The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-10-30
rry-Go-ROund

WASHNGTON-It was heralded in the headlines last weekend that the chief subject of discussion by the Cabinet was the threatened coal strike This, however, was not the case.
 Actually President Truman gave the impending coal strike only few brief seconds He opened the Cabinet session by stating that since Secretary of the Interior Krug was absent from the city, the sub ject of coal would be taken up at another time.
 Meanwhile government lawyers are at odds over the interpretation of the contract John L. Lewis signed with the Interior Department last Spring. privately critical of Interior Department lawyers. They say the coal contract is loosely worded and full of loopholes.
 However Assistant Secretary of the Interior Warner Gardner, who helped draw up the contract, claims that under its terms Lewis has right what soever to call strike He says privately that Lewis is merely looking for chance to cause enbarrass- ment on the eve of elections The contract provides for discussion between Lewis and the government of technical matters only not wages and hours
 The technical matters Lewis has thrown into the governments face are first that the coal is weighed at the tipple after it is washed not in coal cars be- fore washing Washing at the tipple means that the ash and rock is sorted out the coal weighs per- cent less This, Lewis claims, reduces the miners welfare fund of cents per ton
 In a scant five months however the welfare fund has already reached $7,O00,oo0, and the United Mine Workers wealthy that they have purchased one of the largest office buildings in Washington in add ton to buying the swang University Club as oak paneled headquarters for John L. Lewis.
 Grievance No. 2 against the government is failure to give miners allowance for vacation pay when they leave the job before the end of the year. Here how ever, Krug has already accepted an award in Illinois in favor of the miners Thus, only issue, washing coal at the tipple, remains to be settled For this, John L. Lewis threatens to close down the entire coal industry
 (NOTE-Real fact is that Lewis has always wanted to negotiate contract in November, the of cold weather, rather than in the Spring, the of warm weather. Obviously his negotiating powers much greater when people fave shiver- ing homes Also he is not to stirring up little industrial uncertainty just before elections.)
 Down in New Mexico, battle of the languages is going between Patrick J. Hurley, Hoovers Secretary of War; and Senator Dennis Chavez in their race for the U. s. Senate.
 To appeal to New Mexican voters it is almost essential to speak Spanish New Mexican courts, for instance, bilingual, with both Spanish and Eng fish official.
 Senator Chavez, of course is equally at home with either language Hurley is not However, Chavez has pulled new trick on the ex-Oklahoman. You want somebody in Washington who speaks your language" Chavez tells his audiences. But want you to know that also speak Pats"
 Whereupon, Chavez proceeds to recite the Lord. prayer and the Ave Maria in Gaelic
 Pat Hurley, of course, while making quite a play of being Irish in Catholic New Mexico, speaks not one word of Gaelic
 (NOTE-At tne Pat did not make such great show of being Irish. His father born