coal trade bulletin - Clpdigital.org

26 THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN.
PITTSBURGH DISTRICT MINE WORKERS
HOLD SHORT SESSION OF CONVENTION
AND ADJOURN TO AWAIT RESULTS OF
CONFERENCE IN PHILADELPHIA.
The annual convention of the United Aline
Workers of District No. 5, met in Labor Temple.
Pittsburgh, Feb. 17. The sessions of the convention
lasted just one day and then an adjournment
was had to await the result of the wage conference
in Philadelphia.
When the eonvention opened the usual preliminaries
were had, including addresses from prominent
labor leaders of the state, and then President
Van Bittner read his annual report. It showed
successful organization work in the Mercer-Butler
and Allegheny Valley fields: announced an increase
in membership during the year of nearly
5.000; urged that operators be obliged to furnish
safety lamps free of charge to the miners in gaseous
mines: denounced the defeat of the workmen's
compensation law at the last session of the legislature,
ancl predicted that the time was at hand
for labor to organize on the political field as it
has done on the industrial field.
In touching on machine mining, he brought out
that 75 per cent, of the coal produced in the Pittsburgh
district is mined with machines. He urged
affiliation with the Pennsylvania Federation of
Labor, and active support of the co-operative store
idea. Peace within the district reigns to a greater
degree than ever before. President Bittner concluded.
He also made the statement in the report that
the scale committee wouid ask for an increase of
5 cents per ton in the price of mining, making it
$1.05, and further said that the mine-run basis
for payment would be demanded, and that he
would not sign any wage agreement that did not
contain the mine-run provision.
The committees appointed for the convention
are:
Constitution—Philip Murray, Hazel Kirk; William
Teare, Grove City; Ralph Naylor, Burgettstown;
David Hickey, Castle Shannon; J. H. Porter.
Jacobs Creek.
Resolutions—F. P. Hanaway, Noblestown; James
McClain, Moon Run; Thomas McHenry, Canonsburg;
Roy Porter, Manown; John Lafferty, Fayette
City.
Grievances--William Hargest, Monongahela;
Thomas Winn. Fayette City; Michael Egan, Suterville;
John Gorman, Oakdale; Thomas Hughes.
Meadowlands.
Officers' Reports—Duncan Ferguson, Brownsville;
Samuel Pangbourne, Houston Run: Frank
Plummeret, Sturgeon: Patrick Carrigan, Cherry-
Valley: D. C. Blose, Kaylor.
Order and Rules—Sidney Davis, Suterville: Fred
Gullick, Ellsworth; Michael Dugan, Roscoe; John
Tinsley, Van Voorbis; P. J. Murphy, Cherry Valley.
President Bittner will be chairman of the wage
scale committee, which will include Vice President
Pritchard, Secretary-Treasurer Wood and the members
of the district executive board; F. P. Hanaway
of Noblestown; James Charlton of Fair Haven:
William Hargest of Monongahela; John
O'Leary of Roscoe; Sidney Davis of Blythedale,
and William Teare of Grove City.
Following the appointment of the committees
a motion to adjourn the convention until a date
not later than March 23 was made, and was carried
by a narrow margin.
THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION
PROMISES FREIGHT RATE DECISION BY
JULY 1st.
Decision by the Interstate Commerce Commission
on the proposed freight rate increases is
expected to be reached probably within three
months and certainly before the commission adjourns
for its summer recess on July 1. This
announcement substantially, made by Commissioner
Harlan Feb. 19. He said:
"Recognizing the public importance of an early
disposition of the problems before us here, the
carriers, shippeis and the commission are using
every effort to bring the hearing to an early conclusion,
and there is reason to think the record
on the main issues in the case may be closed and
the arguments had in time to enable the commission
to dispose of those questions before the summer
recess."
Commissioner Harlan explained that tlie commission
bad before it two broad inquiries in respect
of the proposed advance:
Are the present revenues of the carriers adequate?
If not, how may they be supplemented?
"With respect to the first of these issues, the
carriers have already offered much testimony, but
their witnesses have not been cross-examined; nor
have the investigations by the commission on that
question been completed. We are also advised
that certain shipping interests will submit important
testimony touching the adequacy of the
present revenues of carriers, In aid of an understanding
of the first question and of a proper solution
of the second question, the commission, as I
explained at a recent hearing, has also addressed
certain inquiries to carriers which they have not
yet been able to fully answer. Pending the preparation
by the railroads of their replies we have
been hearing the protests of shippers against the
proposed increases in rates on certain particular
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