The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1922-08-05
COALSTRIKERS
CONFERENCE
PROBABLE
Possibility That Nego-
tiations May Be De-
veloped Soon May
Be Gathering From
Four States

1 NdSIliIl5 lDH, 81 ulS ~ SoS tilS
Associated Press) With The fed
eral emergency coal control ma
chine piloted by Fuel Distributor
! Spencer finally under way. the pos
/ sibility.that negotiations for a sep
arate wage settlement between the
miners union and some operators
in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and
! Indiana bituminous fields might be
+, instituted this week was strongly
/ indicated in Washington tonight.
Representative Of the various
government departments and pro-
:Gucing operators cooperating un-
der. the administration distribu-
! ton plan set to work on the initial
problems facing operation on the
! scheme. such as organization Of re-
gional committees in the producing
! fields and formation of coal pools.
/ The personnel Of some Of the re-
(; gional committees is to be an
nouneed tomorrow.
] Members Of the federal distribu-
ton committee also conferred to-
day with Cleveland operators on the
question of supplies for the Great
Lakes region, but no statement was
made SIS to conclusions reached by
the conferees.
In Cleveland. it was understood,
! a meeting IS to be held next Mon
day looking to the settlement Of
the strike in Pennsylvania Ohio,
Illinois and Indiana.
How extensive such a partial set
tlement Of the miners strike would
be or whether such conference.
| lacking considerable number Of
employers Of larger forces of min
ers, would be successful at all re-
mained questionable In official and
serni-ofTicial view
Ever since the strike began, some
i operators have expressed wiling
ness to negotiate with John l..
Lewis. president OF the United
+. Mine Workers, and the scale COM
mittees OF the union. The control
ling majority in most operators as
! sociations has been unwilling. how
lever TO concede the unions de-
mands for semi-national wage
scale. made up by a joint action
OF the employers and employees in
the four states named, and have
also been unwilling TO concede the
wage scale OF 1920 with its $3.50
Tn,~ lah
underground.
Soaring prices of coal, due to
shortage. is said to have made ths
-higher wage scale acceptable at
least while the market lasts,
though heads of the larger mining
enterprises outside of Ohio insist
that a settlement giving the men
the war time scales again would
only allow a few months OF op-
GRAFTON followed by shutdowns be-
cause the non-union coal would
throw the output bearing higher
overhead cost out Of the markets.
Ohio coal operators associations
are said 10 have been made nu-
cleus about which Mr.. Lewis was
forming an interstate group with
whom he would shortly attempt to
negotiate a wage scale.
There were indications tonight
/! that the Cleveland meeting might
have in it some operators from
northwestern West Virginia as
we'll as the four states mentioned.
This territory has never been in
cluded in the wage contracts OF the
central competitive field in past
years. but there has been. some de-
mand for its inclusion. since the
coal produced there figures, largely
in the markets To which the Ohio
Pennsylvania product goes.
Raleigh. Y. c.. July 31.-Assign-