The Washington herald., 1921-11-03
STRIKE
MAY Be FORCED
BY OPERATORS
Pittsburgh Association
Votes to Discontinue
"Check Off,"
LEADERS OPPOSE u
| WALKOUT PLANS
Thousands Have Quit
Mines in Middle West
Districts.

PITTSBURGH, Nov, z.-froDaoiy
meaning a strike of the Western
Pennsylvania bituminous coal min
ers. . result which officials of the
mine workers union with only 15.-
900 of their 10000 men employee
are desperately trying to avert, the
Pittsburgh Coal Producers Associa-
tion has voted to discontinue the So
called check on
The action OF the coal operators
was communicated to Robert s. Glib
bons. president of District No. 8.
United Mine Workers Of America.
who announced that no comment
would be made on the coal operators
decision until tomorrow.
President Gibbons and other union
officials made no secret before the
operators acted that they were
striving to avert a strike at this
time. when only about IS per cent
Of the union membership Is en-
ployed.
Enforcement Is Delayed.
CHICAGO, Nov. with 2L00o
miners on strike and reports coming
in from many Middle West districts
Of other protest walkouts, coal op-
orators have decided not to enforce
the Federal injunction granted by
Federal Judge a. B. Anderson i'm
mediately and to wait until Novem-
ber 10 before taking any action.
It 10 expected. then, that the btu
minous operators In all parts of the
country will agree on one plan. and
that IL will be determined IL an at
tempt is to be made to wage a fight
against the check-off system-"the
heart of the United Mine Workers
of America"-or to submit to 1t
sndsrss the agreemene IL sasck since
1897.
Thousands Of Miners Ont.
Between $4,000 and 2o.eoe coal
miners are out at Terre -Hsute, Ind, :,
in protest against the Injunction.
District officials. while declaring
that they are hopeful of stemming
the tide, say that 10000 will have
left the mines by the end of the
week.
Mining operations in two Ohio
counties have been partially sus-
pended following the protest walk
out of 1000 workers.
Three large operations near Nell
sonville. and smaller mines at Beau
mopt, Kimberley and Miifeld closed.
The strike was reported spreading
to other parts Of the Hooking VAL
ley district
Between 500 and 500 coal miners
refused to work in the mines at
Centralia. ILL.,, and at Eldorado as
a protest against the injunction,
Union officials on receipt Of orders
from President Harrington to put
them back at work, expressed hone
Of being able to get them back in
the mines.
Operators Advised to Wait.
Miners in the extreme end of
District IL in Indiana. have started
walkout against the Injunction
About 100 miners quit at Newburg.
Ind. 400 at Princeton. Ind, and
1000 more are expected to strike
in forty other mines in that terri
tory.
Illinois operators have decided
to thresh this question out Noyem-
Der 10 and it was stated by Don
Rose, attorney for the Pittsburgh
Coal Company, a big operator in
the Pennsylvania fields, that the
operators in those districts would
probably take the same stand
Operators in all of the fifteen other
States will be advised to wait nm
til a concerted plan is laid out II
was stated.
On the decision Of the operators
IT is believed, depends largely
whether a general coal strike is
to take place, although such an
event is deprecated.
View Strike M Calamity.
1t is pointed out that a pro.
ionged coal strike at this season
of the year would be as great a
calamity as a railroad strike and
government action would doubtless
be taken before the big mines of
West Virginia, Pennsylvania and
Illinois were allowed to close
Miners have been working two and
three days a week because of the
depression in industry and no
orders for coal. Union finances are
low, it was stated at national head
quarters in Indianapolis. Operat-
ing companies have not been maxi
ing normal profits and are inst,
beginning to hope for a normal
industrial demand.