Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1920-03-12
125 HELD AS
COAL PLOTTERS
IN COURT MAY 4
Names of Those Indicted by
Federal Grand Jury With
held Until Arrested.
THREE LAWS INVOLVED

THREE LAWS INVOLVED
While capiases for the arrest OF
125 coal operators and miners, who
were indicted by the federal grand
jury late Thursday, were being made
out today, reports were current at
the federal building that officials of
the United Mine Workers of America
are among those indicted.
! Henry Warrum, attorney for the
| United Mine Workers, was in conference
with L Ert Slack, special assistant
! United States attorney. at the Federal
! building today. Officials refuse TO d.
/ vulge the names Of any Of those indicted,
stating that they would not become pub
/ lie until the men are arrested.
! The basic charge against all of those
indicted, Of whom two thirds are opera
/ tors, is reported 70 he conspiracy to
! limit the production of coal During the
coal strike last fall charges were made
I by federal officials that the union mine
/ leaders and the operators, in their joint
/ conferences, talked production and price
/ as well as the miners demand for in
/ creased wages.
MINERS OFFICIALS
NOW N EAST.
/ Officials of the United Mine Workers Of
/ America are In New York, where they
| have been endeavoring to negotiate n new
scale Of anthracite coal miners Among
( the officials OF the indianapolis head
/ quarters who are in New York are John
/ L. Lewis, president; William E. Green,
I secretary, and Ellis Searles editor Of the
/ United Mine Workers Journal
Among Indiana operators who have
/ been prominent in negotiations with
miners are Phil a. Penna Of Terre Haute,
/ secretary Of the Indiana Coal Operators
/ association; VIII Freeman, member Of
/ the wage scale committee of the Oper-
( ators, and Hugh Shirkie, mine owner.
( All Of those arrested under the indict-
ments will be held under bonds ranging
I from 5000 to $4,000. They viii be ar
/ raigned in federal court May f. Names
Of the men indicted will not be given ont
until after arrests are made.
/ The grand jury reported to Judge An
derson at 8 80 o'clock yesterday after
non after having been at work on a
/ sweeping coal probe for the last thres
months. One indictment was turned
over to the codrt in which 125 men. two
thirds OF whom were operators and the
rest miners, were charged with having
violated the Lever act and section 81 of
The Indictment included eighteen
/ counts under section 81 OF the criminal
/ code, and sections and of the Lever
act and section Of the act Of Oct. 22
/ 1910. This latter is an amendment OF
/ section 4 Of the Lever act and charges
! violation OF the act by conspiracy to
[ enhance the value Of coal by restricting
/ distribution, limiting production and
/ other means. Charges are made of ten
] Ill
/ from Aug. 10, 1917, the date Of the en-
/ actment Of the Lever act, until the
/ present.
/ CAN INFIICT
/ DOUBLE PENALTY.
| A violation OF section of the act Of
/ Oct %, 1919, provides a penalty of a
/ fine Of not more than 5000 and impris-
| onment for not more than two years, or
| both. fine of not more than $4,000
/ and imprisonment for not more tan
/ two years, or both, are the penalty Tor
violation Of either section 81 OF the
! criminal code or section of the. Lever
act.
/ Investigations Of the grand jury were
/ directed by Dan W. Simms, attorney Of
/ Lafayette, appointed assistant to the st
torney general to handle the coal strike
proceedings, and L. Ert Slack, former
I district attorney, who was succeeded by
/ Frederick VanNuys on Jan. 10. The coal
probe started when Mr.. Slack was dis
/ trict attorney and he was appointed spe.
cial assistant to carry on the investiga-
/ tions.
! OFFICIAL REPORTS
BEFORE JURORS.
The first panel Of the grand jury was
called into session Dec s. but the actual
/ Investigation began Dec. H. A mass Of
] evidence vUaG
/ fetal reports of coal organizations, the
/ federal trade commission, the Indiana
/ state department of mines, the Retail
/ Coal Merchants association, the Indiana
coal trade bureau and other coal trade
/ bureaus. Some 800 witnesses were ex-
amined
! The grand jury Investigations included
| coal operations in the sixteen coal
| producing states. All those included in
the indictments were said to be identi-
| fed with the coal industry in the central
competitive field, which includes the BIZ
luminous coal-producing states OF
Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, western Pennsyl-
vania and parts of Kentucky.
This field was affected by the coal
strike of last fall and the investigations
grew out Of charges brought during the
strike. Practically all contracts between
miners and operators are made In this
| field and agreements between miners and
operators in all parts of the countrS
are based on these contracts.
| CHARGES FIRST
| MADE BY SLACK
| During legal proceedings on charges
of violation of the federal injunction
made against striking miners in Deeein-
! her Attorney Slack issued-a written
| statement saying that operators and
miners were in a league to violate tha
Lever act and that operators had COM
bined and conspired to violate the anti
trust acts passed by congress
The grand jury was called by Judge
A. B. Anderson TO investigate the charges,
most of which were based on informa-
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