April 17, 1914.

_________________________________________________________________________

852

_______	________________

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

27,259

11,393

there must result grouping and a different rate for
different classes of collieries, which by reason of their
different seams, their different costs and different con-
ditions upon which they work, must be treated in
accordance with such conditions, and not as if all
collieries were equal to one.

Mr. Bradford (Barnsley Main) agreed that the
principle was wrong. He held that a minimum wage
should be fixed having regard to the particular con-
ditions. That was where they were touched. As
the chairman had said, it was an average wage, not a
minimum wage. The collieries that were willing to pay
that 8s. 3d. or 8s. 6d. were able to do so by their natural
conditions, and nothing else.

The council of the Yorkshire Miners’ Association
discussed for over five hours, on Saturday, at Barnsley,
the Conciliation Board’s proposals. As usual,. the
proceedings were private. At the close, Mr. John
Wadsworth made the following statement:—“There
has been a special council meeting to-day, and the pro-
posals of the Coal Conciliation Board have been put
before the delegates and thoroughly discussed. The
delegates have agreed to go back to their branches and
recommend that the proposals be accepted and that an
individual ballot of the members be taken, the ballot
papers to be in at the council offices by first post on
Wednesday morning.” Aid. J. Guest, vice-president of
the council, presided at the meeting.

The Conciliation Board Joint Committee’s recom-
mendations are as follows:—

1.	If the owners will agree that the resolutions of the
Conciliation Board shall apply to whatever minimum is
fixed, will the workmen agree that the new minimum
shall apply only to a group tr class of mines, with a lower
minimum for the other group or class of mines, the
groups or classes and the lower minimum to be decided
by the Joint District Board ?

2.	Pending a settlement of the question in No. 1 no
reduction shall be made on any amounts paid as the
minimum at any pit immediately prior to Sir Edward
Clarke's award, or in the amount paid at the Silverwood
and Rotherham collieries prior to them going on strike.

3.	Where any deficiency exists in wages already paid
at such collieries, an enquiry shall at once be set up, and
such deficiency shall be paid as early as possible to the
men affected.

4.	The owners submit to the men the desirability of
establishing a uniform amount equivalent to each 5 per
cent, recommended by the Conciliation Board.

The proposals were explained to the men at their
respective branches, and immediately following the
meetings the men balloted on the question they were
required to answer, viz.:—“ Are you in favour of
accepting the proposals submitted by the Conciliation
Board and resuming work at once ? ”

The result of the ballot, which was arrived at on
Wednesday, was as follows:—

For return to work ........

Against ..................

______

Majority ..........

The result of the ballot means that
general resumption of work in the county next Monday.

The result of the ballot was reported to the Concilia-
tion Board Joint Committee for the federated districts
of England and and Wales at its meeting at the West-
minster Falace Hotel yesterday. It was agreed, having
regard to the result of the ballot, that the men should
resume work as early as possible next week. There were
present at the meeting, which lasted about two hours,
Mr. F. J. Jones (who presided), Mr. Charles Pilkington,
Mr. F. Parker Rhodes, Mr. Richardson, and Sir Thomas
Ratcliffe-Ellis (representing the coalowners), and Mr.
Stephen Walsh, M.P., Mr. John Wadsworth, M.P.,
Mr. Albert Stanley, M.P., Mr. Hoskin, and Mr. Thomas
Ashton (representing the miners). The proposals sub-
mitted on behalf of the coalowners were adopted with
the following addition to No. 3 :—

Upon the completion of the ascertainments necessary
for the purpose of grouping the mines for the payment of
the higher or lower minimum, any arrears of wages found
to be due by any colliery shall date from and be paid as
from the date of Sir Edward Clarke's award of January 30,
1914.

No. 4 was apparently not definitely considered on this
occasion.

A meeting of the Joint Committee appointed by the
Conciliation Board met on Thursday. Mr. Wadsworth,
M.P., reported that the proposals had been submitted
to the men, and that by a ballot vote they had decided
to accept them as a settlement of the dispute. Now the
committee have agreed to make an addition to No. 3, as
follows:—

Upon the completion of the ascertainments necessary
for the purpose of grouping the mines for the payment of
the higher or lower minimum any arrears of v/ages found
to be due at any collieries shall date from and be paid as
from the date of Sir Edward Clarke's award of January 30,
1914. It is therefore agreed that the men shall return to
work at the earliest possible date in the week commencing
Monday next, April 20, and, as far as possible, all men
shall return to the employment in which they were
engaged at the date the strike began.

After negotiations between the Notts miners’ officials
and the Gedling colliery management, a strike has been
averted. The result of the negotiations were given at a
meeting of the miners at Daybrook, near Nottingham,
on Saturday, April 11, when addresses were given by Mr.
G. A. Spencer, and Mr. C. Bunfield, president and secre-
tary respectively of the Miners’ Association, and Mr.
John Whyatt, a checkweigher. A ballot had been taken
with respect to the price of bar setting, &c., and 1J 73
men had voted in favour of handing in notices, and 186
against. Replying to a question as to back money for
setting bars, Mr. Whyatt said they had failed to get that
matter settled, and his opinion was that they would never
get it. The owners had agreed to the following : “All bars

15,866
there will be a

7 ft. or over must be legged either at both ends or legged
at one side and stumped into the other side, and these
will be paid for as per price list. If, however, timber is
set under 7 ft. without legs, 9d. plus percentage to be
paid; this will apply to all gate ends in both seams.
This clause is supplemented to the price list. If at any
time the management places any fresh interpretation
on the price list, it is agreed that a meeting be called
between the management and the men before any
alteration is made. If a stall comes in through no
neglect of the stallman, and it is necessary to leave a
posse of coal in, 3s. per yard to be paid. Any dispute to
be settled by the manager and the Visiting Committee.”
The proposals were unanimously agreed to.

