The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1920-07-30
INDUSTRIAL WAR
IN v virginia
Question Is Whether All.
! Mine Workers Shall
Be Organized

~ fH1 Assoc,Asnn psrra
WILLIAMSON. W. Va. July &c.
An industrial conflict u being waEed
betwsen mine operators and lendara
81 tho United Mine Workers over the
question whether all the bituminous
coal miners In West Virginia shall be
organized as union men.
The miners leaders also demand
thai the scale OF pay now IN use IN
the KanawhA field be adopted in the
hinEo county hltuminous field here.
Vhnfiep y. keenoy. tprealdent of
district number "a of the United Mine
Workers. Who IL In command Of the
union forces. explains the Hituation
here by saying:
''nhere arc approximately $4,000
ormniHed miners IN West virginia
and $4,000 who nave NOT yet been
organized Thrsh ~unorKanized mon
are mostly In the counties OF Mingo,
McDowsil.S Logan. Raleigh, Mercer
and Va, all In the southern part
BaniHe these miners Ia well under
WI and we expect TO have Il COM
pleted before the snow flies.
The men and the operators could
get together and settle this thing 10
II we're not for the mine guards.
They are depriving the men OF their
constltutional rights and that brings
4NtaN NA1h1NNs Why 4 unUtlnNHnu
the sherin OF Pike county has depu-
tiEed some 500 men and the coal
companies are paying them. while de-
tectIves are on the border between
Mlngo ana Mcdowell counties with
rifles n machine runs.
What would happen II an attempt
were made 70 operate the mines here
with non-unIo meng l wouldn't like
10 say. But In their present temper,
NnUnn mar ma uAf - Aa TaAlaA wulgh
Right now this situation is n powder
mill. yThe men have no complaint
when the law IA enforced by the
proper uftsrities. But they Will OPP
pose to the last, the use Of private
armies enlisted by the coal SOM
panies."
The Other Side,
Harry Oimstead OF the Coal OPP
orators Association OF Williamson,
gave the other side Of the contro-
veray.
THE United Mine Workers want to
organise their field.' said Mr.. Ohm
stead. and then move on to the
larger and more important fields of
Mcdowell, Wyoming. Mercer counties,
and what mineB have not been or
CANNED In Raleigh. These r the
last important u~norganized .bitumi-l
nous coa fields in tho country and,
with these orRanixed, the union will
control the hltuminous production OF
the United States. They will then be
In a position to enforce the demands
formulated at the Cleveland conyen-
tion last year, and which they could
not enforce III the general coal strike
last year. because u mines in this
part OF the state wore operating and
our men stuck to their posts. We
saved the country from suffering then
because this field WINS not organized.
The KanaWha scale which the
union demands Is less than the scale
v are now paying and ! don't know
that h question of treatment or
working conditions has entered into
the controversy. II Is just n question
of the United Mine Workers %unioniz-
ing the mines. with all hat such n
course carries. We object To- that,
because for n matter of 20 years. we
have enjoyed peace and quiet mere in
this field. and l may say that be-
cess OF this field possible.
mo Uuion SENTIMENT"
"An differences have been settled
by Operators and miners, and settled
satisfactorily. / know Of some union
men who have come in here from
2 union fields but they left Just as soon
ns the union nrgnnizers anne In last
spring. 1 don't helieve there Is any
basic union sentiment In the field. be-
cause the men have always made
good money.
The mines are among the best in
the state. We have no gas and con
s%equently no eKploHions and the lying
conditions in the valley are good. o.
THE Baldwin-F elts detectives.
about whom one hears no much are
not employed 20 guard property and
IN no senso = they mine guards. In
fact there IL not a mine guard In
Miugo county. These men are EN-
ploytd by the companies IA. any cor
poraiion which does not have it's own
intelligence department employs such
men,"
The Mingo district produced last
year about 5000. 900 tons Of coaf
worth about $4,000 900 with the ioss
OF only six lives according to j. W.
81. Clair. state mine inspector for
that district.