Evening star., 1922-06-26
Union Leader Here for Series
of Conferences With
Officials.
SECOND CONFERENCE
HELD DURING LUNCH
Call Likely for Farley Of Operators
and Labor officials to Ef-
feet Agreement.

By the Associated Press.
Government attempts to intervene
in the bituminous coal strike were
carried forward today when Secre-
tary of Labor Davis called John L.
Lewis, president of the United Mine
Workers. to Washington for a series
Of conferences, preliminary to taking
the issues directly before President
Harding. An impression was created
In advance of the meeting between
the President and Mr.. Lewis that the
government might call a national
conference of operators and union
leaders in the industry to consider a
settlement.
Secretary Davis and the miners
chief were together first at a mid
night conference, which lasted for
several hours and did not adjourn un-
til early this mornings Several gov
ernment conciliators who have been
employed in negotiating in the indus
try since April /, when the miners
left work. participated.
Discussions Resumed.
The discussions were resumed short
ly before noon today. Considerable
for the protracted meetings with the
miners head. since the union policy,
restated again by Mr.. Lewis today.
has always been to seek a national or
semi-national conference with the mine
operators to discuss wages, and the
strike was precipitated when the op-
orators. refusing national meetings.
countered with proposals to discuss
the wage settlements in district gath
erings.
No operators were in Washington
today for the purpose of discussing the
strike with government representa-
tives, so far as could be learned. Mr..
Lewis. though maintaining silence as
to the matters directly talked over,
was prepared to take up the negotia-
ttons with President Harding. and in
sisted that the miners unions posi-
ton was unchanged.
Purposes UnehanEed.
I'VE are seeking now, as we have
always sought. an opportunity to pre-
sent our case in an open conference
with the operators" Mr.. Lewis as
serted. WE expect that when We
any of them that cannot be supported
by logic and common sense they will
fall of themselves. ,.
However, Secretary Hoover is now
fixing $3.50 a ton as the price for non-
union coal, and let me say that if that
figure is to be accepted as fair the
union operators of the United States
can pay the miners wages at exactly
the same levels they were before April
1. when the suspension began. and
make a very. very substantial margin
of profit"
Lunch at White House.
There were plain indications when
Mr.. Lewis and Secretary Davis went
to the White House for luncheon with
President Harding that the miners
leader and the Labor Department
head were still Of divergent views
upon the type Of conference which
might be called in an endeavor to
settle the strike. The union demands
for a central competitive field gather
ing. or, in event Of failure to procure
that. Of a national meeting. are still
being pressed, Mr.. Lewis declared.
But that central competitive field
conference idea is dead. isn't 1t.
John?' Secretary Davis interrogated
when Mr. Lewis made his statement
to newspaper men.
"a moral principle never dies"
Lewis retorted with some heat. The
operators wrote their agreement to
enter another central field conference
into the last wage-contract, and IL -
still there"
sion no further, but 1t was intlmated
that the Labor Department efforts
were directed toward bringing about
district conferences of operators and
miners IL their failure to discuss
wage scales on a national basis per-
sisted.
rrDrpAr. pARIEY LIKELY.