Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-12-21
PALMER DECLARES
OGLE' s STATEMENT
ENTIRELY FALSE
Attorney General Says Coal
Operators Agreed Generally
To Terms of President Will
sons Letter.


Washington, Dee. 20. - Attorney
General Palmer issued q document re-
ferring to testimony given yesterday
before the senate coal investigating
committee by Alfred Nj. Ogle, chair
man of the executive committee of the
coal operators. alleging that the attor-
ney general had suggested to the OPP
orators a compromise with the miners
involving more than / a per cent Wagqe
increase, before the settlement nego-
tiations between the government and
the miners began. Ogle told the COM
mittee that the operators considered
this proposed compromise "a cowardly
and dastardlv surrender of the rights
of the public and the government"
After quoting this portion of Ogle's
testimony, Mr., Palmer's statement
said:
There is not q word of truth in
that statement"
Continuing. Mr.. Palmer said:
some difference of opinion has
been expressed in the newspapers as
to whether the offer of the operators
of a 20 per cent increase in wages had
been conditioned upon an increase in
the price of coal. Mr.. Ogle came to
me on Friday, December 5, to deliver
written copy of the offer which had
been made by the scale committee In
the Joint conference with the miners.
told the committee that the govern
ment had not the slightest intention of
making any compromise of any kind
or character and proposed to stand
squarely upon the position it had all
ready taken as announced several
times by the president and myself. The
operators had offered 90 per cent in
crease to the men and | asked for in
formation as to whether the offer was
ing raised and whether, as a matter
of fact the industry could stand AM
increase of wages beyond IA per cent
without raising the price of coal
''They replied that their offer hadl
been made. contingent upon a read.
1uStment of the government price of
coal and that in their opinion a IA per
cent Increase In wages was all that
could be absorbed by the operators. II
made it perfectly clear TO them that
I war not concerned with ths merits
of the controversy between the opera
tors and the miners and that | was
simply enforcing the law and pro-
posed to do so to the end This wasl
the entire extent of the conversation.
There was not one word in 1t to sug-
gest that | was proposing any com
promise settlement or adjustment off
the matter.
"As for the testimony OF Ogle and
others that the presidents plan Is notl
to the operators, / can
only say that in every statement that
the president made upon the matterl
he proposed a commission to investi- |
gate and determine the matter in dis |
pute and that after each statement
was published the operators commit |
tee promptly said they agreed to the
plan. on Friday, Decem |
Der 5. the committee told me that theyI
were at all times heartily in favor of
arbitration OF the matters in dispute
by commission to be appointed byI
the president, on Sunday December
z, | read the presidents statement to
Mr. Butler, their counsel, mot being
able to get Mr. Ogle) and Mr.. Butler
stated that it was perfectlv satisfac-
tory. When the presidents letter and
the memorandum briefly embodying
his suggestions were published at In
dianapolis on the following Tuesday,
Thomas i. Brewster, chairman of the
scale committee of the operators of
the central competitive field. an
nounced at st. Louis the proposal met
with the unqualified approval of the
operators. and that the mines would
be ready to open as soon as the men
accepted the plan and returned tol
work. The men have accepted the II
plan; they have returned to work |
production is now taking place on a |
larger scale than In any month of De- |
cember for many years past. After all |
this. It would be an amazing repuda- |
ton OF their own statements If the op-
orators do not acquiesce in the plan
which their official representatives,
have repeatedly agreed to-"