Show RECOGNITION OF UNION THE PRINCIPAL indications That th the Matter Will Be fought to the Limit timit Before the Commission President Pi Mitchells Fourth Day on the th Stand Examination n Shows Show Dragging Tendency r J I CRANTON Pa Nov 18 President SCRANTON S Mitchell for fr th the fourth successive day occupied the witness stand during the th two sessions of the strike commission and was wis by b three thi e attorneys for as many coal companies While a considerable amount of Information for the caUght enlightenment enlightenment of the commissioners was brought broU f t out but the th day clay was a rather quiet one compared with those which have hac preceded it The arbitrators are grow growing growing ing restless in iii i consequence of the long crosse which apparently I does not bring out the facts as quickly as the like to have bae I them theIr presented pres Several times during I the course of Session Chairman Gray reminded the attorneys of the value v Jue of o time and suggested that I be limited to new features of those questions that have already been gone over The lawyers I assured a the commission that they too were f to expedite matters and I would do everything possible to hurry I matters along without injuring their own case Mr Mitchell has been on the stand since last Friday and is show showIng ing signs of weariness from the strain of ot four days das Thus far his attorney C S Darrow and David Wilcox for the Del Delaware Delaware Delaware aware Hudson Wayne MacVeagh for the Erie Francis I 1 Gowen for the Lehigh Valley and W W Ross for the Delaware Lackawanna Western company com an have examined the miners president The commissioners today for the first time entered into the dis discussion discussion discussion with the lawyers anti the wit witness witness ness over disputes which arose from fromme time me to time Mr Hr M Object Mr MacVeagh who began his cross examination ex of Mr Mitchell on Satur Saturday da day ay concluded at 11 today The distinguished attorney centered most of E his energies in trying to break down the le miners reasons for asking for a aJ yearly early J agreement ag with the companies on n hours haulS df of f labor wages w and other conditions which if It made would W be recognition of the th union Mr Mac I principal aim throughout his questioning of Mr Mitchell was to show I that hat the mine workers union because i of if alleged acts of intimidation violence viol n e and nd the use of af the j t by its mem nem bers ers proved itself unfit to be a party 10 a acon contract ct Mr Mitchell would not admit admi nor even cn assume a ume for the sake sakei illustrating of i PointS of a reIgn df of t ter teror terror terror or existing in the anthracite fields during the last six months The recognition of the union is looked upon as ashe the he most important question q estion before the commission and It Is quite evident from rom the trend of proceedings thus far farhat that hat the companies will oppose it to their heir utmost ability Ur Mr Gowan and Mr Boss Ross questioned Mr Ir Mitchell principally regarding con conditions conditions conditions existing at the collieries of the companies they represent These ques questions questions ions were more or less technical Mr Mitchells answers as a rule differed very ery very little from the reasons given In his preliminary statement to the com corn commission commission mission for far improved conditions for the mine workers Interest in itt the flue proceedings is not waning ining A 4 large crowd which has been wedged in the court room roam in the preceding days of ot the hearings was In evidence Neither is there a falling off aff in the attendance of attorneys of whom wham there are almost two score pres present present present ent at each session se sion PROCEEDINGS IN DETAIL Mr MacVeagh Finishes His Cross examination of Mitchell Scranton Pa Nov Noy IS Another large crowd was in attendance attend nce today when the arbitration commission began its fourth days sitting Mr Mitchell who has been on the stand since last Fri day da took toak his place In the witness box and his by Wayne MacVeagh for far the Erie company was resumed It was the general genel opinion of af attorneys today that some arrange arrangement arrangement ment meat will have to be made to shorten the inquiry At the rate progress is being made It will take many weeks to hear both sides to the con controversy controversy If counsel takes no action it is likely the commission will suggest that something be De done The commis commissioners commissioners commissiOners recognize that President Mitch elf is the most important witness the miners have and they are loath to have matters hurried while he is on the stand His opinions are looked upon as official and also as reflecting the policy of or the union Before proceeding to the examination John T Lenahan of one one attorneys for forthe the nonunion men who want the commission to take up their case handed to the commission a list l st of 2000 names of af nonunion men menas menas menas as his authority for appearing before the arbitrators He Be did not wish the commission to make the names public at this time but as Chairman Gray said everything e filed with the commis commission commissIon sion zion Is a i public matter atter the names