Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-09-27
UNION MINERS DEFY
WEST VIRGINIA BAN
Lewis and Others, Served in
10 Suits, Score Owners
at Mass Meeting.
BY the Associated Press.


FAIRMONT, w. Va, September &c.
declarations that the United Mine
Workers are in northern West Vir-
ginia to stay" formed the common
theme of addresses today by highest
officers Of the union at miners DEM
onStration and mass meeting, held on
the day the union had called upon
non-union workers to join the union
members IN Il strike. A parade pre-
ceded the speech making, at which
President John l.. Lewis and other
high union officials praised the strike
so far waged and pledged support to
it for the future.
What effect the call on the workers
in non-union mines would have was
ubScured today. Union officials occu-
pied themselves with the days cele-
bration and made no effort at survey
of the field The Bracket statistical
service, conducted by a former secre-
tary of the operators association, Is
sued a statement presenting the oper-
ators' contention that a normal sat
urday force was at work today. Inc
statement conceded that some or the
smaller non-union mines hao no'eu
absences from their forces Whlch, II
was Contended, might have been only
u 'lay,off" to enjoy the celebration.
Served i'm 10 Suits.
An incident of the visit OF union
officers was the serving upon tneln
of papers in 10 injunction suits. me
injunctions had been before various
courts and each had named as De
PENDANTS the union and its prlnclpal
officers. This was the first time, now
ever. that these men had been IN the
State, and a deputy from Sherllr fle
gins office visited President Lewis,
prnS
Murray of Pittsburgh, and lnterna-
tionaI Secretary Treasurer Thomas
Kennedy of HaZelton, Pa, and mace
formal service of the court actlons'
AT Clarksburg while en- route mere.
n deputy also sought to serve lesal
document on Mr.. Lewis, who refused
to accept it. The attorney represent
ing the coal company that hau 90
tanned the injunction, however, con-
tended that the incident would be
considered as a legal service.
President Lewis address was de-
veloped around the charge of the
charge of the union that operators
conducting non union mines in this
vicinity had abrogated their agree
mentS with the union Ito degree
which reveals moral turpitude upon
the part of u group of coal operators
who are seeking to escape their con-
tractual obligations upon the f'imsy
grounds of business eXpediency.
Will Back Wage Pact.
Vice President Murray paid tribute
TO the solidarity" of the union mem
bers in this section, assured his hear
ers the organization would stand SOL
idly behind them until wage agree
ments again We're signed. Secretary
Kennedy gave similar assurances.
President Lewis in his address de-
clared that the violation of the Jack
sonville wage agreement by a group
of operators should command the at
tention Of the Government.
When the three-year agreement was
signed in 1924, he said, it was 'nego-
tiated and executed with the aid and
cooperation of high Government Off
Gals After reciting that the agree
ment had been dishonored and i'm
paired to a degree which reveals moral
turpitude upon the part Of a group
of operators who are seeking to es-
cape their contractual obligations upon
the fiimsy grounds of business expe-
diency," Mr.. Lewis said 1.-The Govern
ment has an obligation in these prem
ises.''
The industry has a right" he said,
''to expect that the moral influence
and power of those same Government
officials will be utilized to preserve the
integrity of the agreement, and to
maintain in the public veal the tran
quillity of the coal industry.
Demand Pact Be Respected.
1.-THE mine workers simply ask that
those coal operators who executed the
agreement be compelled to live up to
their contracts and not act the part
of Industrial knaves and poltroons who
seek to render to their employees less
than Is their just due"
Mr.. Lewis specifically mentioned
that the Pittsburgh Coal Co. and the
Consolidation Coal Co. had led the
group of numerous operators in west
ern Pennsylvania, northern West Vir-
ginia and central Pennsylvania in re-
pudiating the agreement.
He charged that this group in its
~efforts to escape honest obi
cations to free American labor" had
not failed to utilize every instrument
of oppression and repression. He
said:
They have torn up their wage con-
tracts: they have closed their mines
for long periods in order to starve
their employees into submission; they
have evicted their employees from
their homes; they have manned their
properties with armed mine guards,
searchlights, barbed-wire fences. stock
AIDES and such paraphernalia Of war;
they have resorted to the use of un-