Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 22, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 June 1894 — TO END THE STRIKE. [ARTICLE]

TO END THE STRIKE.

OPERATORS AND MINERS COME TO TERMS. Columbus Con f ere nee Productive of a Satisfactory Settlement Miners Get Increased Wages—New Scale to Continue in Operation Until May, 1895. Settlement la Final. The miners and operators' conference at Columbus, Ohio, has resulted in a compromise agreement, and the end of the great coal strike is near. Under the agreement work will be resumed within a week, the miners desiring to have the remainder of the week to submit the agreement to the various districts. The joint committee on scale, composed of operators and miners, went into executive session at 9 o’clock in the morning. Each side expressed a feeling that circumstances had placed an agreement in jeopardy, but each would try to effect an agreement if possible. Before going into executive session as a joint committee the miners held a private confeience of about an hour’s duration. Some of the operators had said that they preferred to deal with organized rather than unorganized labor, as more uniform results can be secured. A failure to agree meant, in their opinion, a resumption of the strike at some time in the near future. CoL W. P. Rend, who was anxious to effect a settlement, submitted a proposition on his own account to agree to a scale of 69 cents for Pennsylvania and 60 cents for Ohio, other territory in a fair proportion, the price to hold good until Sept. 1, when the rate is to be increased to 79 cents in Western Pennsylvania and in other districts in proportion. The proposition was made to President Mcßride, and several of the operators said they would agree to CoL Rends plan. About 5:30 in the evening the scale committee announced that an agreement had been reached and was being drawn up. The compromise was on a basis of 60 cents for Ohio and 69 cents for Western Pennsylvania. At a joint conference the agreement was ratified. A. A. Adams, President of the Ohio miners, who was a member of the scale committee, refused to sign the agreement. The settlement, however, is final. The scale agreed upon is as follows: Pittsburg, thin vein, 69 cents: thick vein, 56 cents. Hocking Valley, 60 cents. Indiana bituminous, 60 cents; Indiana block, 70 cents. Streator, HL, 624 cents for summer and 70 cents for winter. Bloomington. HL. 774 cents for summer and 85 cents for winter. La Salle and Spring Valley, HL, 724 cents for summer and 80 cents for winter. Other sections in Northern Illinois fields at prices relative to the above. Coal in Pittsburg district, going east to tide water, shall pay the same mining prices as that paid by the Pennsylvania Gas and Westmoreland Coal companies, The scale of prices will continue until May 1, 1895, provided the above-named scale of prices for the Pittsburg district shall be generally recognized and observed. The operators and miners shall co-operate in their efforts to secure an ob ervanceof said price, and if during the period covered by the agreement recognition of the ’ price herein named cannot be secured either party to this agreement may call a meeting of the loint board of arbitration and determine whether the agreement has been sufficiently complied with to warrant its continuance. While it has been announced that the agreement reached by the operators and miners in their joint conference is final, its effect upon the miners rema ns to be seen. The operators are confident that the agreement will bring about a speedy settlement of the strike. E. T. Bent of La Salle, 111., was of the opinion that the settlement in Northern Illinois would influence the southern part of that State to come into line.