Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1922-03-31

LEWIS in JOINT confer
ence, so that new wage and work
ing agreement might be made that
would maintain industrial peace and
prevent any inconvenience to the
public.
more sealexzfif IL 78 1890 789 80
Two years ago the operators SOL
emnly agreed that they would meet
with us before April /. They pledg-
ed their word as business men. They
signed that agreement in writing in
New York. 1t was pledge as bind
ing as any bond or promissory note
that any set of men ever signed.
Broke Agreement
We thought they signed it in good
! faith. But now they refuse to live
up 10 their agreement They have
refused point-blank to do as they
agreed they would do. If they were
to refuse to pay their debts it would
be no more dishonorable than their
refusal to keep their agreement with
the miners.
These operators do not deny that
they are contract-breakers. They
only say: "Well, what are you going
to do about it?"
In the latter part of last December
| asked the operators, in compliance
with their promise, to meet with the
miners in Pittsburg to begin negotia-
tions for q new agreement. Illinois
and Indiana operators and part of
the Ohio group accepted the invita-
tion, but the. operators of the Pitts
burg district and part of Ohio re-
fused. They merely said they had
decided not to keep their word.
They scrapped their agreement,
just as the kaiser scrapped his
treaties with other nations. And,
like the kaiser, they started in to
destroy the other party he afree-
ment. The invasion of Belgium by
the kaiser was no more ruthless
than the invasion of the miners
union by these Pittsburg and Ohio
operators.
Seek to Break Union
They propised to wreck the union,
, as the kaiser wrecked Belgium and
northern France. Suffering and
starvation of coal miners and their
| families became of no greater con-
, sequence to them than the suffer-
ing of the Belgian and French peo-
pie.
1t is, perhaps, the most notorious
and objectionable case Of contract
breaking and disregard for business
honor that the country has ever
| seen.
When the Pittsburg and Ohio
operators refused to meet with the
miners, the Pittsburg meeting was
necessarily cancelled. Later, | issued
a second call for a meeting, think
ing that, perhaps, these men would
yet decide to live up to their prom
ises. But they refused again.
Refused u. S. Request.
| So fragrant and indefensibIe was
their action that President Harding
denounced it and directed Secretary
of Labor Davis to call on the opera
tors to keep their word. But they
refused even the government.
Instead, they asked the govern
! ment to keep its hand off and allow
the coal companies to make their
fight for the destruction Of the
miners union. In other words,
these coal companies have arbi-
trarily placed themselves above the
government itself and have politely
told the government to go to-
There was nothing left for the
miners to do but to quit work until
the question of what their wages
! shall be is determined. We are not
asking for higher wages in the Di-
luminous coal industry.
Scale Agreeable
Our men did not make living last
year, and they are not yet max
! ing living, but they are willing
to take the chance with the present
wage scale for the next two years,
in the hope that there will be
business revival that will afford them
reasonably steady employment and
an opport to earn a living for.
their families. The miners are nit
| quitting work because they want to
quit. They want to work. But
the operators are determined that
they shall not work except at starva-
ton wages, and that the union shall
1 be Destroyed, so as to deprive the
I men Of all means of protection.
Want Public to Know
We want the public to know all
the facts, because we know that the
public win then place the blame
where it belongs. The operators
started III deliberately to compel the
miners to strike.
They have declared that all coal
miners shall work for the same mis-
cradle rate of starvation wages that
are paid to the poor, helpless in the
K tnon-union fields of West Virginia