Evening star., 1921-02-26
SAYS INDICTMENTS
ARE DRIVE ATLAbOR
Federation Official Declares
U. S. Is Party to Conspiracy,
If There Is One.

The executive council of the Amer
today to consider the action Of the
government in prosecuting officials of
the United Mine Workers OF America
for alleged violation OF the sherman
anti-trust act
! Before the meeting began William
Green. secretary of the Miners Union.
and one of those indicted yesterday at
indianapolis. issued formal state
ment declaring that if the union otti-
Gals were guilty of conspiracy. the
government itself is a party thereto"
because the miners had been SUBJECT
10 government regulation and control
ior the last three years
Matthew VOL. vice president of the
American Federation of Labor. de-
clared the indictment of the mine
union oiilcerS was "A part of the
uon-wide propaganda to destroy the
trade union molement, as the action
struck at the very foundation of the
jprIncIplcs OF collective bargaining.
MIR. Ireene's Statement.
Mr.. Green said all agreements made
with coal operators by The union
I officers were made "unoer i--e ----~-
non and with the approval OF the
Federal turl Administrator.
PRODUCTION Was Speeded up during
the war under the impetus OF the
| government he said. increases IA
Wages were m.ue unuer tue direction
| OF ,nc ruel administration and the
selling price o. eoai WAS nNed py IL.
ih a way II regulated wages and
wnen an increase WAS GRANTED II
stipulated what increase IN seiiinS
! pfice should take place in order to
| apSorD an increase IN wages.
IneSe indictments seem 40 bc the
reward the miners are receiving Tor
putting forth special efforts aurIns Ia 4
war ia oluer 10 increase production
sThe bltumlnous coal commission III
Its award set fortn the toIiowi4.S. W 2
nope that there VIII be declne IN m
cost OF iivins ia the neXt lwo years. al 4
We realize tnat the miners hdNe borL'S
an lncr. ase above tnelr auvajiCe -
wages and consider the possIul- Iu,G
ue..i;ic al living costs as an offset ~
these losses
This - proof that the miners was !
did not keep pace with tue lIcl ease 's
t..e cost ol n,.Bg uuriIs ,ne MAI
Would Block DiIii.v nam aili.
Biocking tne Biiins.lan ban. re.
StrlctInS imnIiyratIGa - per =, ~
tne Number Oh aileIiS ui .-Ca i,..l.v.-
aiity III the couhiry IN IslU, Viii u
attempted by orSan4zea ldopr. in Keep.
ing with The proSisI sIhi adop1ca uy a
CohIerelce of IiIerna IiUil..I o.I!cial.
LABOR viii Seek 10 Substitute "a
johnson bili which vIrtua.4s Dioniu.
immigration Tor d year. tor me otn
measure. Tne DliIingnaln bilt Wa.
passed by the Senate, and an agree
ment on it by Senate and House CO. =
terees is now pending. a.
Legislative representatives Of o.s
Sanlzed labor also have been instruct
ed to press their efforts to obtain 4
congressional investigation into coLs
dltions in the strike area in West
Virginia.
Judge A. b. Anderson. who received
the indictment. set May . for arraien-
ment. and in issuing capiases for arrest
of the defendants he fixed the bond of
each at $4,000. Names of all defend
ants. except twelve, Were made public
by District Attorney Van Nuys.
Prominent operators, including Thomas
T. Brewster. Edward {. Searls. jackson
Deerng, Phil Penna and William J.
kavanaugh. and high officials of the
/ nited Nine Workers Union, including
its president. John L. Lewis, and secre-
tary. William Green, We're among the
defendants. The National Coal Asso-
citation was among the corporate de-
PENDANTS
The indictment covers specifically the
last three years in the coal industry, anG
follows an investigation that has beer
conducted almost continuously the last
eighteen months by agents of the federal
Department of Justice.
The charge is made that the agree
ments entered into between the opera
tors and miners provided that coal
should not be sold at any time for a
price that did not yield a profit to the
operator: that increases of wages td
miners should be added to the price OF
coal; that competition among operators
should be eliminated: that no coal should
be sold below the cost of production, and
that the means of increasing cost and
production in the price of coal should
be by closing and keeping idle the
minsA
The operators established uni
form cost accounting system for the
operation of the mines, it is charged
and by agreement employed a greater
number of miners than was reason
ably necessary TO operate the mixes
properly.
Creation of high and fictitious mar
ket prices" for coal was brought
about by the operators. according to
the Indictment, by an agreement fol-
lowing suspension of the national
fuel regulations in February. 1919. not
to contract for the future delivery
of coal and not to sell coal unless
they were able TO obtain a price
equal to or above the price that had
been fixed by the national fuel ad-
miniStration.
AssOciatfOn's Plans.
Regarding the activities of the Ma
tional Coal Association, the indict-
ment charges that this organiza tion is
eHSdSeu IN IndThlHS oul zones INTO
which coal may be shipped and that
reports production and prices in
each zone enable operators to govern
the supply and price of fuel.
The indictment charges that i'm the
plan to increase the price of coal the
operators refused to sell fuel to any one
not a member of the Retail Coal Dealers
Association and allied organizations and
that they refused to sell coal to any one
for purposes beyond their immediate
needs. thus preventing the storage OF
coal for future use.
Another plan for increasing fuel prices,
it is charged, was to sell ii through sales
agencies which were separate in Mans
only from the operating and producin
company. Profits were thereby increa:
ed the indictment says.
The opera tors also created the spot
market, the indictment charges, by
agreeing to sell coal only for immediate
delivery at prices agreed upon at the
time of delivery. In carrying out their
plan to cause a scarcity of coal to
broadcast during 1920 articles pointing
and urged people to purchase.
avoid deliveries on contracts also were
cited in the indictment. 1t charged
contract for weekly deliveries would be
made contingent upon three-days-a-
week operation of mine and that the
operator, purposely closing the mine so
ii would not be operated for the three
days, would then refuse delivery for
that week. Further, it charged that the
ip SuhSeOuent week would