The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1922-04-02

hH' bpctulutf sOieilillN usfstu LNut
they would meet with US before April
They pledged their word Us bus-
Ness men They signed that agfee.
ment IN writing in New York Il was
u pledge as binding as any bond OF
promissory note that any set of men
: ever signed.
Broke Agreement.
We thought thcy signed It IN good
1aith. But now they refuse TO live
mp 10 their agreement They nave
refused potnt.blank to do as they
agreed they would do. II they were
to refuse to pay their debts it would
be no more diahonorable than their re
fusal TO keep their agreement with
the miners
These operators do not DENY that
they are contract.breaker They ONLY
say: We'll what are you going 10
do about it?"
In the latter part of last December
asked the Operators In compliance
with their promise. To meet with the
miners In Pittsburg to begin negotia
tons for "a new agreement Illinois
and Indiana operators and part of
the ONO group accepted the invitation
out the operators Of the Pittsburg dis
trict and Il part Of Ohio refused. They
merely said they had decided not 10
Keep their word
They scrapped their agreement, lust
~ the kaiser scrapped his treaties
with other nations. And, like the
lstiG xsfs tod f, %
other purity 70 the agreement. The
Invasion OF Belgium by the kaiser
was no more ruthless than the inva-
sion of the miners' union by these
Pittsburg and OHIO operators
s-ek tO Break Union.
They proposed TO wreck the union.
as the kaiser wrecked belgium and
northern France. Suffering and star
vation Of coal miners and their fam
Lies became Of no greater consequence
10 them than the suffering Of the Bel
sian and French people
II is. perhaps the most notorious
and objectionable case Of contract
honor that the country has ever
seen.
When the Pittsburg and Ohio oper.
ators refused 10 meet with the miners
the Pittsburs meeting was necessarily
Cancelled. Later ] issued a second cal
for meeting. thinking that. perhaps,
these foen would yet decide 10 live
~ 10 their promises But they re
fused again.
Refused L. ;. Request.
SO fragrant and indefensible was
their action that President Harding
denounced II and directed Secretary
~ Labor Davis 70 cali on the opera
tofs 70 keep their words But they
refused even the government.
Instead. they asked the govern.
inent 10 keep it's hands off and allow
rhe coal companies to make their
fight for the destruction OF the min.
efs' union. ia other words these coal
companies have arbitrarily placed them.
selves above the government itself
and have politely told the government
10 20 10.
There was nothing left for the min.
ers 10 do but TO quit work until the
question Of what their wages shall
be is determined. We are not asking
FOR higher wages in the bituminous
coal Industry.
Scale Agreeable.
Our men did not make a living last
year and they are not yet making a
living. but they are willing 10 take
chance with the present wage scale
for the next two years, in the hope
that there will be- business revival
that will afford them reasonably steady
employment and an opportunity TO
.arn "a living for their families. The
miners are hot quitting work because
they want 10 quit. They want to
work But the operators are determ.
incd that they shall not work except
at starvation wages. and that the
union shall be destroyed so ~ to de-
prye the men OF all means Of prutec.
ton
Want Public to Know.
We want the public TO know all
the facts, because We know that the
public will then place the blame where
1t belongs The operators started in
deliberately TO compel the miners 10
strlke.
They have declared that all coal
miners shall work FOR the same rniser.
able rate VI starvation wages that are
paid TO the poor, helpless in the non
union fields of West Virginia and Ala
bama. They are seeking to reduce
the level OF Americn citizenship by
cutting down the earning capacity
" these workers. But the union min.
.rs viii not stand for It. Nor would
any other American citizen stand for
g.
Up. Not Down.
Why not work TO bring the condl.
thA " these non.union men up TO
the level OF theo rganized fields. In.
stead OF dragging the organized fields
down to the degraded level OF the non
union fields'
The United Mine Workers Of Amer
lea face this struggle with the firm
belief that the American public real.
ICES they are making a fight for the
maintenance OF justice In the coal In
dustry and ~ the preservation Of a
moral standard in business. We be-
lieve business men should live up to
their contracts.
Sell Il through the Ardmoreite Went