New-York tribune., 1922-12-30
Call for Federal Owner
ship, Operation, Cost and
Price Fixing of Hard
and Soft Coal Output
S4,5OO,OOOOOO Set
AS Purchase Price
Industrial Collapse and
Rigid Laws Predicted
Unless Plan Is Adopted

Purchase by the government Of the
nations entire ceel industry, both BIZ
luminous n. .hracite, at total
cost Of s.. 100 900 900. a Cabinet place
for a Secretary Of Mines and the Gre
alton OF a Federal Commission Of
Mines and a national mining council
arc proposed in a plan for the nation
alization Of the coal industry which
the United Mine Workers Of America
will present TO the United States Coal
Commission in January.
The plan. embodied in q report OF
the naturalization committee Of the
miners union, which has been con
ddering the question since the union
convention OF 1921, vas announced last
night By Chris J. Golden, president OF
Union District No. Q and member
Of the committee. At the dinner OF the
League for Industrial Democracy.
II embodies the following chief
recommendations:
A Secretary Of Mines IN the Cabinet.
A Federal Commission Of Mines, 10
control budget and policy on the OASIS
Of continuous ctfnding.
A national mining council. 90 admin
lister policies, with miners, technicians
ard consumers represented.
The safeguarding Of collective bar
gaining through joint conference.
Freeing production management from
wage sduabbles and sales problems By
making wages the first charge against
the industry and therefore making
wage measurement one OF The functions
Of the Federal commission under the
principles Of collective bargaining,
which will be safeguarded by an inde-
pendent Joint ware scale committee.
Unih alton Necessary
IN explaining the reasons for their
insistence on a naturalization program
the committee in it's report declares
that the coal industry has been so dis
Organized and mismanaged tAat the
situation In recent years fas ap-
proached what even "stand pas Sena-
tors describe as catastrophe" I'm
less some unifcation Is effected
"blow-up" Is prophesied. followed by
drastic and frenzied legislation.
"The operators" the report con-
tinues, "have q fresh explanation for
the annual crisis Is often as IL rolls
around. One year IL is car shortage,
snother year high wages. then the war,
then government interference. OF
tbought-out plan and remedy they have
offered none.
"The only large-seaie proposal has
come from the United Mine Workers
OF America in their demand for ma
tionalization. II is th. only proposal
that grapples with slack work for the
miners, high prices and irregular sup
ply for the consumers"
The naturalization scheme, vcSting
ownership Of all coal mining proper
ties both developed and undeveloped in
the public and controlled and admin
istered BY government bodies, is the
solution the committee ho'ds out.
The first step would be, Of course,
the ACQUISITION of the mines and mine
lands by the government, based on es-
Inmates Of value made before Federal
investigating bodies. The committee
itemizes II as follows:
Investment OF bituminous op-
1nyestmsnt StssG1s Of snihraeiis op '-'''''''''''
orators ................... 100000. 900
Royalties due owners Of coal
lands which would have 70
be bought up BY tbs govern
ment on the basis OF ex-
pected production ......... 2.ooo, ooo.oeo
These figures IL considers a liberal
estimate and points out that one years
output Of the bituminous mines would
pay almost half this sum.
Disclaiming any interest on the part
Of the American worker in what Is
Usually called State Socialism. the com
nittee declares against any control Of
the mines by politicians and offers in
.tead a peypnanent Federal Commission
Of Mines which would lay down the
broad policies Of control. gather in
formation through a permanent fact
finding agency, and have az its head
Secretary Of Mines. Its membership
wouId be limited 10 eleven. five Of whom
would be named by professional so
cieties, such as the engineering groups,
and the remaining six members aP-
pointed by the President rs rune
lions would include also scientific cost
finding, research, prieehxing and bud
0et determination. This commission, IN
(coatsos6 o. pst Dast