-
siderable attention as propositions
quite apart fro mthe operators end
of the business.
Governor William c. Sproul will
continue his personal inquiry into
conditions surrounding the proposed
advance in the price of anthracite
coal at Philadelphia to-day and to-
morrow. The Governor said before
leaving the city to-day tnat he eX-
pected to see a number of men in
terested in the coal situation and
that he was following up what he
had learned not only regarding pro-
duction, but freight rates and the
cost of final distribution.
There are many elements enter
ing into the coal proposition and l
intend to take up each one. No state
ment in regard to the matter can be
made at the present time" he said.