The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1922-06-29

/ in connection with the strike of tn,
! union coal miners in the bituminOui
fields, now in its sixth week is tina
/. the public interest seems to hav,
completely died out There is moth.
. ing on the front page and very little
. on any other page of the daily news
: papers in connection with the strike
The United Mine Workers officials
, must he rather disappointed to find
that the only way in which they are
being featured in the papers at pres
ent is in the reports of the trial fOI
treason that is going on in Charles
town. w. Va. against the local lead
ers of that organization for their re-
sponsibility in connection with the
attack of the miners army last sum
mer against the nOn-uniOn mines of
Logan and Mingo counties.
Recent reports state that there are
10000 cars of coal standing on the
sdings at union mines for which no
billing has yet been found The out
put of the non-union mines has been
gradually increasing but has never
reached the maximum that they are
capable of producing. owing to their
inability to obtain enough orders to
make it possible to run full operating
time The present output is estim-
ated at 100000 tons a week. 1t is
possible. with a full car supply and
full demand. TO bring this output up
to approximately 100000 tons per
week. and it is very doubtful whether
at this season of the year when prob
ably there is less consumption of coal
than at any other season, the require
ments of the country are greater than
the 100000 tons which the non
union mines are capable of produc-
ing. 1t would appear therefore. that
there is no immediate prospect of any
settlement of the bituminous strike.
and there is certainly no reason why
the operators of the union mines
should show any anxiety to begin op-
erations as long as they have unbill-
ed coal standing on their sidings
OVerdeVeloPment of Coal Mining.
A great deal has been written in
the technical and daily press in re-
gard to the overdevelopment of the
bituminOus coal fields in this country
1t seems little peculiar that the coal
industry should be the subject oe
such sharp criticism in this regard
when conditions in coal mines during !
the last year have been the same as
in other mining industries of the |
Nothing is said about the |
of copper, although |
the large producing copper mines of |
this country have been absolutely |
closed down for a year and only now |
are beginning to resume operations.
The same is true to large extent of |
the iron region, as the papers are |
speaking of the opening of iron mines |
in Michigan at which work has been |
suspended for over a year. If the |
large producing coal mines, when the |
business depression occurred a little |
more than year ago, had followed !
the example of the copper mines, and |
closed down, there would have been |
no overprOductiOn of coal.
great deal has been written also |
in regard to the seasonal nature of |
coal mining. This is true. but tire |
work of the farmer is equally sea-
sonal; the glass manufacturers of
this country work on an average only
six months in the year: and yet the
coal mine is singled out as function
ng so badly because it is not able to
sell coal when the people do not want
10 buy that commodity
Surplus of Labor and Wagon Mines.
With regard to the overmanning of
he mines and the possibility of pro-
iucing the required amount of coal
With less labor and the sufferings of
he miners from the three-day week
hat the mines have been able to av-
rage it must be remembered that
he excess of labor is due to the high
wages paid the coal miners. Under
he union scale a day laborer receives
$50 day; in any other vocation
he same unskilled laborer would not
re able to earn more than SO. He is
letter off, therefore, working three :
lays week at $3.50 than six days
week at SO. As for the contract min
r who is able to earn $40 to $40 a
lay without even working the eight d,
lours, he would certainly have great
ifficulty in finding any other class of
work that would bring him in the
anne weekly wage even if he were ,
working full time. The 1901 600 men
which it is estimated might be taken
rom the coal industry and put into ,
ther lines of employment might pos
IDLY be found, if they were able to
arm in those other employments as ,
much money as they are now able to
btain even with the short time the ,
mines are in operation ,
Another feature in the bituminous
that has not been taken in ,
o account is the wagon mine" ,
These small operations are usually
worked in partnership by miners
Nnf IL