Evening star., 1948-06-14
Mine Contract Farley
Will Resume Today;
Pressure Mountinq
BY the kssociated Press


Pressures mounted on both sides
the soft coal contract talks today
with barely three weeks left to avert
another Nation-w wide strike.
The present wage pact expires June
30. but an industry wide vacation to
July 5 makes that the actual dead
line against which John L. Lewis and
the operators are working.
The bargainers were scheduled to
resume their efforts at 2 O'Clock this
afternoon.
Mr. Lewis on Saturday began talk
ing contract terms for the first time
in week of conference. Up to then
he had insisted on winning a COM
mitment from the operators to as
sumo nearly $40, 100000 worth of dis
tress payments to miners which he
lined up under the nearly spent well
fare fund of 1916.
The 1946 fund was established
during Government operation of the
mines. The operators themselves
did not take part directly in setting
1t up or in spending it. Mr.. Lewis
and other members of the funds
Board of Trustees agreed to a series
of payments which would carry over
for as long as another year from
now.
Operators Fefuse to Accept.
But the operators refused to ac-
cept those obligations. The fund
which they agreed to establish last
July, known as the welfare ano re-
tirement fund of 1947, has been
frozen" because Mr.. Lewis and
Ezra Van Horn. the operators,
trustee. could not agree on a miners
pension system.
That issue will be decided Satur-
day by Justice T. Alan Goldsborough.
Mr.. Van Horn has asked the Judge
to stop Mr.. Lewis and Senator
Bridges. Republican. Of New Hamp-
shire. the neutral trustee for the ~
fund, from spending any OF lts
$4,000 900 without Mr.. Van Horns
signature. Mr.. Van Horn CONTENDS
the Bridges-Lewis pension plan
would violate the Taft-Hartley ACT
Senator Bridges voted with Mr..
Lewis Friday to free the Al 1uno
and take on the liabilities OF tne
'4s fund-subject to changes a1ter
a newly authorized study OF costs
Is completed about August l.
Cancellation Director Cyrus Ching
was away for the week eno, ouI
associates said he has been "atcn-
ing the coal negotiations closely
If no progress is made in the next
corple of days, some thought Mr..
Ching might prod Mr.. Lewis ano
the operators into some KIND OF
agreement to use Justice Colds
borough as an umpire in the Pension
tieup.
Nav Go to Supreme Court.
without such an agreement f1nal
settlement OF the issues might be
long DELAYED. Either Mr.. Lewis or
Mr.. Van Horn might carry an un-
favorable decision on Mr.. Van Horns
suit to the Supreme Court, pro-
cedure. which would take six month
or more.
AS for Mr.. Lewis demands, he
has said nothing. but his district
scale committees have. They want
the same ray-sl3O5-for seven
hour day that they now get for
eight hours; 40 cents ton for well
fare and pensions instead OF the
present lG cents, and boost in the
vacation payment from the present
500 to $3.50
The operators placed whole con-
tract offer before Mr.. Lewis last
week. They rejected the idea OF any
wage concession but expressed Will
incness to continue the lO-cent
welfare royalty. A year ago they
fought bitterly over that.
Mr.. Lewis has said nothing about
the offer formally in the negotla-
tions. But the union journal, call
ing it Insignificant, commented that
hell itself would belch its disgust.