The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-06-11
Some Features of the Strike OF the
Western Pennsylvania Miners

They hone to import unemployed workers TO
take the place of the striking miners and at the
same time to bring these unemployed workers
into the UMWA
But the National Miners Union has begun
campaign among the unemployed, and is con-
Meeting closely the demands of the employed
and unemployed workers in the strike.
While the bosses use all the agencies at their
connand-an increase of terroristic activities,
the beginnings of evictons on large scale, the
use of the UMWA, and government conciliators,
the National Miners Union has the thousands of
strikers solidly behind the union and is quickly
spreading the strike The fact that this strike is
strike carried on by the masses of miners
themselves, is demonstrated at every step in the
development of the struggle. The local STRIKE
committee, which conducts the strike activities
locally in the case of every mine on strike, was
elected at mass meeting of the strikers. The To-
cal strike committee directs all of the local &C
tivity, including the defense, relief, mass pick
citing, etc. The local strike committee has It's
delegates on the rank and file district strike
committee, which meets regularly and is now
composed of nearly 800 strikers. Between meet
ings of the District Strike Committee, the Ex-
ecutive Committee of the district strike commit
tee, consisting of II strikers, meets.
The strike has been conducted from the first
day, on the basis of picketing and marches on a
mass scale Few strikes in the recent period have
involved such large numbers of strikers in the
day to day work of the strike.
The strikers themselves have proved the best
and most effective organizers to spread the
strike, and to keep scabs out Of the mine. They
have shown great initiative in the strike activity.
Picket lines have contained as high as 1000 and
5000 workers, and every mine at which march
has been held by the strikers SO far joined the
rfriEe of
have been held in Washington County on
number of occasions. Strike committees in most
cases are maintaining their rigid discipline
among the strikers and those few elements
which crept in among the strikers are being
quickly weeded out.
| The miners have quickly developed forces for
| local leadership. Such strikers as Dan Lane,
| Porter Davis and scores of Others who, at the
beginning of the strike, could not make speech,
| are now becoming regular and fluent speakers at
| the strikers mass meetings
The organization of the pcketing, the organ
ization of mass meetings, leaflet distribution,
house to house visits, etc., has been capably car
ried on by the local strike leadership and the
| rank and file miners.
In the working up of the demands, also the
the rank and file participated throughout. The
demands were first formulated in the scale COM
mittee, elected by the first meeting or the Dis
trict Rank and File Strike Committee. The scale
committee then brought into the district COM
mittee it, recommendations which were care
fully gone over one by one amended, and finally
passed upon. Thus, in the formulation OF the
demands, all striking mines were represented.
The miners not only of Western Pennsylvania
but of Eastern Ohio and West Virginia and other
districts, have undoubtedly entered into a bit
ter and sharp struggle against the starvation
policy of the bosses Without doubt the Goa
operators will use every agency at their dispose
against the strikers. The tear gas bombs have
been thrown. Many arrests have taken place
evictions have already been carried out, scabs
have been brought in in some mines these scab'
TONED the strikers the UMWA is openly al
agent of the bosses. heavy concentration ha!
already taken place in Washington County, O
gangsters, state police, coal and iron police, spe
cial deputies, and constables We may expec
IN increase in the terroristic methods. All roae