The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1921-03-04
indianapolis Jury Holds 0per-
ators and Union Chiefs
Under Anti Trust Act.
WAGE COLLISION CHARGED
Joint Conferences, 1t Is Alleged,
Agreed to Add Increase to Workers
to Price of Coal-indictment
Cover Three Years.


five counts, charging conspiracy tC
violate the Sherman Antitrust law
was reported to Judge A. L. Anderson
by the Federal Grand Jury agalns
226 bituminous coal operators, Goa
operators association, coal mininl
companies and coal miners All the
individual defendants except twelve
are already under Indictment OF
charges of conspiracy to violate the
Lever act.
The names of the twelve individuals
under indictment for the first time
are Withheld pending their arrests.
Bonds for the defendants under in
dictment were fixed at $4,000 each.
The arraignment was set for May ,,
which is the first day Of the May term
of court, and after the Indictment was
reported the Grand Jury was dismissed
until such time in April as Frederick
Vannuys, United States District Attor-
ney, shall decide to hold short ses-
sion for the purpose of cleaning up va
rious cases pending,
The National Coal Association is one
of the corporations indicted. Many Of
the coal operating companies In In
diana are in the list as well as leading
operators. The miners named include
John L. Lewis, President of the United
Mine Workers of America; William
Green, Secretary treasurer, and other
union men who were indicted the first
time.
The indictment charges in the first
count, restraint of trade; in the sec
Ond, restraint of commerce in the
third, restraint of trade and COM
merce; in the fourth, conspiracy to
monopolize and in the Interchangeable
the Sherman Antitrust law.
The indictment covers the past three
years and goes into a detailed history
of the bituminous coal industry and of
the methods by which, it is charged,
the operators and miners have worked
together to restrict the production and
of bituminous coal.
The charge is made that at various
joint conferences in the last ten years
it was agreed by the miners and the
operators to be partners in mining,
production and distributing coal, and
that they would aid one another in
plans to increase wages, increase
prices, to create a shortage, and 10
otherwise limit production and dis
tribution.
1t is charged that the agreements en-
tered into between the miners ard
The operators provided that coal
should not be sold at any time for a
price that did not yield profit to the
operator; that increases of wages to
he miners should be added to tile
he operators should be eliminated,
md that means of increasing cost of
production in the price of coal be
losing and keeping idle the coal
mines.
1t is charged further that the oper-
ltors established a uniform cost ac-
system for the operation of |
he mines, and that by agreement n :
greater number of miners we're EN-
,loyed than we're reasonably necessary |
to operate the mines 1t is
alleged that the agreements entered |
ntO at the conferences between the |
miners and the operators have been |
continuous from one conference to an
,ther up to the filing of the indict- !
nent.
II is charged that in accordance F.
With this recommendation strike |
rider was issued by Lewis and other /
Ulcers of the United Mine Workers
# America on October Is, 1919.
The indictment alleges that follow
ng the suspension of the fuel regula- /
ions in February, 1919, the operators /.
greed not to contract for the future 4
delivery Of coal and not to sell coal
Inless they were able to obtain a price
hat had been fixed by the Fuel Adj