Republican farmer., 1919-11-21
OWNERS AND MINERS
 WRANGLE SHARPLY
 OVER AGREEMENT !
Would Not Accept Sec retary Wilson's Plan of Considering a Ma tiOnal Scale - Settle ment in Central Com petitive Field.

Washington, Nov. 15-After a long and acrimonious Wrangle today, representatives of the coal operators and min CTS in conference here, agreed to take up settlements of wages and labor conditions in the cen- tral competitive field after they had failed to agree on considering a national scale at first proposed.
 When faced with the refusal of the mine operators to make an agree mnt on a national basis President Lewis of the mine workers and Phil. H. Penna for the operators finally agreed to proceed with negotiations covering the central competitive field
 Adjourning the general conference, Secretary Wilson then summoned the wage scale committees of the central competitive field to meet at 2:3O D. m today to negotiate a new wage agree ment.
 Operators from districts outside the central competitive field will nleet at the same hour to determine whether the agreement arrived at by the wage scale committees of the central com petitive field will be accepted as a basis for the contracts in the outlying districts.
 President Lewis sharply denied charges of bad faith over the coal strike and the negotiations and Wm. Green, secretary-treasurer of the Mine 
 Secretary Wilson's statement of Fri day that a sixty per cent. increase in coal miners wages was impossible Green said that the Federal govern ment should see that the miners got that much increase to allow them an American standard of living.
 Speaking on behalf of operators outside the central competitive field, F. W. Lukens, president of the Southwestern Interstate Coal Opera tors association, proposed returning to the old policy of allowing the basic scale to be negotiated by the opera tors and miners in the central com petitive fields.
 Because outlying operators are not organized, MT. Lukens said that no time should be wasted, but that pub lie interest in an early settlena ent makes it desirable to continue as in the past.
 Mir. Lukens' statement immediately brought from MT. Lewis a charge of bad faith.
 Charging that the operators in the outlying districts had led miners and the public to believe that they were ready to negotiate with the miners, MT. Lewis exclaimed:
 "Ye gods, is there no more good faith left in man? Are the mine workers of America to be the ever lasting victims of bad faith on the part of the people with whom they have to deal?"
 After announcing his acceptance of the secretary's suggestion, MT. Lewis said:
 q want to express my utter amazement at the attitude of the coal operators as stated by their spokes- man, MT. Lukens. If there is any one thing which has crystalized pub lie sentiment against the miner oper- ators 1t has been the oft-reiterated cry that the outlying operators had not been presented with demands by their workers although they stood ready and willing to negotiate a wage scale.
 "We stand here with spotless robes. ready to negotiate a scale in the vari- ous states outside the central compe titive fields. MT. Lukens proposed to the governor of Missouri that they were ready to negotiate with dthe miners in Missouri, but Governor Gardiner wired me in protest, and the governors of West Virginia and other states have done likewise.