Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1922-04-21
international Labor News Service

international LABOR news oervlceJ
Washington, ID. Cts the Steel
Trust responsible for the coal strike
and the effort to destroy the Miners
Union?
The Labor Committee of the House
of Representatives is inquiring into
the relationship of the following
facts:
l. The United States Steel Cor
poration is the biggest individual
operator of coal mines in the United
States.
e. Ninety per cent of Its coal acre
age Is worked by non-unlon labor un-
der gun-man rule.
3. The tactics of the coal opera
tors are those of the Steel Trust
during the steel strike and the same
autocratic attitude toward labor Is be-
ing fostered.
4. A fund of half billion dollars,
called Undivided surplus" is avail
able for emergencies, including
strikes
5. The advisers of the coal opera
tors, especially it's publicity agents,
are in many instances also the advis-
ers of the Steel Trust.
This is only partial list of facts
Indicating that the most powerful and
at the same time the most autocratic
industrial and financial group IN the
United States Is behind the movement
to break the Miners Union. 1t isn't
a theory, it is a fact. The "hands
off" attitude of the administration is
in itself indication that the Steel
Trust and it's affiliated banking inter-
ests are running the strike to suit
their own plans,
Judge Gary's report on the u. s.
Steel Corporation for 1921, just is
sued to stockholders, shows actual
ownership of 41S,5S7 vein acres Of
coking coal and 337,733 vein acres of
steam and gas coal. The surface area
of its coal properties Is 3Q2, 4s1 acres.
There is no larger coal operator in
the world;
In Mingo and Logan counties OF
West Virginia, where gun-man rule
is supreme, the Steel Trust owns 53,-
1856 acres of eoking coal, its surface
ownership being o32,863 acres. In
the Black Mountain District-Letch-
err and Harland counties of West Vir-
ginia-another storm center, the vein
acreage is $3.50 and surface acreage
SO ,043.
Capital expenditures of $9,074 ,692
were made by U. S. Steel in 1921 for
coal and coke properties, $500, 600
of this sum being for additional acre
ages of steam coal in Greene County,
Pa, a non-union field.
In union fields u. s. Steel is join
ing in the fight against the United
Mine Workers. In Illinois and In
diana a vein acreage of 73,108 and
surface acreage of 5,026 is owned. 1t
has been retained as a union field be-
cause the Steel Trust mines are sur
rounded by decently organized COM
munities.
The Steel Trust is strongest in the
non-union fields of the South, how
ever. In Tennessee and Alabama its
vein acreage totals 339,242 and its
surface acreage 207,256. Standards
of living are here maintained at the
lowest possible level, profits at the
highest possible level.
Extension of housing facilities in
the non-union fields of West Virginia
was part of the Steel Trusts program
for 1921 in preparation for coal
strike. In the Pocahontas field $14S,-
1858 was expended for this purpose.
The plant capacity at Works No. 40,
near Phillippi, was increased.
U. S. Steel figures on coal n..aing
operations during 1921 show that the
southern non-union fields produced 9.9
per cent more coal than in 1920. All
mining operations Of the U. S. Steel
Corporation in the northern fields
including iron ore and northern cox
ing coal--were reduced 40 per cent.
Financially u. s. Steel is stronger
than ever. 1t is prepared to fight,
Its earnings in 1921 were $92, 000, 900.
Much of this was distributed among
sinking funds. Dividends of $50, :
900 were paid, in spite of the fnan-
cial depression that was made the ex-
cuse for reducing wages below the
living stadards which prevailed be-
fore the war.
But more significant than earnings
and dividends is the undivided surplus
of $50S, 1926, 957.59, which can be used
for any purpose that will strengthen
the hand of the Steel Trust. In 1901
the undivided surplus was $43,620,-
$4,000, which was then staggering
n pi1re