The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-03-13
ENOUGH FOR
10 WEEKS IN
STOCKS HELD
Intervention Will Only Be
Brought About by Pub
lie Inconvenience.

Washington, March 13-Govern-
ment officials were represented to-
! day as being without hope that the
threatened coal strike can be avert
ed or that the proposed conference
between the operators and miners
would be arranged. 1t was indi-
Gated that government intervention
at least in the preliminaries of the
situation was practically at an end.
Holding that a strike call April l
is almost inevitable, government Of
ficials, according to the view pre-
sented today on high authority now
are chiefly interested in seeing that
sufficient supply of coal is main
tanned for the country as a whole.
The situation with respect to a
sufficient supply of coal. it was
stated on the same authority, is not
acute. There now is at the surface
of coal mines and in stocks at con
sumins centers, it was declared.
enough coal TO last the country for
10 weeks, with prospects, it was
added, that this supply could be
augmented by production from non
union mines and from operations in
union territory, which department
of labor reports show, are covered
by district settlements between the
miners union and the local associ-
ations of mine operators.
No Forced Conference.
"The degree of the governments
intervention in this strike situa-.
tion," a high official today declared
/ in explaining the policy agreed.
upon, must be determined by the
| extent of the public inconvenience.
and suffering which it caused by
| the strike"
| 1t was intimated that the govern
ment did not propose to enter on
any attempt to force a conference
between the operators and the min
ers, by legal or other means
Many operators in the semi-cOn-'
fidential exchanges with the labor
department were said TO have taken,
the position that the wage con-
tracts provision with respect to it's
renewal no longer binds them, be-
cause of local or district actions by
the miners union, which they claim
to have been in violation OF con
tracts. Government officials, in COR
respondence and conference, have
challenged this argument on thet
ground that while the facts may
have been as represented by the Op-
orators, the contract has geLerallyI
been allowed to stay in effect. II
the violations complained of have
not been sufficiently serious, OFF,
ciaIs declared, to induce the mine
operators during the last year To
declare the entire provisions of the
contracts invalid and to refuse to
abide by them, they should now
continue to respect it.
Production Increases.
Production of bituminous coal
continues to increase slowly, ac-
cording to the current weekly re-
port of the United States geologi-
cal survey. which placed the stock
on hand on the first of the year at
81, 700 900 tons. In the week ending
March 4, production reached 1919
900 tons.
"Since Jan. l production has ex-
ceeded consumption, and il is clear
that consumers have added mater
tally to their stocks" the report
said. but it will require putting an
other 10000, 900 tons into storage 70
raise consumers reserves TO the
level reached at the close Of the
war.
Retail coal dealers stocks Of
anthracite were smaller on Jan.
than on Nov. 1. last, but larger than
at any time in 1919 OF 1920. In the
opinion of the trade, the quantity in
possession of househOldeTs is be-
low normal"