New-York tribune., 1922-05-22
Illinois Mine
owners Said
To Seek Peace
Chicago Report Asserts Bi.
luminous Operators Hope
to Effect Separate Agree
ment With Union Men
Fight on Lewis Looms
proposed Plan Understood
10 Provide for Election
Of harrington as Chief
,-.,, p,trofch TO rhc rr,hyu.

rEfCAGO, May Sl.-Ot all the
.sa,es and ss-eurrents in the ma
.;oral coal strike none has been Of
-,ore interest to the chief powers
.,one both the miners and the opcr-
..ors than tire report that the Illinois
~,i,e owners have demanded that the
,,,1srs OF the United Mine Workers
(, his state declare themselves on a
,,,uosal that negotiations for a sopa-
-... agreement for this important coal :
,,o3veing district be instituted.
B Observers sec in this move not only
- s,temp. on the part of the Illinois
or.r,,ors TO effect settlement which
] u,pN give them an Immense advantace
e7sr tie operators of the other btu
rinous fields, bat also the manifesto
ION Of sympathetic attitude or their
ray. toward the plans Of The friends Of
frank Farrin gton. leader of the Illinois
r,nsrs to place him in control Of the
I'-ited Nine Workers through oustine
Jehn l.. Lewis from the presidency of
tlat organization.
Since She pre- strike fight made
sssinst Lewis by harrington and his
,itereNts on the floor of the miners
Indianapolis convention. and the bitter
tIchap which occurred between the
;ro even ur TO the eve Of the strike,
Observers Of both sides have been
watching daily for some play on the
part Of harrington calculated to en-
barrass Lewis IN his direction Of the
miners n their struggle.
Conferred With Miners. Charge
The lllnols operators latest move
Ills the bill IN this connection. IN the
opnlon of these observers. They re-
gard it not As having been made eud
denly. merely to sound out the miners.
bl. as having timed its launching with
q degree Of study containing at least
surface Indications that the operators
hsye beer n informal ana confidential
tovesp spondence with some of the state
leaders of the miners right along since
the strike began
Seversl rumors tending to support
his deduction have reached New York
during the last few days One was
mat informal negotiations for a sepa-
'ate Illinois agreement. involving a
sage scale with cut under the old
.ates paid IN that state. already have
leen started, and that the demand of
he Illinois operators therefore ap-
'ears in the light of a cut-aud -dried
salr with equally rrearranged for
rsllties to follow in the near future.
mother such report held that negotia
ions of the sort were begun. but were
4spended indefinitely little later
There le no doubt that the Illinois
perators want separate agreement
they can get one. They realize that
accessful operation of such a contract
ot only would place the rich mining
elds of the, state i'll commanding
rositlon. so far as the present strike
ls concerned. but that the terms of the
sgreenent reached would, for the time
being, furnish the basis for all ether
aSrssments which might therea fter be
reached in the bituminous industry.
rs also limited that the Illinois op-
Gs'ors would not wiring their hands in
ss'ly should Frank harrington become
PRESIDENT OF the United Mine Workers.
Plan an Aid to harrington
What harrington might be thinking
IN such situation is not disclosed
unoolbtedly he knows. however, that
II the miners succeed in winning the
strike as a national proposition Lewis,
MS rival, will become an even greater
union leader than he now is, both
among the miners and in the labor
movement generally.
Should such plan succeed. il would
o1 course. break the strike, as the
miners OF other states could not hope
10 succeed with Illinois operating at
us enormous production capacity 1t
YOU'D also be Of great aid to Earring
Ton s hopes for union leadership.
.G .VH hopes Tor union leadership. But
Une miners leaders are emphatjcally
.eftaln that it could not succeed, and
nna' me chief result of attempting it
Mouid be the eventual driving of Far
fngton from the union
"aHy o1 the operators are as fullv
uoS,lie 70 separate Illinois agree
msne aS are the miners leaders. While
T.sny oi them are opposed to entring
or+o ont ne" agreements, after the fighting
..e ol the strike, OH the old central
..pnpehtlve field basis. they prefer
uns 70 giving Illinois the commanding
p0sluon IN the situation. They have
goo memories, and they recall without
:. ..or' what the Illinois operators did
70 them just after the Cleveland ne
sotlations of 1919.
ASIDE from this. they realize that
any sudden nun for the cover of other
::epafate state agreements would
.uf'her disorganize what has been
,.sfmed the country's worst regulated
vase industry. Thus, should a sepa-
ia'e contract be signed in Illinois, the
uOgn'ry would probably witness the
IInlque spectacle of coal operators
.scSine union in strike against