Evening star., 1926-06-19
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

scribing the wonderful sOIids rity" of
| the general strike. as seen in the
morning of it's cola pse, the report
said
Then came the astounding news
that the three rail union secreta ries
had signed an agreement that
acknowledged the right Of the COM
panies to sue for damages and prom.
| ised to call no strike in the future ex-
eept after negotiations-thuS preclud.
ing all possibility Of future strike in
support of the miners or any other in
dustry.''
The London Herald. another abor
organ. also conceded the complete
failure of the general strike--"a dis
astrous defeat, compared to which
Black Friday Is only a joke"
~ **
This demonstrate of the imprac-
ticability of maintaining a general
strike In just one country is taken
by sociologists as conclusive proof of
its absolute impossibility as a world
strike. Conflicting interests of wage
earners in various nations and in
industries conflicting with the farmer
producers of food, and the mutual
interdependence of the various classes
within the circles of wage earners
preclude concert of action against
any other class. To attempt such,
say labor leaders. becomes at once a
revolution, justifying society's mill
tary defense for the feeding and pro-
lection of all classes.
Several Of the leading authorities
upon labor conditions in the United
States, being asked what possibilities
there are of ever seeing an attempt
l IN
their opinions that such a disa ster is
inconceivable, owing to the general
intelligence of American workers.
Pressed for more detailed. though
ina ginative, consideration, they point
ed out that strike involving all
industries would at once bring as
great suffering to our wage-earners
as to any other class. for indus
trialists are also consumers OF food
and clothing. dependent upon trans.
porta ton of coal and all other indis-
pensable supplies.
The most vulnerable point of attack
to lead to a general strike would
be the cosl industry, agreed all the
authorities. All anthracite is mined
by 10000 producing miners; these are
attended by 900 clerks and other
assista nts, who do not need to be
trained as miners. The anthracite
miners must be licensed, under the
Pennsylvania law, before they can
enter a mine, and practically all an
thracite is mined in that State. So
if the Soviets could gain the adhesion
of 10000 anthracite miners they
would stop all anthracite production.
But bituminous coal miners need no
licenses, and while we consume 9O,-
900 900 tons Of anthracite, we use
$50 ,0O0 900 tons of soft COAL and this
soft coal is what runs our industries
and transportation. Anthracite Is
used mainly in domestic heating.
There are 100000 miners in bitumi-
nous mines, half of whom are non
unionists, and all are unlicensed
miners. If they all struck, transpor-
tation of food supplies would be para
lyZed, and the idle miners would suf-
fer as acutely the lack of food as
would others. Use of gasoline trans
portation would be inadequate to sup
ply the lack of railroads in this huge
country; and, besides, the production
of gasoline would also be stopped.
Expert authority states that starva-
ton conditions would begin within two
weeks, in many parts of the country,
and idle wage-earners would be the
first to hunger.
Copyright. 1928. by Paul v. Collins.)