The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-11-22
CANDY WARNS OF FEDE ERAL BUREAU
Secretary Of Coal 0rganiza- tion Wary Of Politics In
 Industry

the United States has done everything g
 possible by voluntary cooperation
 with the government to help solve the
 coal problems that arose out of war conditions but care must be taken
 lest bureaucratic restriction cause ir- reparable harm to the whole business
 structure, Harry L. Candy, secretary
 of the National Coal association, told
 members of the Alabama Mining in-
 stitute at their annual meeting Wed nesday.
 MT. lGandy's address was the prin- cipaI feature of the convention, which was held at the Roebuck Country club A business session was held in the
 morning, when interesting reports of officers were heard and directors elected to succeed the members of the board who retire automatically this year. Directors chosen were: c. T. Fairbairn succeeding Frank H. Crock ard; J. D. McClary, succeeding George F. Peter; S. l.. Yerkes, succeeding H 1 T. DeBardeleben. New officers of the Institute will be eletced at the meet ing of directors in December.
 | MT. Candy spoke at the afternoon session, which followed barbecue | luncheon at noon. MT. Candy said l in part:
 Alabama is one of the seven major coal producing states in the Union Your coal deposits have been esti-
 mated at all the way from ten billion
 to thirty-three billion tons. As yet you have mined scarcely 500, ,00O tons, so that the future of your in dpstry in this state can be measured
 in very long period of time.
 Your industry directly pays out
 something near $30,0o0,000 year in
 wages and indirectly in making pos 1 sible other great industries within
 your state, $130,560,O0O for present
 mines and equipment and S16O, O,OO0,0Oo for reserve tonnage, total of $292, 560,0 ,000 for the coal properties of Ala , bama is the valuation placed thereon by the committee of engineers ap- pointed by the United States coal commission to value the bituminous coal properties of the United States. Looking backward for moment we see that during the great war
 which shook civilization to it's founda- tions, the prices of two great commod- ities in the United States were fixed | by either law or government regula- tion. Many people have an idea that under the fuel administration and the food control the prices of coal and of wheat were fixed to make money for those engaged in produc- ton. Such, however, was not the
 case. There was demand for each or these products, at home and abroad in excess of the supply and the price was fixed as a production against
 runaway markets. It, isf safe to as-
 sume that had not the price of wheat been fixed around $2, the producers would have received at least $5 a bushel for 1t before the conclusion Of the war. and the Lord alone knows
 to what heights coal would nave scared because of the bidding Of buy CTS against each other for the output of the mines of this country during those troublous days Hence, the producers of both wheat and coal without for a moment questioning the authority of the government made a long contribution to the cause of the nation.
 s"The things which led up to the creation of the United States coal commission are too we'll known to l demand repetition. In practically all industries there had been great ad- vancement of wages during the war and again in the business imitation oi 1920. The depression of 1921 called for readjustment, but in the maln
 that was denied to bituminous coal production. I understand, however |. that here in Alabama you were Tn iszt 1 confronted with labor disturbances
 amounting to almost lnsurrscfslon ss which was encouraged, nurtured, tos- tered and financed by persons outside your great commonwealth.
 "On July 30, 1923, in statement
 to the United States coal commis- | sion, MT. Brydon, chairman or the
 bituminous operators special com
 mittee, and now the president of the | National Coal association, expressed 1 the thought that there is value t6 | the industry in the compilation ol statistics concerning it. Further, hls
 belief that if the public is regularly | informed of the business facts oi
 the bituminous coal industry, mls'
 support of the public for the 1 industry can be secured. MT
 Brydon then said: Accordingly,
 was authorized by a vote of my com
 mittee to inform your honorable body that 1t is prepared to take up with
 you a plan for the voluntary pupic- l ity, through some existing govern
 mental agency, such as the depart ment of the interior or the depart ment of commerce, of facts as tc
 costs and earnings of the industry and the wage earnings of miners and other vital information concern | ing the industry
 "That offer of voluntary publicity was not acted on by the commission | but, in it's report, came the recon mendation for compulsory publicity 1 It will be for the operators to de- | eide, in fact, for business generally to decide just how far they expect the government exercise the righ' of search where no offense ls charged.
 Many coal producing companies sell right at the mine every pound of coal they produce, so if the coa moves in interstate commerce it IS the purchaser who moves it. Tho federal trade commission, in tryine ! to stretch the control of interstate commerce to the extent that would | permit it to investigate coal mining 1 companies. insisted In the courts, 1T both the Claire Furnace company and the Maynard Coal company cases ] that the coal Is moving in interstate commerce from. the time it leaves | the face of the seam.
 Tt is interesting, in thisconnec- l tion, to note in recent speech by MT. Hunt, who was the secretary of | the United States coal commission 1 dations of the commission rest or l the proposition that coal Is clothed | with a public interest and that the | production and distribution of coal 1 constitute a single service. The su-
 preme court of the United States has 1 said coal is not clothed with pub
 lie interest, at least in normal times and Congress, by law, enforced a 1 separation of coal mine and railroad l ownership. Thus the first proposi- 1 ton will not prevail unless the couri | reverses itself or the constitution is 1 amended, and, on the second, it is ! pertinent to inquire why. if produc- | ton and transportation constitute a | single service, did the government ! require separate ownership.
 ''Instead of being constructively helpful, my experience with federal departments in Washington is that
 some of them have been prone to | take advantage of technicaities or scanty information to make show | ing for themselves. recent ex-