The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-04-03

Washington, April 3-The trouble between the operators and the miners of the soft coal fields is of long stand ing
 Officials of the mining department of the American Federation of La bor, in reviewing conditions and events which led up to the present difficulties go back to 1916, when a wage agreement was secured by the miners at conference with the op- orators in Mobile. Ala This agree ment was signed at New " ork city on February 24, 1916. and it provided for an advance of three cents ton at the passing points and the adoption of the mine run system through the Central Competitive Field
 About the time this agreement went into effect the war in Europe began tn cast it's shadow in the United States. There were increases in the cost of living, which was said to have resulted partly from the purchase O. large quantities of supplies in this country for the allied governments.
 Decided Wages Inadequate.
 The coal miners decided that their wages were inadequate, and many or the workers began to leave the mines for healthier and better paid jobs on the surface
 Relations between the operators and their employees became badly strain ed so an informal conference of the in Indianapolis in April, 1917. This meeting resulted in an interstate conference of the same parties in New York city about the middle or was reached at the New York con ference to run until March 31, 1918, providing for an increase of ten cents a ton on pick and machine mining rates and an increase of sixty cents per day on day work, with no ad- Vance on yardage and dead work. As prices continued to go up, the 'Committee on Coal Production was organized as part of the Council or National Defense in an effort to bring about a more stable condition. The operators the miners and the public were represented on this committee The committee, which was later sue ceeded by the United States Fuel Ad- miniStration. called a meeting or coal states and secured an agreement for the lowering of the prices of bitumln- ous coal as a temporary measure un- til a comprehensive survey could be made and more equitable prices es- tablished.
 Advance Given in 1917.
 Another joint conference of oper- ators and miners was held in Wash ington in September. 1917. which led to an agreement providing for an advance of $1.40 a day for day work CTS and a. 15 per cent. advance OF
 Alter this conference and as cor ditions continued to grow worse the miners tried to get the Fuel Admin istrators to call another meeting to discuss the situation, but were un- successful.
 When the national convention of the United Mine Workers of America was held in Cleveland, the miners Formulated demands for a 60 per cent increase in wages, a siN-hour day and a five-ttay week. The demands were submitted to the operators at joint conference in Buffalo, N. Y, on Septenber g, 1919. but were not ac- cepted. The same thing happened at another joint conference in Phila- delphia in October.
 "The operators had evidently been advised" according to James Lord. president of the mining departmer of the American Federation of Labor. "that the Lever law could and would be construed to deny the right of the miners to cease work in the event an agreement could not be reached. So they forwarded a policy which they knew could only result in the failure of negotia tions. relying on this ad- vice that the miners could easily be stopped by the Government from eN- ercisfns. their economic power
 ''Strike Naturally Ensued.'
 ''The strike naturally enSued. The belief Of the operators that the min CTS were to be restrained by the gov ernmen from striking was the direc~ cause of the strike The miners could not continue to accept wages which represented an actual reduction in real remuneration. All the oper- atives have ever recognized, the only