The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-03-18

government regulation of the bi.
luminous coal industry. This bill
introduced into the Sena by SEN
ator Watson, and upon which ex-
tensive hearings have been held re-
Gently before the Interstate Com
merce, Commission, was drawn up
and presented at the instance of the
officialdom of the United Mine
Workers. 1t Institutes the latest
and most insidious effort of the
Lewis machine to enslave the miners
to the operators, to still further de.
generate what is left of the U. M
w. of A. into an auxiliary Of the
employers. 1t is part of the gen
eral attack of the employers against
the working and living standards
of the workers; phase of Amer.
lean imperialism's program of re-
organizing and undermining" the
industries in preparation for the ap.
preaching war.
To Liquidate Crisis
| The expressed aim of the Watson
Bill is to liquidate the deep going
crisis in the coal industry, brought
about by overdevelopment, mechan.
ization, speed up, use of substitutes
for coal, etc. and manifesting itself
in an excess productive capacity Of
SOC, 100000 tons of coal, regularly
idle miners, vast unemployment, etc.
by abolishing competition between
the 5000 bituminous coal operators
and setting up monopoly conditions
Lewis treacherous differences are
that the workers will gain in wages
and economic power by helping tt
bring about this justification. But
in reality the whole thing planned al
/ the expense of tho miners.
The bill proposes to abolish com
petition by declaring soft coal &
public utility and, by setting up 6
federal bituminous coal commission
along the lines of the interstate com.
merce commission, to regulate this
industry. The coal commission would
have vast powers, all going in the
direction of concentrating the soft
coal industry and the coal miners
under the control of the giant oper'
ators.
| Commission of 5.
The coal commission would con.
sist of five members, appointed by
the president of the United States
This would ensure its domination by
big capital. Among its many powers
the commission would have the right
to license pools and selling coopera
tive agreements formed by Goa
dealers to agree on the market price
of their Goals. 1t would also have
the right to fix maximum prices
distribute the markets, etc. Thi!
would give it strangle hold on the
distributive end Of the industry en-
| abling the commission to beat in
dividual operators or groups of then
into submission.
The commission would also have
power t. bring about mergers ant
consultations of coal companies, te
permit which the Sherman and Clay.
ton Antitrust Laws are to be
amended. The commission would al,
so have the task of developing eco
Monies" in the production of coal
which would mean the enforcement
of the speed-up, mechanization and
general naturalization of the indus
try at the expense of the coal miners
The commission, by reason of its
authority to set price with regard
to wages paid to miners" would
undertake to establish wage rates,
and finally, by it's general power and
its specific attempt to lay down con-
ditions for organization reminiscent
of the semi-company unionism Of the
Watson-Parker Railroad Law it
would seek to dictate the character
of the workers unionism.
The Watson coal bill is not only
a proposal to trustify and monopol-
ize the coal industry for the big ca
pitalists through fundamentally of
the government. 1t is also scheme
to turn the regulation of the min
cr3' wages, working conditions. and
the control Of their union organiza-
ton over to the coal commission
dominated by the big coal operators.
What that would mean to the min
ers may better be imagined than
described. This project, put for
ward by that notorious agent of the
coal operators, John L. Lewis, is one
of the most treacherous proposals
in the history of the American la
Dor movement. 1t is flatly in OPP
position to the miners interests and
in line with the interests of big ca
pital in the coal industry.
Lewis plan is the program of big
capital in the coal industry. It's
basic principles are endorsed by
many prominent economists and ca
pitalists.
1t is instructive that rather than
put the plan out themselves the
operators do it through their labor
agent, Lewis. 1t is sort of flying
kite, feeler to begin the solution
for the capitalists of their compli-
Gated problem of consolidation and
&C ntrol in the coal industry. Con-
siderable opposition was made To