Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-09-05
THE COAL
STRIKE is ENDED

THE anthracite coal strike is at
! an end. The settlement was
made between the employees and
the miners union representatives,
as was the soft coal settlement.
The two Pennsylvania senator's
acted as intermediates, and they
sought to give the president some
credit by calling attention to the
fact that the compromise was made
Immediately after the union lead
ers had received a message from
the president. A perusal of the
message does not disclose any
moving force in it. 1t is merely a
repetition of a sentiment that has
been repeated often enough from
all sides since the strike began.
1t says that the interests of the
consuming public ought to be taken
into account by the two principals
in the strike controversy. In the
soft coal strike the settlement was
almost a complete victory for the
strikers. They got nearly all they
demanded when they walked out,
though the agreement only lasts
until next April. In the hard coal
strike just terminated the strikers
were not so successful. When
they quit work, they demanded an
increase in pay and a two-year con-
tract. They go back at the old
paw with a onc-year contract which
reaches up to next August. The
present soft coal contract expires
At the end of next March and the
hard coal contract five months
later. The union miners wanted to
make the contract expire at the
same date as the soft coal contract
expires for evident reasons. So
this hard coal settlement is more
worthy of the name of a compro-
mise than the soft coal settlement,
though the term is applied in both
cases. Citizens of Montana are
not so much interested in the hard
coal situation as are the citizens OF
states farther east. We use very
little of it. 1t is too costly here,
with transportation added. But it
is the house fuel of a large ma
iority of the people in the densely
populated states. It has been 60
ing up and up in price until it has
reached a point where it is doubt
full if much addition can be made
to the price without driving the
to seek other means OF
heating their homes and dong
their cooking. Three such means
are coming into notice-electricity,
gas, oil. The first is growing fast
as a means of cooking where it can
be sold cheap enough. Gas has also
come into increasing use through
the gas stove. Both electricity and
gas are also used to a limited ex-
tent for heating purposes, but they
do not as yet compete much with
coal, except in communities that
have natural gas. But oil is at
present the most militant competi-
tor of coal, both for heat and
power purposes. 1t has almost
driven coal out of use in the big
freight and passenger ships. 1t is
being adapted as fuel in many
manufacturing plants, in some rail-
road locomotives, and some homes.
We are told that it is cheaper than
coal, easier handled and more sat
isfactory in many ways.
With all three of these elements
of heat and power the margin of
cost between them and coal is not
very great at the present time. A
large increase in the cost of coal
or a like decrease in the cost OF
electricity, gas or oil would very
likely dethrone King Coal and cast
him out of use in many homes and
industrial plants. That is why we
believe that the cost of coal cannot
be permanently increased very
much in the future and miners
wages cannot be increased either
If costs of production and Goa
prices go up much more, consump'
ton demand will decrease.
No coal, hard or soft, has beer
produced in five months, with ths
exception of a small output from
non-union mines. Yet until very
recently there was coal enough &c
supply the demand. There was
surplus coal enough above thu
ground to last nearly five months
That would 60 to show that in nor
NAL times the coal prcduction o.
this country is greater than tn!