Year: 1869

To the Editor Of The Tribune.


SIR: Your editorial in Tuesdays issue on
"The Coal Miners" has been read here with the attention
which THE TRIBUNE commands, and has given rise TO
much discussion. AS you say that you do not fully
derstand the ccamipers case" will you permit inter
esed party to suggest one or two considerations Which
seem to have escaped youl


IT, as you intimate, labor is commodity, 1t seems to
me it should be governed by the law Of supply and de
mand. That is where there is glut Of miners their
wages should go down when a scarcity their wages
should rise the demand OF the miners for fixed
proportion OF the selling price Of Coal ignores the law Of
supply OF labor altogether They demand the same in
variable share Of the selling price Of Coal whether miners
are scarce or abundant Il it reasonable 70 expect to


But, yon may say the price Of Coal in NewYork ndl.
Gates the demand for the arce hence the demand for
mining labor and so should reguatewage5 Indirectly,
and extent, 1t WILL but not directly, nor fully.
suppose you nave sahnpll, ahC nav man man ugsing
there at II 30 per day suppose hat Hd IS louhG ny lot
making glass and rebles IN value; VIII you stralgtWay
harder because your sand Is suddenly worth mofef
Would cost him any more 20 yef Is there any reason
why he should be advanced labor REMAINING equally
plentyi Now suppose Coal rises IN Vaue Is the mEeF
work any harden Does 1t cost him any more to llyel
Again, please TO recoec that the companies have sever
al thousand OF other kinds Of brake
men, &c Suppose basis adopted, and Coal TO rise 90
per cent would could submit 10 pay the miners wages
out Of all proportion higher than those pad Other classes
OF aborl And, If did how long before every other
kind Of labor would be bowling Tor an advanced Who
could manage large concern, pursuing such pOhcyi





Of men Will rush TO the mines and then comes gut Ot
mining labor What theni Must we still have the same
baslsi Is this Political Economyi


But you say, give the miners their basis and there will
be no more strikes Sir you never saw S2ai nine % or
value 80 per cent, how long DO you suppose f niner
would accept wages clear below what other classes OF
labor were gettgl The miners say they would suspend
TIL Coal rose. Suspend Not much. Let these men once
get their right TO basis firmly established, and when
Coal does 20 down shall have-nOt suspcnsOn-but
S1ke for higher tasls II this is not So then expert
ence is a cheat and deuson An nvariable here,
at least, is impraeticabity. The men are entitled
to fair compensation for their skl aud me-as com
pared with other classes Of abOr-and 10 nothing mOrel


Again feel Of your assent when say that the
no matter what his bU5iness-edltor ir0nmaser or
coal OperaOrwho does not absolutely control that bus
ness far his subOrdnates are CONCERNED, who sub
mts 10 be hampered controlled, dictated to by his
plOyes IS on the road 70 rum. Now SIT, II you will MAKE
me any operator q visit believe convince you
pretty thoroughly IN hail an hour that TINS suspension OF
business good deal more than strike for basis.
The fact is it Is nothing more nor less than link in
long chain OF attempts on the part Of these men to con
troll their employers So far from getting peace by yield
ing TO them we have never yet yielded single point but
Il has been made fucrum for new and more eXtrava
CANT demands. Their insolence is uubounded They
assume to control entirely In various places they have
passed resolutions declaring how long an apprenticeship


man must before shall be aiLOWed to give hun
the position OF miner at what shall be aoUed TO
we shall be aUowed 10 employ with various other
things which shall or not DO aHO,ced TO DO They die
tate what constitutes days work and they have re-
beaedly attempd TO dG:a to expulsion Of obnoxious
wOrkmen and foremen so farfrom basis satisfying these
men, in place where 1t granted after they had
dqTeed TO go work. coming together they declined
t9 work unless certain obnoxious official was dismissed
I'm another place unless still another matter was yelded
i'm another place. they demanded the right TO inspect their
emuoyers books. In short they wish TO take entire
troll and from endeavornR to carry their points In


legal manner hardly week passes but your paper
contains kilograms detailing their murderous ourages
whilst their official organ is constantly filled with devil
sh threats. For us 70 yield then sir, would eventually
be utter ruin. -, g., 80,


ASK YOU then Sir whether you will throw the great
influence OF THE TRIBUNE in favor OF mems controlling
their own business and their own property or VI giving
N into the hands OF their labOrerst


n I am right Will you admit itf II am wrong, will
you show wherei have the honor TO be respectfully
yours, - AN ASIEhEslED rAhII'


Response By Tho ItibgNa,


Our correspondent views the matter at issue
under a single aspect-that whichit presents to
an owner and worker Of eOsl-pines. We, on
the other band, fegard it as but an incident in
the struggle to place the relations Of Capital
ana Labor on broader, jdstet, and more benel-
cen, foundations. This is grand and grave
problem; we have given o good part Of the
last thirty years tQ its study, but do not pre-
tend 10 nave mastered it, We stand ready to
be taught and corrected; we hope to be wiser
ten years hence, If we should live 50 long: vet
it is not presumption to hold that we have
better comprehension of this controversy than
those who have not -studied il at all and uboso