The midland journal., 1946-12-13
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Released by Western Newspaper Union.
LEWIS WRECKING COAL
INDUSTRY BY STRIKES
yAUL MALLON

LEWIS WRECKING COAL
INDUSTRY BY STRIKES
Observation-Disclosures fac
tors behind the coal strike can best
be told in a personal vein. ! do
not wish to get into an argument
about the strike. am biased.
In the first place, this strike
against government was deeply
stained with politics. Lewis served
notice of the breakage of a con-
tract with the government a few
days before election. His United
Mine Workers man in West Virginia
came out against the Democratic
senatorial candidate (who won, in
cidentally). Lewis is now Repub-
lican. He timed his strike POLITICAL
ly against Democratic administra-
ton which has chosen to stand up
against him in a strong way, and
which could possibly break his
union, now that election is over.
1t is not in that respect 1 am
biased, but solely as regards
Lewis and his tactics. Despite
his audacity, he never lost a
strike during the Roosevelt re-
gime. He always seemed to
know where the body was hid
den around the White House.
When he clung to audacity in the
matter of hours and wages, he
was on sound ground. Some
people turned against him be-
cause he called strike of his
vital public utility in wartime.
/ turned against him when he
levied tax on every ton of coal
produced. No labor leader has
a right to levy a consumption
tax, indeed no one has except a
government. When he did that,
for what he called a welfare
fund, he put himself in the class
with PetrillO as a Little Caesar.
OIL REPLACING COAL
Soft coal is consumed these days
mostly by middle class or poor
people, and by public utilities like
the railroads and steam electric
power plants. The well-to-do and
successful people and concerns al
ready have found oil burners to be
more reliable than coal, and they
rely on this higher cost heat.
Peacetime production of coal is
now about the same as Is years ago,
but the value has fallen consider
ably. Anyway, railroad rates to
consumers and the electrical rates
largely ARE fixed by government
commissions on the basis of costs.
Therefore a strike in coal falls al
most entirely upon two classes Of
citizens (not the coal management,
which has long since proved to weak
to fight Lewis, who has caused the
mines to be operated since April by
the federal government). These two
classes are: those who cannot af-
ford better fuel, and the electrical
consumers, the travellers and freight
rate payers (you all pay this in the
price of your goods). Against these
people Lewis has staged five strikes
in the past nine years, while con-
stantly failing to keep up the value
of his product. Value of our total
soft coal production of 416 million
tons in 1921 was 81, ,199, 1874, 900 while
the total value of just about the
same amount, 460 million tons in
1910 was less-$879, 900, ,000.)
Lewis actually has priced coal
out Of its normal expectations Of
expanded use against better
fuels by strikes against the COM
panies eliminating in a strike
against government. He has
considerably abandoned de-
mands based upon earnings Of
the companies (the old plea Of
unions to capture earnings) and
now wants coal prices which will
meet his demands. Against such
a shortsighted policy In static
II not waning industry, the pub
lie has taken steps.
LEWIS RIDING TO A FALL
The railroads and electrical COM
panies are perhaps the largest users
Of coal and they are developing other
means. Electrification of the Penn
sylvania railroad has turned out well
and diesel locomotives are handling
passenger and freight traffic eff
ficiently and increasingly. Water
power development is cutting down
need for standby steam plants and
local steam plants.