THE COAL STRIKE

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 10 November 1926, Page 5

THE COAL STRIKE

PEACE SEEKERS FOILED.

SHORT DAY WANTED. OUTBREAK OF SMALLPOX. BY CABLE—PBES3 ASSOCIATION—COPYBIGrIT LONDON, Nov. 9. The coal negotiations continue to disappoint the peace seekers. Though the Trade Union mediators definitely gave Mr Baldwin and the Government to understand that the seven-hours day would no longer be an obstacle to peace, Cabinet negotiators, late last, night, learnt that the Trade Union mediators had gone beyond their brief in this respect. Earlier in the day some important points of difference had been cleared away, such as the minimum wage, subsistence wage, and the ratio of divisible profits, concession which the miners had won in earlier struggles. The Government also persuaded the owners to agree, in principle, to an arbitration tribunal, though only after a veiled ultimatum had been issued. The owners were thereupon told that, if the miners did not agree to the supervision of district agreement, this would be assured 'by legislation. Unfortunately, at the last moment, the miners’ executive resurrected the old slogan, fi‘Not a minute on the day,” and the basic trouble came back again. The miners’ executive only decided to resurrect the slogan by the narrow margin of eleven to nine votes, and as over 300,000 miners are now working upon the owners’ terms, there is hope that if the question of hours is submitted to a free vote in the districts it may be possible for the negotiations to continue. Some important test cases were heard in Northumberland yesterday, when a number of miners were fined forty shillings, with the alternative of a month’s imprisonment, for neglecting to maintain their wives and children, and leaving them to the poor law guardians when work was available at the pits. .An official statement from Downing Street announces that the coal conference has been adjourend to enable the miners to consult their constituents. The delegate conference is being summoned for Wednesday. Smallpox has broken out in the colliery districts in Durham. Already there are 333 cases.