were unofficially u handed h I ded in n a and were not given out put for publication He also flIed filed fileda a statement of ot the nonunion demands which were published this morning Alleged Acts of Violence Mr MacVeagh in resuming his cross crass examination n said saJa he be glad to get an expression as to the influence of acts of violence on an the temper and anc arid disposition of the union men said to have committed them thein The witness said that he would not assume that the acts of d violence are true If said he Forest City which had been referred to would be an example of all towns and cities in the anthracite field it would indicate that we were a avery avery avery very religious people peaple The question Mr MacVeagh said is whether or not you have baye taken the proper methods to prevent a repetition of violent acts when they have oc occurred occurred occurred He did not eare cre he sid asid by whom these were committal What r I Iam ram ram am trying tr ing to show lie he continued is ix t that there is a n growing spirit of vio violence yb io 1 lence lenee and disregard of law in their or organization organization organization and that your you influence in over them is insufficient to keep them law abiding and peaceable as Y you u desire them to td be b Response Was Ready Beady Under this arraignment of the union Mr Mitchell retained his complete com corn composure composure The question met with a ready response The fear that my Influence fn said he be is i not sufficient to deter doter men from the commission of crime is a con contradiction contradiction of the claims often ottea made about me He was free to td t say that fi some men may ma have been deterred from f going to work because of violence e but j the strike itself it elf lost more in t opinion by reason of af that than it could j possibly gain The cross examiner and the witness then plunged into a spirited colloquy over the question of whether one man has a right to prevent another man manfrom manfrom from selling his labor laborThe laborThe laborThe The best answer Mr lIr MacVeagh could draw from frOiD the tIle miners chief was nas that he did not approve of any anone one commit committing com committing mU mUting ting an unlawful act Mr lIr MacVeagh read a statement re regarding regarding regarding garding the right to strike as belong belonging belonging belonging ing to the tile personal freedom of working workingmen men He also took the view that in inthe Inthe Inthe the exercising of that freedom those who cease to work must not interfere with the liberty of others who wish to work We do not want anarchy said Mr Mitchell and that t at is anarchy pure and simple the right of everyman every man to do absolutely abs as he pleases pl ases regardless of its effects effe ts on society Archbishop Irelands Idea This is the language of very care carefully carefully carefully fully disguised anarchy Mr Mac MacVeagh MacVeagh V agh remarked because use it its Js the lan Jan language langu guage gu ge of Archbishop Ireland Irelnd Archbishop Arch bishap Ireland Ir never never expected it to be used us din atiS I say Archbishop Ireland is a member of a a committee of which wh I am aia also a member which has declared lor br a trade union Idea Answering a 8 further question Mr Mitchell declared that if Archbishop Irelands statement meant m nt that men have no right to picket he disagreed with him Mr Mitchell added that he did not the was ws r e as a supreme court c urt en n trade union nio matters The Th attorney and the witness wan wandered wandered wand dered d red from fram the rules of tion and indulged In an an argument over oer the propriety of any an one criticising ent acts and nd decisions of courts Mr thought it was wrong to aHo such a course and that it tends to breed b t an anarchy anarchy anarchy archy Mr Mitchell saW said h hp he was pleased to say the courts as a rue are RAe he regretted that in the jon onn of his experience he had bad found some judges against labor He HI referred r to Judge Jackson of Wet We Virginia who he said had made a great many serious reflections on men who gave gILve up ther their lives in the cause of af labor He added that there were no anarchists an hi ts in the ne trades unions Mr Mitchell said oo no local ocal in his union had ever expelled a 3 aman aman man from the union for belonging to the national guard guam and that io O na national national ional labor union of any kind had ever done such a thing thin A union In n New York state he said han had laSer such action and it had n U h rali d dover over the country He was not responsible responsible responsible sible for far what some other organization did MacVeagh Concluded Mr MacVeagh concluded his cross eross examination at this point As soon as Mr Ir MacVeagh had fin finished finIshed shed Judge Gray Gra announced that the commission did not nat wish to limit the liberty of any anyone one appearing appeasing In this thid case as representing resenting re others othera but they believed they had obtained rs s much in information information formation as they the are likely to get on n the he subjects touched upon Judge Gray Gra announced however that if there was any an new line of examina examination lion tion the commission would not object ct to hearing the testimony