Evening star., 1921-04-24
Idle Coal Mines; Threaten
Fuel Famine Next Winter

Sumer the case or coal Is not on a
footing with the cases of clothing
and other commodities where re-
fusal to buy resulted in substan-
tial price reductions. 1t is pos
sible for a man to wear his old
clothes. but he can't burn his old
coal. Putting aside the equation
of idle industries, a certain definite
amount Of coal is necessary for
commercial and domestic purposes.
the amount being variable only
according to the mildness or sever
lty of winter weather. The
clothing manufactures and dealer.
for example. knew that business
lost as a result OF the buyers
strike was very largely business
lost forever. The mine owners and
coal dealers on the contrary, know
that business lost now will in
large part be made up by increased
business later on. and very likely
at prices that will more than COM
penSate for present loss of profits.
So the coal trade is in position to
sit tight and let the strike" run
its course.
1t works out as A possibility,
therefore. that when the coal year
ends next spring the consumer will
find that he has paid out an equal
ly large sum for a smaller amount
of coal. and that there will have
been periods when he desperately
needed coal and didn't have it.
The coal man. on the other hand.
may be as well off financially as
he would have been had the mines
been kept in operation through the
spring and summer He may be as
we'll off financially, for the time
being, but his day of reckoning
will be very much nearer at hand
For. if the consuming public
finds that the coal man cannot be
brought to time through a buy
ers' strike" as other lines of busi-
ness can, the consuming public is
going to find some other way to
handle him.
X y X X
Next to the consumer. the coal
miner promises to be most hurt by
the present situation and the Sc
rious condition which it threatens.
Through the exertion of organized
strength the miners have fortified
themselves with a high wage. but
their wage isn't high enough to
make possible that by working one
to three days a week their fam
lilies can be adequately supported.
next fall and winter the demand
for coal will exceed the capacity
of the regular miners to produce
it, with the result that outside
labor will be drafted for the mines.
So that the yearly earnings of the
all-year-round miners will be less,
probably, than if they had been
kept steadily employed at lower
wage throughout the months.
Some mine owners have sought
to justify present coal prices by
pointing to the high wages of their
men, but the public isn't inclined
to show much patience for such an
argument. There is a very broad
and general acceptance of the view
tHdS Tie IHlHcIS CdIlflOl De expected
to accept reduction in wages for
the purpose Of stimulating buying
until the mine owners and dealers
are willing to reduce their profits
to the same end.
PRICES of .bituminous coal have
been reduced to greater extent
thanThave the prices of anthracite,
butt belief is strongly implanted
in the public mind that the prices
of both still are too high and with
out any just relation to the costs
of production. The public refuses
to believe there is any good reason
why. coal should not come down
along with other commodities. And
so long as prices do not come down,
every order for every ton of coal
thaLis placed will be placed with
relustanee and resentment.
No man is wise enough to foresee
what the outcome will be. But
it doesn't require prophet to
6ortell that if conditions result in
serious coal famine next winter,
the coal trade is going to have a
mighty, volume of public wrath to
reckon with.
Copyright. 1921, By The Washington Star