Norwich bulletin., 1919-11-12

miners nave contended throughout the controversy that the wage contract has expired.
 Political Move on Part of Operators.
 Tt was neat little political move on the part of the operators" said MT. Searles. They believed we would accept their proposal and in so doing, admit that the Washington wage agreement was still operative. The miners, however, accepted the offer of Secretary Wilson to meet him in Washington next Friday and merely wired Air. Brewster to that effect. AL so Mi. Wilson's message was timed one hour earlier in fling than MT. Brewster's. We have maintained all along that the Washington contract died with the war activities and that at present the mine workers have no contract with the operators of the central competitive field."
 IL was said at the international headquarters of the organization here that practically all of the copies of the order. which called off the nation wide bituminous coal strike. were in the mails before the time limit set by Judge Anderson, six o'clock this eve ning.t The recall order previously had been submitted to the court. who characterized it as good faith ef- fort to comply with the courts man date. This was after the general com mittee Of the miners, composed of in ternational officials. district presidents and members of the executive board and scale committee, had been in ses- sion approximately IS hours and at 40 this morning decided to comply With the mandate of the court
 After the general committee, which went into session at two clock this i afternoon as policy committee had decided to accept the invitation of
 Secretary Wilson and refuse that of MT. Brewster. the committee adjourn | ed at o'clock and many of the mem- l bers began to make preparations for
 their homeward trips those going to l Washington for the Friday meeting
 making railroad reservations for the | east. ] The Wilson invitation was not i'm | ited to the scale committee of the mine 1 workers as was the Brewster pro- posal for a conference. William Green, l secretary treasurer of the union. ex- plained that every district in the United States would be represented al the conference Friday, from the state
 of Washington to Maryland. The min
 er> who will attend the meeting will
 include the internatioal officers. dis trict presidents or whenever the dis | tricts choose to send, members of the
 executive board and of the scale com
 mittee, practically the same makeup
 as the general committee, which has
 been meeting here.
 Preparing a Writ of Error.
 Although the strike has been called Off court action in the strike case has
 not been completed by any means
 The miners attorneys are preparins
 their writ of error with a view to ap.
 pealing the case to the United State.
 circuit court of appeals and expec
 to file their petition for this steI
 within the next two or three days.
 The attorneys stated that they ex.
 pected' to carry the case to the highes
 tribunal of the country if the govern.
 ment is upheld in all lower courts il
 its contention
 From the standpoint of the govern,
 ment the miners themselves are no
 absolved from further obedience to tn,
 courts injunction through withdrawa
 Of the strike order and unless the cas,
 is dismissed, injunction Writs serve,
 on more than sixty of the United Min,
 Workers officials are returnable befor,
 December ?.
 There was much specuAationy to. night as to how the notice of with
 drawal of the strike order would b. received by the miners in the fields In some quarters it was believed tha the men would return almost as whole on orders from their uniol heads. However there were indica tions that in some districts a feelin, against obeying the order to resum , work existed.
 Patriotic devotion to the govern
 ment and American ideals and insti
 tution% caused the United Mine Work
 CTS of America to comply with the or : der of the United States court |
 withdraw the strike order. accordin to a statement made tonight by Eli Searles, editor of the United Min I Workers Journal. The statement fol lows:
 a Statement By Mine Workers Journa = When the officials of the Unite ] Mine Workers of America announce
 that they would comply with the or e der of the United States court an d obey it's mandate, they simply follow e ed the = oric policy of the union ( ,. patriotic devotion to the governmer n and American ideals and institution = The United Mine Workers will nc nght tne government. It is their gov d ernment just as it is the governmer e of every other citizen. It is their gov r, ernment just as it is the governmer f of the coal operators
 y "So far as their dispute with tt e coal operators is concerned, the mir - CTS contended all along and still cor
 tend that their cause is just. and ths e they are entitled to higher wages an if better working conditions. So long f - 1t was controversy between the mir n CTS and the operators. the miners wei # determined to wage their battle f, = the things which they believed the e and now they were entitled to. e But when the government entere n the case and proceeded to make :, fight against the miners. the entij e situation was changed. They felt th; t the government was wrong in takir - this position. and they contested in Il # courts the right of the government
 do so. But the court ruled again n them and laid down the law. and il l. miners accepted the mandate of fl = court because they are good Amer - cans who believe in law and orde n and who always have insisted on law 1t ful and orderly methods of procedur l. There is nothing new in this att n tude' of the coal miners. In every ii l. stance where Americanism was nee, it ed. in eycry emergency where Amer n .op f.fffzans hoT To onr,a tn tba n;1