Former Congressman Wolverton rep representing representing resenting the Philadelphia Reading Coal Iron company informed the th commission that future examinations would be very ery brief Francis R IL Gowen representing the Lehigh Valley Coal company campany followed I Mr MacVeagh and questioned Mr Mitchell regarding his comparison of wages paid in the bituminous fields as ax against those paid in the fields The question of weighing coal was also taken up For the first time during the session the members of the commission then entered into a general crosse amina tion Hon of ot the witnesses on points which the previous testimony had not brought out aut Replying to Bishop Spalding Mr Mitchell said that operators could form forma a coalition and stop the mining of coal caal throughout th the United States They could do the same as we could said mid he and especially now when the coal coalfields coalfields al fields of the country are passing into the hands of ot a few men Naked Question of Right Sight Commissioner Watkins s thought the law would prevent the operators doing that by reason of their but Mr Mitchell said they had the right to shut down their mines Judge Ju ge Gray asked the witness if his society did not depend after all on the old economic truth that all great forces which tend to uplift u and carry carryon on social advancement and civilization depend up n the average desire of the individual to better his own condition o and to work and upon the Continued on page 20 2 RECOGNITION OF F UNION THE PRINCIPAL TilING THING Continued from Page 1 desire of a man who wh has property to utilize it and get gt an income from It ItI it ItI hI I think that probably is true te was Mr Mitchells Michels response Judge Gray GraI If you can cn imagine all aU allmen aUmen allmen men ceasing to work at once the whole social machine macine would stop Mr Mitchell Mic lYe Yes Commissioner Wright asked aked Do you consider it it justifiable for tor the em employers e employers in certain district a in order to resist rest the demands of the te labor union to paralyze that industry or any group of industries No I do not think thin it is proper Mr Mitchell Michel replied Would the same answer be made if I should substitute unions union instead of ot employers e 1 I r think m in i either ei heX case as ud Mr Mitchell Michell some other otner avenue ayen of adjustment than the paralysis of the industry should should be sought Mr Mitchell Mitchel answering the commis commissioners commissioners said sd the United Mine Workers did not incorporate because the step TV was as not necessary An A organization to become financially responsible he said skid must have a large fund fUd and the working people did di not have have He said that employers who ho object to tu t treating or contracting with the union wion because it is not incorporated would oppose treating with wih it anyhow Recognition of the te Union Unon Commissioner C Wright asked Mr r richel Mitchell ichel TV what hat he meant by recognition of the union and ad the witness replied It I means that th t the employers shall make agreements regulating hours hour hur of labor wages wag etc etc with wih the th union and that tie the t e union as a such be held responsible those agreements for a rigid compliance with wih The Te was next n taken up by W W Ross of New Naw w York York counsel for the Delaware re Lackawanna Western who had just begun to question queston the witness when the te noon re recess T recess cess hour arrived In I the afternoon Mr Ross line lne of examination was for some sone time di directed directed directed toward testing te Mr M Mitchells MIch ls knowledge of bituminous mine word wOk wording wot lag ing the number of men employed the wages paid and a comparison Carison of these with nith wih the wages wage paid in the anthracite fields Regarding the t th number numbe of hours hour the men work wor in the hard harp coal c l regions Mr Mitchell Mitchel said that when the breakers run ten hours the men Inca nan usually ally aly work w rk seven eight or nine Une ine hours ho r When the breaker runs less l s the men work in proportion On tie the tf average avea e however the men worked tore more ore hours than the breakers As A a mater matter of of fact fact said Mr lr Ross has ha not your organization stopped the miners miner from working on days when the breakers were Idle Mr Ir Mitchell Michel admitted that in this ts district the te rule is that tat the the nen en shall not prepare coal on idle day days This he said was wa for the purpose of or pre preventing venting favoritism You have spOken of the he existence of favoritism Mr Ross Rosa said paid and and you referred to the excessive e system stem of docking Do they exist in other mines es That is my information was the reply i In reply to another question queston by b Mr Ross Mr M Mitchell declared tt that the te rule of the local unions not to ure pr pare par coal when the te breakers were vere er idle did not have for its is object the t e restriction restriction tion of the ton e output If I these miners should be permitted to work asked Mi Mt Ross on thee these idle days the output would have been greater would it not notI lr I dont know whether your com corn company pany pay wanted more coal than the miners mIne |