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Show Cct any 'conditio- the' coinnii.-sioniniht inpc. theoirators wor.'J ti!U:are.to "1 wjth.th'? pnica indirectly, if rot c :rec;!y, It prokiUi tU.t tl 3 -effort of the cpmnission wUl be to frame an agrc menMfcat -will tr.ke tb'e union-ht consideration, riot ia tbe directvay the organization Is recognizci Inthe. bituminous ieldsr.bnt ttlft ia a Vay ttat wfll mesa .recognition - Th'e -one thic5in-patticular against which the operators stahd 'out"is "what they call "John Mitchell's attempt to run our business." The efforts of the commission, it seems probable, will be to formulate a plan under which organized, as well as unorganised miners of any. district may deal with the 'operators direct Another possibility is that the commission may recommend a separate Union for the anthracite region. It is not understood under-stood that the Mine-Workers' organization would object seriously to the plan suggested. " If the idea should be carried out, the anthracite union and the bituminous union would not be closely affiliated, but would have a common meeting ground in the American Federation of Labor A verdict embracing embrac-ing this plan would take Mitchell out of the anthracite; anthra-cite; field. ' Tbe rights of the non-union men ivl $he field'will be dealt with in the. report. -The. commission commis-sion wll hold the view that the non-union man must be protected in bis right to work. The verdict will undoubtedly provide, too, that the increase in wages granted shall be shared by the non-union andV the . union men alike. The object of President Koosevelt in appointing the strike commission was to promote-permanent industrial "peace in the an-thracite an-thracite region. The commissioners are well-poised, fair-minded, able men and it is to Jte hoped that they will endeavor to lay down conditions that will meet with some measure of favor from each side. Otherwise .we will have a renewal of the distressing warfare between capital and labor which has been waged in the Pennsylvania coal field for years. But whatever the commissioners' findings may be both parties to the agreement are pledged to abide by the verdict and the public will expect coal baron and miner to live up to their pledges. The Strike Commission's Report;. Z' Under the terms of the agreement by which; the ' Anthracite coal strike commission ;was 'appointed Sach side pledged itself to accept the; findingsrbut Inow that the investigators are preparing their re-fjport re-fjport it is evident that neither the operators nor the Sminers will accept tbe commission's decision in good faith. It is generally believed that if the verdict Should sustain in toto the contentions of one side, or rtbe other industrial peace in the anthracite region Swill be short lived. It has seemed reasonably certain cer-tain ever since the commission began work that it bwould grant the anthracite miners a substantial increase in wages. The wage question has been a sort of side issue all through the controversy. The Estrike would have been settled within a month after i St begaq if the question of wages bad been the only ' j Jone at issue. No secret was made of thp.f-qfc.t that tthe compromise which was all but agreed to after rhe commission had begun the taking of. testimony provided for a& increase of wages. Since that date rthe employees of the railroads controlled by the Seoal operators have .increased wages, and only the pother week tbe bituminous operators and miners entered en-tered into a new" agreement under which the miners Sn the bituminous fields' are to receive a substqn-, tial increase. The demand of the anthracite miners 3 for a 20 per cent increase. The prevailing opipiou Tig that the increase will amount to about 15 per cent ..The second demand of tbe miners was for an eight-hour day for both inside and outside men. Most of the men are now working ten hours. It is Snot improbable that the findings may provide for an. eightrhonr day within a reasonable period. Minor questions raised by -the formal demands of the f miners are to be disposed of, and then the commis-" sion will find itself confronting the real problem jjwith which it has to deal: "SIIALL TIIE AN- SZTHRACITE OPERATORS , RE REQUIRED TO ' rftECQGNIZE THE UNITED MINE-WORKERS' , tUNjON AND DEAL WITH IT AS THE BITUMI-j BITUMI-j SN'OUS OPERATORS OF TnE. COUNTRY DEAL ; rVITII IT?'" The commission will not , kick the j Mine-Workers' union out of the anthracite field. Representatives of organized labor do not hesitate Ho declare that no matter .what the agreement says about, accepting the verdict of the commission,- the line-Workers' uniop will, under any decision by i 2he commission, Continue to be a living, aggressive 'force in the anthracite country.. They say that un- 2. ; : .' '. : . ... . . . -.. ' ; . ".. . . 5 ! '. |