The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-02-26
COAL OPERATORS
ARE INDICTED
Miners Also Charged With
-, Forcing Up Coal 80
Prices
226 DEFENDANTS !.
ARE ENUMERATED


ers Conspired TO Deceive the Public by
Preaching Shortage aud Urging Pur-
chases at High Prices.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind, Feb. Geo
operation between coal operators and min
ers in six states to force high prices for
soft coal by. restricting production was
charged yesterday by a federal grand jury
indictment returned in court heres Two
hundred and twenty-six defendants, in
Guiding 127 operators and miners and 90
operators associations or companies,
were accused of conspiracy to violate the
Sherman antitrust law. The defendants
live in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ken
lucky, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Judge A. b. Anderson, who received
the Indictment, set May. 8 for arraignment,
and in issuing capiases for arrest of the
defendants he fixed the bond of each at
$4,000. sr
Prominent operators, including Thomas
Il. Brewster, Edward c. Searlcs, Jackson
Dering, Phil penna and William X.
Kavanaugh, and high officials of the
United Mine Workers union, 1ncluding its
president, John L, Lewis. and secretary.
William Green, were among the defend
ants. The National Coal association was
among the corporate defendants.
The Indictment covers specifically the
last three years in the coal industry, and
follows an investigation that has been
conducted almost continuously the last is
months by agents of the federal depart
ment of Justice. The charge is made by
| the Indictment that at various joint con-
! terences, the miners and operators agreed
| to be partners in mining and distributing
hsE i fF1F
| in plans to increase wages. increase prices,
create a shortage and otherwise limit pro-
| duction and distribution. Creation of tic-
titious market prices and the prOvocation
| of miners strikes by operators also was
charged by the Indictment.
| Most of the persons indicted as individ-
uals in the new bin were among those
named as defendants in the indictment re-
| turned some time ago charging violation
/ of the Lever food and fuel control act by
/ an alleged conspiracy to curtail produc-
/ ton and force high prices. Trial of that
| case had been postponed indefinitely, and
| it was said unoficially that it might be
| dropped in view Of the new charges.
| The charge Is made that the agreements
entered into between the operators 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 in
| creases of wages to miners should be
added to the price of coal; that competi-
| ton among operators should be eiimi
mated; 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 mines.
| The operators established a uniform
| cost accounting system for the operation
| of the mines. it is charged. and by agree
| ment employed a greater number of miners
| than was reasonably necessary to operate
the mines properly.
| Creation of high and fictitious market
prices for coal was brought about by tho
| operators, according to the Indictment
| by an agreement following suspension OF
l the national fuel regulations in February
| 1919, not to contract for the future deliy
| cry of coal and not to sell coal unless they
/ were able to obtain a price equal to OF
| above the price that had been fixed by
| the national fuel administration prior tC
| its suspension.
The indictment charges that the Ma
| tional Coal association is engaged il
marking out zones into which coal may
\ be shipped and that supervision of pro.
| duction and prices in each zone enables
operators to govern the supply and prizes
of fuel
The indictment charges that in the, plan
to increase the price of coal the operators
/ refused to sell fuel to any one not mem
| Der of the Retail Coal Dealers associa
tiOn and allied organizations and thai
| they refused to sell coal to any one fol
| purposes beyond their immediate needs
thus preventing the storage of coal fol
| future use.
| Another plan for increasing fuel prices
| 1t Is charged, was to sell it through sales
Iagencies which were separate in nam,
only from the operating and producin.
companies. Profits were thereby in
creased, the Indictment says.
4 The operators also created the spot