Evening star., 1925-07-25
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

After Summer evermore succeeds
Barren Winter with his wrathful, nipping
cold.
That is just Shakespearean poetry
in July; it will be realism before Christ
mas, when we shall hear:
Toms a-cold, O do de, do de, do
de"'
Even his majesty may then respond
How doSt, my boy? Art cold? !
am cold myself"
There are momentouS conferences
now going on between the coal miners
and the operators, not alone of the
United States, but in England and
other countries The results of those
conferences may bring steam or hoar
frost in palace and cottage. and may
start or stop the wheels of production
throughout Europe and America
Every two years we have the cold
shivers down our spines at the fear
that the miners and operators may not
agree, and the innocent bystanders'
our helpless Selves-may need extra
blankets and longer hours in beds as
a result of the economic arguments of
strikers and strikes.
x K
President Coolidge, through his "of-
fetal spokesman" gives out the cheer
ing intimation that unless the con-
ferees get together the Government
may get them together as BENJAMIN
Franklin said about the signers of the
Declaration of independence: we
must hang together or hang sepa-
rately." Whether Mr. Coolidge has in
mind a Rooseveltian act of taking over
the mines and operating them, rather
than let the people suffer through pri.
Yate greed of miners and operators: or
whether he would arbitrate with moral
suaslon, Is not yet apparent. The bien-
MAJ crisis in coal supplies is upon us,
and the fact that it is simultaneous
in England and the United States
makes it more serious than usual
x x x
There have been many suggestions
for eliminating the biennial hazard of
our fuel supply and for standardizing
coal mining. 1t is undisputed thar
most of the trouble comes from there
being too many miners, so that they
all work too few days in the wear.
Yet, the obvious economic law which
would equalize the labor supply and
demand appears neutralized by the
strange fascination of mining, which
holds even the excess miners to the
trade, instead of sending them into
other channels of industry Offering
steadler employment and better re-
wards. One plan for standardizing
coal mining proposes to license all
mines doing interstate commerce.
upon condition that they keep their
miners busy a certain number of
months year. Some miners do not
find mining employment three months
out of the year; yet, as a rule, they
refuse to work at other trades during
the intervals and base their claims
for pay upon their yearly incomes,
demanding a living wage" which
will support their families, even with
their short periods of activity.
There are special conditions sur
rounding certain mines, due to their
transportation problems, which make
1t impossible for them to pay union
wages, and, with their extra transpor-
tation expenses, meet the competition
Of more favorably situated mines.
Hence, many mines are closed and
their miners idle, yet the union man
ayers and agents refuse to consider
any conditions except the demand for
uniform wages. No laws can force a
business to continue operations under
persistent losses, but Federal laws
might forbid such mines from oper-
ating at all, unless they can work a
certain proportion of full time. In
Illinois there are 100000 miners
WOThlIlS only TWO Gays n week, ana
doing the work that 200 900 might
do, working full time, like other pro-
ducers. According to Secretary Davis
of the Department of Labor, 50 skines
in Illinois. if properly organized and
worked 800 days year. could pro-
duce 100000 more tons than the
1,034 mines now produce-77, 900, 900
tons, with one-third time.
X X X
The miners are demanding a 10 per
cent increase of the present wage
scale, while the operators assert that
even at the present wages much an
thracite last year was marketed at
loss. and that the public will not pay
higher prices than now charged for
anthracite but will turn to other fuels