Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-04-07
MINE OPERATORS
To BE- 'LLONED
To NATIONAL
e1*zlE Of WAGES
icy General lntimates
~ Prosecution Under
Anti Trust Laws viii Fol-
low Such an Act.
STAND OF BITUMIN0US
OPERATORS COMM ENDED
Hoover Returns From West
But Lacks Sufficient Data
to Justify Any Conclusions
at the Present Time,

NttN Inc ashOCiNieu EFtsstt
Washington, April. GA defense
of the bituminous coal operators
position in refusing to negotiate
central agreement with the miners
union was given by L. II. Watkins,
a spokesman for Pennsylvania
producers, before the house labor
committee today in its investiga-
ton of the coal strike, and at the
same time an intimation was given
by Attorney General Daugherty
through q letter from him, which
was read into the record that the
mine owners would face no prose-
cution under antitrust laws if they
again saw fit to fix national wages
in the industry by such an agree
ment.
Other developments today includ-
d a statement by Secretary Hoover,
upon his return from the west that
reports. presumably from non-
union fields, showed that bitumin-
Gus coal mined on Monday. after
the strike had been called, amount
ed to 572, goo tons and on Tuesday
to $4,000 tons. He declared. how
ever, that the time was insufficient
to Justify any deductions being
drawn from these figures in their
possible bearing on the question Of
sufficiency of supply.
Chairman Nolan, of the house in
vostigating committee, also made
public telegraphic messages from
representative operators in the CEN
trail field, which he said were not
entirely hopeless" in their refusa'
to accede to the committees re-
quest to renew interstate negotia-
tons with the union.
"They did Indicate he stated,
"a spirit Of Willingness to meet the
men in their own sadisiTlctss2
Mr.. Watkins. in appearing be
fore the house committee. attacked.
the United Mine Workers of Amer
lea as "setting up a smoke screen,
familiar union tactics" in charg
ing operators with breach of con
tract. The union itself 1t said, was
breaking the contract, because It
refused to meet with mine owners
in the great producing districts OF
the country outside of Ohio, Him
ois, Indiana and western Pennsyl-
vania to ~ scales. 1t would be
Financial suicide" he added, for
the group he represented to CON
tinue making its wages on the basis
of the interstate agreement 1ar
which negotiations had not been
begun. and he accused the union
leaders of ''autocratic abuse of
power" in calling the h'tt!oiia
strike. .,.t
The attorney genera ; Statsl''cl,'
or posltlon was con iltaI,,eu ~ ~
Yer 10 hepreseitatiNeP ID Pi"iIu, a.
ilcan, ihuiand' WIZ i','u , aroto,e 'e,
neateu slateliieiits 'E noo,,,onts
tna. Intersea,r '.,.,'to5 ,.;oIotione or
nosSluly col's.l,u'eu Nv 'orn, Dn,ghorty
.ne S2''et.ilan law .hot ~ bo coneid.
S.ateu, aoWsnei - i", onorotors and
- Lo,s ,'ob norottatious =
nm5 to o.,,od 70 after taking tba4
q ,,ne;,;nn l,u M q ruos alil,elv tbat ~. de-
~ iustice vculd under
Nv nrosocrtion
ror onntro1 poprsv,vania onera-
oio,na a. 40 noo of tho
str,,,;nr n,inars nv watkins said
~ 80 80 ~ djsposi+ior m abreals
tba organi,at;o, of tbe United Mine
NE VI sai'ita Iao a.lor' " - ,,,iot,t ba re-
,,,aons W ~, b., ~ oroarization more
.,io,ant pioL -. b,,t he declared the
,,,,,,,,,. ,o5o,,, ,,,oro "orossIy ;eno-
nt 20 aooron,;o low Tho uniop
s,nI5. o La 49, cone+optIv losing
,,,,ai,,a Ia e. Az non-urion folds
:, ansax.oa ond o,o,, tbo ,n;or mon
ho i. hoan forcod bv idIeness IN
IooHo tboir orpo pi1o tions and go 10