coal trade bulletin - Clpdigital.org

with the United Mine Workers of America, knowing
it as well as they do, the operators had the
best of reasons for believing that less than 10
per cent, of their men belonged to that organization,
and they were unwilling to force the other
90 per cent, or more to join it, which, as is well
known, would have been necessary had a contract
with the organization named been entered into
by the mine owners.
"The workmen were well acquainted with the
fact that their earnings averaged 20 per cent.
higher than were being paid in the Kansas and
nearby coal fields, whose product is the principal
competitor of Colorado coals, and they, therefore,
were well satisfied and strongly desired that such
conditions should be allowed to continue. The
evidence of satisfaction on the
PART OF THE MEN
had come to the operators frequently during the
last few years through independent sources and
from mine superintendents, and had been strongly
expressed at the time of the last voluntary wage
advance made in April, 1912, by the employers as
well as at their later establishment of a semimonthly
pay day and an eight-hour work day in
advance of the state statutory requirement.
"Immediately after Hays and his associates began
agitating the question of a strike, expressions
of opposition to it or to being forced into the
union began to reach the offices of the operators
from the men, and continued to come in daily up
to the time the strike took effect. This opposition
was most marked in the small sub-district
known as the Canon field, where union tendencies
were stronger than in any other field. They expressed
the feeling, and in this they were right,
that a contract between operators and the union
which would force all mine employes to join that
organization meant an increase in their expenses
and a corresponding if not greater reduction in net
earnings.
"The strike was opposed by union sympathizers.
Hayes was told by Governor Ammons and ex-
Senator Patterson, both of whom have strong
union sympathies, that conditions in Colorado coal
mines were satisfactory to the workmen. He was
urged by them not to call a strike. This advice,
though coming from men who could be considered
friends of the union officers, was not heeded, and
they called what they chose to designate a convention
of miners and operators to be held at Triniclay
Sept. 15, 1913, for the express purpose of determining
by vote of delegates whether or not a
strike should be called.
"This so-called convention was composed of from
200 to 250 alleged delegates, more than half of
whom had been out on strike in northern Colorado
for three and a half years and were in no way
THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN. 57
connected with coal mining operations. With
few exceptions the remainder of the delegates were
in the direct employ of the organization. Some
of these delegates sought and obtained a few days'
work at various mines immediately preceding the
date of the convention, then after leaving the employ
of the mines where they had worked temporarily
attended the convention as delegates from
those mines without any pretext of having been
elected delegates by the miners. No delegates
whatever were chosen by the men whose interests
Hayes and his associates
PROFESSED TO BE SERVING,
and in one case a delegate impersonated a miner
who worked for the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co. every
day that the convention was in session.
"Naturally the so-called convention voted unanimously
for a strike, the date of which was set
for Sept. 23. They added a demand for a 10 per
cent, advance in wages, which never had previously
been spoken of. It was evident that this
was an afterthought, as Lhe agitators and organizers
had, in their early discussions with the
governor and others in Colorado, stated that the
miners were receiving good wages.
"After the vote of the convention was made
known, and prior to tbe date the strike took
effect, the miners again indicated strong feelings
of resentment and opposition to the action taken
by the delegates, for the reason that they did not
represent the men affected, who had no voice in
the action. Two days before the strike date—
too late to justify the charge of coercion by the
operators—the men signed statements at many of
the mines to the effect that they were satisfied
with wages and conditions and did not want to
strike. At one mine 189 men, representing 99
per cent, of the number employed there, signed
this statement.
"Then began a reign of terror. Some of the
men who had in various ways expressed opposition
to the strike, responded to the call of the agitators
for the reason that immediately after the
strike was called numerous letters threatening
violence, and in many cases death, were sent to
the men who had manifested a disposition to remain
at work. Intimidation of this character
and acts of extreme violence have continued ever
since, causing a number of men who did not cease
work the day the strike took effect to leave their
employment later. At one property about 100
Austrians were employed. Most of these men
had assured the mine superintendent that they
would remain at work against all opposition, yet
the intimidation was of such a character as to
force practically all of them to leave their work
within a week.
"The reign of terror commenced Sept. 24, the