The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1922-08-01
DETERMINED NATION
SHALL HAVE FUEL
PRESIDENT IN COMMAND AND
MANY MINES HAVE BEEN
REOPENED RECENTLY.
PROFITEERING is HALTED
Government Orders That Essential In
dustries Be Supplied at a Fair Price.
Strong Hope of Early Settlement
OF Rail Strike.

duStr1eS BE supplied at a r an rllSe'
Strong Hope of Early Settlement
OF Rail Strike
The United States government has
set itself to the business of mining
coal, il it is at all possible to do so,
and also getting it into the hands OF
the consumers without protteers
boosting prices along the line from
the mine mouth to the coal bins.
PENNSYLVANIA, with state national
guard troops on duty at the pit mouths
was the first to reopen bituminous
mines. Ohio, Illinois, Maryland, West
Virginia, Kentucky, Kansas, Arkan=
sas, Missouri and Oklahoma also re-
port some mines reopened, with 9th
ers preparing to get out coal.
No Prohteering Permitted.
While President Harding has been
interesting himself in getting more
coal out of the ground, Secretary OF
Commerce Hoover has been given the.
task of getting the coal mined to es-
sential industries and preventing ex-
orbitant prices, now that the coal
shortage has become a reality. At a
meeting held in Washington early in
the week the operators representing
the bituminous field agreed to the gov
ernment's plan for distribution and al
so established a fixed price for coal.
This emergency program insures
fuel distribution to railroads, public
utilities and other essential industries,
and it also provides for the mainten-
ance OF fair prices through preferen-
tial ALLEGATION of coal cars. The oper-
ator who insists on higher price for
his coal than that named by the gov
eminent will find himself unable to
get cars.
Import Coal From England.
Meanwhile, the government has
sanctioned efforts being made to i'm
port coal from England. Hundreds OF
thousands of tons already have been
ordered, and some even Delivered and
it is predicted that. by the end OF
August, England will be shipping p
100000 tons of coal month to this
country, if the strike in America has
not been settled by that time.
While most intent on getting coal
out of the ground to relieve the threat
ened fuel shortage the government has
also been working to bring about a
settlement of the rail shopmen's strike. /
Some 100000 railroad workers are
now on strike, and, while the railroads
say they have filled the places OF about
half this number Transportation has
been seriously affected, especially in
the far west, the middle west and the
south. A total of perhaps 500 trains
have been Cancelled because of rail
strike trouble and the coal shortage.
Hope for Peaceful Settlement.
The government has been 1oath to
act in the railroad strike in the same
drastic manner it has in the coal con-
troversy because the differences be-
tween the transportation heads and
their striking employees are not so
great as to preclude hope OF settle
ment by peaceful means. In fact, it is
really only the question OF the return
of seniority rights to the strikers,
should they return, that now keeps
the men idle, virtual agreement having
been reached on all other questions at
issue, and the government has been
bending its efforts to effect a settle
ment by mediation and arbitration.
Should these efforts fail, however,
the government plans to exercise its
powers by taking control OF the trans
portation lines of the country, through
the powers vested in the interstate
commerce commission. This means
federal operation of the railroads, even
il it becomes necessary to call out
United States troops to insure train
movements.