Show TRYING TO AVERT AVERTA A GREAT STRIKE President Mitchell Proposes Further Conference With the Anthracite Anthracite cite Coal Operators LETTER TO GEORGE F BAER MINERS READY TO ARRANGE A AM MEETING M NG Indianapolis md Ind March dent John Mitchell of the tho United MIne MIneWorkers MineWorkers Workers of America has to George GeorgeF P Baer Bacr chairman of the th aft an anthracite cOAl operators c hi hir his r reply ply to the C communication tion rejecting the demands of the nl ml ners organIzation The letter dated March i 17 follows Referring again to your communication cation dated March 10 with accompany accompanying ing documents and to our reply there thereto to I write to say that I have submit submitted ted to our committee the answer made by your committee to the propositions presen presented by us It is unnecessary to state that we e were keenly disappointed to learn that our demands were re rejected in tote roto and that our arguments In favor of them had bad r received sO little at your hands that they ivere practically Ignored in your Jour reply to us Demands Not Excessive Ve have again revIewed the scale presented for your our consideration have haye compared it with the scale of wages paid for similar classes ot Of labor in other states and distrIcts and we are satisfied beyond the peradventure ture of doubt that the wages proposed are not in excess that they are not so th the w g s paid In inthe the bituminous mining districts of our country Judging from the language employed in your Jour answer to us it Is perfectly evi dent that we failed to make clear or that you failed to understand the real import of the pro propositions submitted by byus byus us Expected Better Treatment We Ve wish to assure you that W we are not unmindful of the great pUblic In Interests 1 involved In this controversy as asto asto to our future relations neither are we tV unappreciative of the splendid efforts marie made b r the anthracite coal conI strike corn com commission mission to establish a relationship be between between tween us that would Insure a just and permanent peace but if you will wUl refer to the award of that commissIon you will find th that t the commission Itself was In doubt as to th the permanency ot of its findIngs and ana expressed the hope that at the expiration of the award the re relations relations lations of operator and employee would have so far Improved as to mi im impossible possible such a condition as existed throughout the country in consequence of the strike In the anthracite regIon Ye We had entertained the hove hope that our adherence to the letter and the spirit of the award and the absence ot of local or general strikes during the past three years would have appealed more strongly to your confidence and that we might reasonably expect serious con consideration of our claIms at this time Ready to Confer Further But it would seem eem frOnt from rO d fig your r reply ply that all our propositions have been rejected and that your final decision has bas been given We Ve trust that this conception of your Intention Is in incorrect incorrect correct It is our opinion that neIther you nor we can enn afford to break ot off no ne negotiations in this abrupt manner So far as we and the interests we represent represent sent are conc m d we are not willing willingto to accept any share of the responsibility ity this action entails We b believe that further meeting should be held and that we should strive earnestly and con conscientiously to reconcIle our differences While It may be true that on the part of the operators there has been no serIous cause for complaint during the past three years we wish to assure you that In expressing this opinion you do not reflect our vIews Not only has there been ceen criticism among the miners but what Is more important there ex exIsts exists much ground for criticism and corn com plaint To such an extent Is this true that we tool feel It incumbent upon us to say that we cannot with any degree of contentment or satisfaction continue to work under tinder present HOW Hov Ev rt w we repeat that the interests in involved involved are so vast that wt we are a e not willing t to break off negotiations with without without out first making further efforts to rec reconcile our differences We ther therefore fore pro os that further confer conference nC or c n be held between now and the first firt of April If this suggestion meets with your approval wO we shall b be pleased leased to ar af arrange range with wIl you a date our jo iO it t committee may reconvene |