The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-12-04
CONTEMPT CHARGES FILED

United States government today again invoked the powers of the federal courts in an effort to end the strike of 400, 900 bituinmou coal miners of the country.
 Information charging criminal con tempt of court was filed in the United States district court here today against S4 international and district officers of the United Mine Workers of America named in the court injunctfons issuad immediately after the strike vas called. and capiases requiring their appearance to answer the charges were issue9 late today. It k alleged that all cf the of feers have ccaspired to keepyrhe strike in force and thus have 3lolated the terms of the injuncf esa
 Acting President John L. Lewis Sec retary- Treasurer William Green, Percy Tetlow, statistician. and Ellis Searles, editor of the United Mine Workers Journals. the only officers of the or ganization in Indianapolis were noti- fled of the action and agreed to report in court tomorrow to furnish bond, fixed at s1O,0oo, by Federal Judge A. B. Anderson.
 HEARINGS TUESDAY
 Other officials in the jurisdiction of the federal court here who include Edward SlTetL ana W llifhfn uitCHtn VI ohic Haute, officials of district No. Il of the mine workers. will be served as soon as possible, government officials stated. and all will be required to appear at 10 o'clock next Tuesday morning for hear ings.
 Dan w Simms of LaFayette, Ind, special United States district attorney in charge of achievements of the injunction. stated today that the proceedings against .txft k, k~7 and that removal proceedings to obtain the appearance In court here of officers who reside outside of Indiana will be instituted at once.
 Mir. Simms announced that proceedings against officers of two local unions at Clinton, Ind, also would be instituted very soon, charging them specifically with violations of the injunction by pay ment of strike benefits to miners. Local No. e011 officials, he declared. had paid benefots by check, attempting to camou- flage'' the real nature of the action by stating that they were for overpaymeut of dues. Local No. g. he said, drew one check for $S00 and distributed cur .ency among it's members.
 In connection with the issuance of strike benefits, MT. Simms again del clared that the injunction extends to any person whether or not a miner who in
 
 that banks which honored checks drawn against a strike benefit fund were liable to prosecution.
 ONLY BEGINNING
 Mir. Simms stated that the citations against the men named today were only a start in the prosecutions against al- legged violators of the injunction and that the action might be expected soon
 Tt is the governments purpose" Mir. Simms said. Ito continue prosecution as fast as evidence can be prepared and filed with the court against all officers of every local who are conspiring by concerted effort to keep the strike in force Refusal to return to work, If a miner knows of the injunction and the subsequent order of the union officials resembling the strike order, constitutst violation of the injunction. and the gov ernment will proceed on this theory. re- gardless of whether officers are guilty of some specific act of encouragement of the strike.
 "The government waited patiently while the conference was going on in Washington, hoping that some plan for averting the impending disaster conse- ouent on the shortage of fuel, would be evolved After the conference closed the government directed the operators to re- open their mines and advance wages 4 pr cent. The government again waited patiently for some action on the part or the miners looking toward resumption of work. The officials not only failed to make any efforts to bring about an end to the strike, but in numerous state- ments to representatives of the Asso- ciated Press and newspapers, encouraged its continuance. During every moment of this period of waiting all officers of the union have violated the injunction and the government has exhausted it's