Show TRiED TO BRiBE MEN Attempt Made to Break Coal Strike in Anthracite Region by Money Offer to Members O < J v of MineWorkers Union Sensational Story Told the Strike Commission by John Early a Check Weighman Employed at Gypsy Grove Colliery Early Details Matter on Witness Stand and When He Concluded Con-cluded None of the Lawyers Would CrossExamine Him Scranton Pa Dec 10An attempt I to break the minors strike by bribery was told on the witnessstand today by l John Early a check Welshman employed em-ployed at the Gypsy Grove colliery ot the Erie company who was president of the Gypsy Grove local union lie said he was Introduced to a former mine foreman named Michael Grimes In the Lackawanna hotel In Scranton Early and another miner named OHara the president of the local union were each offered 2nOO to gotten got-ten men to pass a resolution sending the men from the two locals back to work Enrlys story wan as follows ATTEMPT TO BRIBE He met Grimes In the hotel through another person In the course of conversation con-versation Grimes asked him how he stood In politics Early replied that he had not made up his mind and Grimes said that being president of a local union be had a good deal of Influence among his friends In Dunmorc and that If he worked for William Connell for Congress he would give him 1000 This was on September 23rd After Grimes made the 1000 proposition Early eOn tlnucd Grimes said MEN WERE WAVERING TTrv ohin limo jtrllff Dnrit Vail think the men are weakening To which Early replied that he did think they were wavering Just a little Grimes then told him that he knew a break was corning In the ranks of the men and that they would be defeated I feated Grimesrecognized that the men had grievances and that they had put I up a good light and ns long as they were going to be defeated by the operators oper-ators Early ought to get something out of it Grimes then made this proposition propo-sition WHAT HE PROPOSED If Early could get ten men to have a resolution passcxkby hls local Grimes would give nine ofthom 100 each the tenth man 5MO and Early S25 < V tind ull expenses necessary to carry oUJ the scheme He further said that Early need not apply for work for three months and that he then would be given a foremans position 1 During the three months his expenses were to be paid there would be no trouble In getting get-ting a mine foremans certificate AMENDED HIS PROPOSITION Later on during the conversation Grimes amended his proposition by offering of-fering to give two of the ten men 0200 each and at the same time offered Early 10 for current expense Early refused the money and told Grimes ho would see him later l on Early reported re-ported the mat lev to District President Presi-dent Nicholls of the miners unlonj and It was decided to see how far the bribery brib-ery scheme would be carried SECOND MEETING HELD Another meeting was arranged and Mr Grimes having spoken of having approached P F OHara the latter went along The same proposition was made to OHara The same night there was to be a joint meeting of all the locals In the vicinity of Dunmore and Grimes wanted them to pass the resolution reso-lution that night but the two presidents presi-dents could not see their way clear to do It Grimes then proposed that they size up the men In the meeting get thirty of them Interested and If I there the-re olutlon was passed the thirty would each receive SOO Early went on to say that the ministers min-isters of the vicinity were to be approached ap-proached hut that they were not to get as much as the miners for breaking break-ing the strike WHY SCHEME FAILED President Nicholls he said then dave out a public statement In which he Intimated bribery was being resorted to In order to break the strike and the whole thing fell through Grimes wanted Early to help him out of the fix but Early would have nothing to do with him The story held the attention of the I commissioners and spectators and after Early had concluded none of the lawyers l I law-yers would crossexamine him I |