The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-21
GREATEST STRIKE IN HISTORY APPEARS ID BE TAKING SHAPE.
Coal Industry in Such Shape Miners Barely Making Ends Meet on Short Work
 ing Schedule
By HARDEN COLFAN Special Correspondent of The AKe-Herald. Copyright, 1921. by The Age-Herald.)

(Copyright, 1921. by The -Herald.)
 Washington, August SpociaD A labor strike greater than any the United States has ever expected be- fore Is taking form in the troubled situation confronting the coal indus try today
 Mines are running from two to three days a week; production Is be- low the 1913 level: actual earnings of mine workers generally are close to the bare subsistence point though rates of pay are higher than ever be- fore, and the country appears to be fairly well stocked with the fuel It needs. The market Is stagnant and has been foN months. Indications are that 1t will remain so for months to come, although there may be a pick up of some size in the late fall. Prices are low at the mines, high in the re- tail yards.
 Such are conditions facing the coal industry In their present situation both the operator and the miner have deflated their wartime profits. Neither is making any money. Neith- CT can afford to reduce the price of what he sells-unless business gem erally picks up in vigorous fashion. And neither the operator nor the miner Is going to take a loss even if a nationwide coal strike has to come when the present wage scale expires next March.
 Mincro to Meet One month from today the United Mine Workers of America meet at Indianapolis in convention. The se- lection of officers and the declaring of policies are the chief questions at hand. The pressure brought in many producing fields toward a wage re- duction will come up for thorough and probably stormy discussion. The workers probably will reject to a man any proposal to cut the present rates.
 Their leaders have forecast such rejection. No national officer would dare risk his political life by going to the rank and file with a wage cut proposal. John l.. Lewis, president of the organization, comes up for re- election, and he certainly isn't going to run on any such platform
 Our organization" says Mir Lewis lis ready to face any trouble. When the contract expires next March we will be expected to agree to reduc- tion. We shall not. however. We shall fight any attacks"
 Far from agreeing to a reduction, the mine workers in one of the three anthracite fields are out with a de- mand for more pay-40 to so per cent more. Such a demand, of course, . probably Is made for bargaining pur- poses Following this lead. however, the Indianapolis convention may de- mand . wage raise.
 Miners' Demand
 The miners Justify such a demand bat fo y,,op he Sf they have been given so little work that they are earning barely enough sat to live on--in some cases not enough Thousands are entirely out of work. A wage rate. however high, they argue. means nothing If they are employed for only two days week. whereas a cut In rates without more working time would not give them enough to keep soul and body to- gether.
 Moreover, there will come up at the Indianapolis convention the pol icy adopted two years ago calling for the standardization of mines That is Lewis's own plan in the platform and 1t Is going to stay there, even if the time doesn't appear suspicious for insisting on its enforcement. It may come in handy later when a strikeweary public finds it's coal supply cut off.
 The present wage agreement grew out of miners strike in 1919 and does not expire until Mavch 31, 1922. All at- tempts by operators in various sec tions to obtain cut have been. in vain. The miners are holding the op- orators to the letter of the contract. In one district--central Pennsylvania the largest producing district in the country. whose annual output could easily touch 60.000,00o tons if de- mand were good--the miners union has positively refused to meet the operators even to discuss wage cut.
 Similar Experience
 Operators in other fields have had r'milar eEperience. Northern Wet Virginia producers sought the other day to get a conference with the union, looking to a wage cut Presi-.. dent Keeney of the union told the'l operators in effect that the Lewis policy was the Keeney policy, too In the state of Washington. the min CTS are out on strike because of an attempted wage cut and the opera tors are preparing to run their mines on the open shop basis. The south western fields, comprising Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. re- cently sought in vain to lower wages. joint conference was held--and ad- tourned. The miners are holding the < operators to the contract.
 Illinois third on the list of coal mining states, expects strike. It is unionized to the very marrow. The operators there are getting ready. They are collecting. even at this early date. all possible information concerning wages and earnings of their men. living costs. labor turn over and other kindred subjects utilized in maintaining a settlement
 For the first time the anthracite and the bituminous wage agreements expire on the same date. At that time . united. Aggressive union or ganization, hard coal and soft. reck- onei as the strongest in the country, will face the operators with q solid front
 One side or the other must back down. Probably neither will until the country again has gone through the strike pains. Fortunately they won't come on the eve of winter as in. 1919. From My ChiAese Marriage, ", Tho
 Eternal Hills. by Nj. T. r., in Asia
 Magazine.
 SHOES FOR .GOLDEN LILiES.-
 In my capacity as first daughter in-law I was in attendance on my mother during many hours of the day. x I walked with her in the garden iu fine weather. I sat with her and sewsd. threading needles and help