The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1919-11-20
DEMAND Of MINERS
TOO HUTCHINSON
Secretary Wilson Seeks a Com
promise in Coal Strike.
BOTH SIDES ARE ACCUSED
Says 3o-Hour Week and 90 Per Gene
Raise .impossibie--operstors Are
Told They Must Desert Their
Standpat Position

Washington. Nov. l5.-Dcmands Of
union miners for n 30hour week and
a 90 per cent Increase In wages are
impossibllities and ought 10 be elm
mated at the very beginning" Secre-
/ tary Wilson declared In opening the
conference between union officials and
/ operators called by him 20 settle the
differences existing In the coal indus
| try.
The stnndpnt position taken by the
| operators heretofore also Ii an impos-
sibillty." said the secretary. ripping
the table 20 emphasize his utternnces
Admitting that the Washington wage
agreement was stlll In force. the sec
Rotary declnred the people were not
"Shylocks" and DID not want 10 exact
"the technical provisions Of bond
when the conditions under which the
bond was made have changed"
Great World War a Reason.
Mr.. Wilson said he had called the
conference. mot simply because there
Is a labor dispute In the mining fields.
hut because the world II stiil passing
through n great crisis"
Reviewing previous negotiations AZ
Buffalo. Philadelphia and Washington.
the secretary said the failure to reach
an agreement had resulted In strikes
mot only In the central field. but also
In other fields where no demands Ind
been made upon the operators" Min
ers In the outlying fields. he added.
were not nj fault because OF their
failure 70 present demands. because u
was well known that the miners had
resented In negotiating a wage scale
and that 'nll objections had come from
the operators"
above all" said the secretary. we
are confronted with the fact that the
great mass Of people dependent on coal
In their everyday life are Interested In
reaching a settlement not only In the
central coal fields hut In all coal fields.
II N for that reason have asked yow
meeting here.
Prompt Action 10 Urged.
81 desire 10 recommend that wuep
scale committees representative ~ all
the fields proceed 10 negotiate an I'D
justment want TO point out to you
that prompt action In necessary. As
long as your troubles were local IN
character. only affecting n small part
Of communities. there was no dlsposi-
ton 20 hurry you. hut when your dis
putes take on magnitude that Affects
fh. ha At
large rs matter OF self-preservn.ton
are inslstent that you come to q st
Element
The miners conference demanded
a 30hour week. 90 per cent increase In
wages and some other things. II In
fair TO say 10 you now that 30-hour
week In the present Industrial condi-
tion Of the world is impossible In coal
mining. l realize the fact that miners
seldom have an opportunity TO work
30hOur week now when the maxi
mum Is - hours. II you make n maxi
mum Of 30 hours under the conditions
surrounding the mining industry II
means an effective working week Of
very much fewer hours tlrnn that"
The reason for this. the secretary ex-
planned was the seasonal demand for
coal In many districts and mine acci-
dents and breakdowns and the Impos-
sibility Of furnishing transportation
equipment to keep all OF the miners
working regularly.
Calls so Per Cent Raise Impossible.
mo one knows" continued the SC
rotary, ito what extent production
would be reduced by the Introduction
Of a six-hour working day. ana Ia
these times when we have not yet NJ
covered from the effects Of the wnr we
cannot afford to undertake the expert
ment Of reducing working hours to 1x
per day and five days per week."
Referring 10 demands OF the miners
for ca per cent increase In ~agee
the secretary said such an lncrease
Is an lmpossibillty. as II would give
the miners wages out of properties to
those In other induSfries