Evening star., 1922-03-26
Nv the Associated Press,

By the Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS, March 25.-Back
of the impending coal strike lies the
issue whether the present form OIL
collective barsaining-the neSotla-
3tions that take place between eni-
ipIoyers and employees acting IN
igrOups on a wage contract-shah
survive in the coal industry. The
jpresent form has developed during
the last four decades.
z As il exists in the soft-coal indus
try, collective bargaining began III
1885. that year marking the nrsl IN
tterStaIe joint conference OF the VI
iganized miners and their employers
In the anthracite regions of Pennsyt-
iyania it grew out of the great strike
Iof 1902, which was settled by COM
imission named by Theodore Roose-
welt then President.
/ situation Is Unprecedented
But today. especially in the soft
scoal fields, the joint movement or op-
serators and miners. such being the
trade references to the collective oar-
Igainins system, faces an uhpreee
Gunted situation. No Interstate wage
conference seems probable because OF
the refusal of some operators TO con-
ttinue the present system; both GRIM
inal and civil proceedings i'll the feu.
erai court here attack the iesanty OF
the whole bargaining movement. al
leging that 1T is d conspiracy 10 BOOST
the price of coal; for the first time,
,agreements in both the bituminous
and anthracite fields expire on the
same date-March 81.
Long before the present bargaining
system was adopted local agreements
had been made between operators and
. . I,nt, nj
that negotiated in 1853 between
some anthracite miners and operators
. by John Siney. known as the father
of the miners movement in America.
but these aGreements-when they
iwere made in the early days-afect-
I ed only small areas and did not touch
the thousands ot miners, as DO those
of today.
First National Movement.
q The circular issued jointly by min
;iers and operators for their 1885 con-
ference gave this description of the
proposal:
/, "This is the first movement of a ma
itionaI character in America. taken
with the intention of the establish
ment Of labor conciliation.
l. From the conference resulted an
+! agreement executed at Cotumhus:
| Ohio. February %. 1885. which flSed
a wage scale in the Soft-coal heids
/, of western Pennsylvania. Ohio. lndi-
lana, Illinois and West Virginia and
= created a board of arbitration, on
Fw hich the miners and operators had
equal representation. Similar agree
ments were made annually until 1895.
K when the panic of 1893 having set in.
/ demoralized the coal trade and broke
! off negotiations, but they were revived
tiagain in 1898 and continued down to
Z the present.
l. Miners Took Initiative.
4 The initiative in the joint move
.sment was taken by the miners. Their
|, convention at Indianapolis decided
I: to issue call to all operators for
q joint meeting on October Is. 1885:
! at Chicago. Daniel Mclaughlin of
was the father of the plan. He first
proposed 1t in letter to the National
/, Labor Tribune in 1885 and later
: brought it to the attention OF the
( miners delegate convention. AS
/ result the convention directed Chris
: Evans OF New Straitsville. Ohio. now
historian of the United Mine Workers
of America, to invite all operators to
Chicago for conference for the pur-
pose of adjusting market and mining
prices In such way as to avoid
/; strikes and lockouts and give to each
party an increased profit from the
sale of coal"
A Lion and a Tiger.
The proposal So made was. accord
ing to the old miners. like asking
the lion and the tiger to lie down to-
gather. for the coal industry previ-
strikes or lockou,s. In 1884 the great
Ohio blocking valley) strike had oc-
CURED, continuing until the early
part of 1885. when finally settled.
leaving both sides suffering from bat
tie scars.
/. Only one operator, w. p Rand of
Chicago. owner of mines in the Hook
ing valley, answered the invitation
by appearing for the Chicago meet
ing, and but for his presence the en-
dropped. At his suggestion, an invi-
tation was issued to Chicago opera
tors to attend meeting with the
miners the next day. Eight operators
attended and agreed with the miners
to call meeting at Pittsburgh
There seventeen operators met with
fourteen miners representatives. but
were not ready to act on any scale.
though they favored the joint move
!. ment. The Pittsburgh conference
to a meeting held at Columbus Feb
ruary 90 1886, when the agreement
! was executed.
IN; Many Changes Made.
il Since the beginning of the inter-
state joint agreement many changes
have come in the coal industry.
among them the following:
4 Eisht-hour day for miners and
mine laborers, universal mine-run
basis for determining tonnage on
which wages are based. increased
wages, abolition of company stores.
commonly known as "pluck-mes' :;
EpENru MIIME 0cEc