Much of the glamour of the Minimum Wage Act has
disappeared in the Cannock Chase coalfield, where the
result of its working is a reduction in wages to miners
who, prior to the introduction of the Act, were made up
to ordinary wages when working in a bad place, but now
are restricted to the minimum, thereby involving a loss
of over Is. a day. The Eight Hours Act has been
unwelcome in this district, which is subjected to a
seasonal trade in house coal, as it is now impossible to
balance in the winter some of the short time in the
summer, a point which will be of particular significance
when the brisk trade of the past two years gives place to
normal conditions which, in the summer, mean.two or
three days work a week. The enormous extent of the
alterations necessitated by the Coal Mines Act, 1911,
may be gathered from the fact that Sunday work still
prevails and, moreover, the completion of the work of
compliance with the law does not appear to be near.
Easter Monday and Tuesday have witnessed a con-
tinuance of the exertions of colliery proprietors to meet
the onerous requirements of the Act.

A meeting of the North Wales District Wages Board
was held at Wrexham on Tuesday, with the view to
settling the vexed question of the fillers’ minimum
wage. After a long discussion the board adjourned
until next Saturday. Notices arising out of the dispute
were handed in at 10 collieries to expire last Wednes-
day, but they were suspended for 14 days in the hope of
a settlement being effected. Under the chairman’s
award the fillers at most pits in the coalfield declare
they are worse off than before the Act came into force.
A test was brought by some fillers at the Wrexham and
Acton Colliery against the company for shortage in
wages, but the Court of Appeal held that the company
were not the fillers’ employers and were not therefore
liable. The Miners’ Federation have decided to take
the case up to the House of Lords, but it is hoped that
the present negotiations will lead to an agreement
satisfactory to all concerned.

South Wales and Monmouthshire.

A dispute which has arisen at Owmtillery came up
for consideration at the monthly, meeting of the
Monmouthshire Western Valleys Council of miners.
A new seam is being worked; and it was stated that
the management would pay only the rate now given for
the Black Vein, whereas the men contend that they are
entitled to a higher price. The matter was left in the
hands of the agent (Mr. Barker) to deal with, as were
also certain difficulties at Arael Griffin, at Powell Tillery,
and at Celynen.

Five hundred men at Cilely Collieries, Tony ref ail,
tendered notices against non-unionists, and these
expired on Saturday week. The men made intimation
of willingness to work on the following Monday, but
found that the management had to await instructions
from the directors, and they were therefore idle.

The Western Valleys Miners’ Council, at the monthly
meeting in Abertillery last week, entered “ emphatic
protest against the attempt of the majority of the
Monmouthshire Education Committee to hand over the
provision and control of the higher branches of mining
education to the coalowners of the county.”

Scotland.

Mr. Andrew Clarke, Niddrie, presided at a meeting of
the Mid and East Lothian Miners’ Board at Dalkeith
on Saturday. The reports from the districts showed an
improvement in the coal trade during the last few
weeks, which it was felt was particularly gratifying, as
there had been a slackness in a number of the districts
during the early part of 1914. Little or no delay had
been experienced in the getting away of orders as a
result of an improvement in the supply of wagons.
Quite 80 per cent, of the miners were getting the full
11 days work per fortnight.

A meeting of the Musselburgh and district branch of
the Scottish Colliery Firemen’s and Shot-firers’Associa-
tion was held on Saturday evening. Mr. David Wright,
general secretary of the association, reported that the
Scottish Miners’ Federation having refused to recognise
their union and insisted on the colliery firemen joining
the Scottish Miners’ Federation, the executive of the
Scottish Colliery Firemen’s Association had appealed to
the British Miners’ Federation. Their desire was to have
the same liberty as their comrades in England, for they
recognised that though they were colliery workers their
interests were not always the same as those of miners,
and occasionally were antagonistic. Mr. Wright said-
that along with Mr. Watson, their president, he had sub-
mitted the firemen’s case to the British Miners’ Federa-
tion, sitting in London, and, in his opinion, they had
been well received. The matter had been referred to
the Scottish Miners’ Federation for consideration. He
was hopeful of their cause receiving due recognition.
The following resolution was unanimously adopted:—
“That this branch agrees to support the Scottish
Colliery Firemen’s and Shot-Firers’ Association in their
demand to the Scottish Miners’ Federation that all
firemen be members of their own organisation.”

The arbitration upon the Scottish colliery owners’
claim of one shilling per day wages reduction, affecting
95,000 men, will come before Lord Balfour of Burleigh
at Windsor Hotel, Glasgow (Friday) to-day.

FSRTHCOimG C0LUERY MD

EXFHBmOM IT MMMESTER.

In connection with the Second Colliery and Mining
Exhibition, to be held at the City Exhibition Hall,
Manchester, from Friday, June 12, to Saturday, June 27,
1914, the following preliminary list of exhibitors has been
issued-Messrs. Ackroyd and Best Limited (Morley) ; A.
Allen and Sons Ltd. (Lower Gornal); Appleton and Howard
(St. Helens) ; W. and T. Avery Ltd. (Birmingham) ; Sir
W. H. Bailey and Co. Ltd. (Salford); W. H. Barker and Son
(Fanton); Bleichert's Aerial Transporters Ltd. (London);
Gao. Burnside (Fence Houses); Burrows and Garland (Black-
burn) ; Ceag Electric Safety Lamp Company Limited (Lon-
don) ; Colliery Guardian (London); Coventry Chain Company
Limited (Coventry) ;CremerLampandEngineering Company
Limited (Leeds); Crosthwaite Engineering and Furnace
Company Limited (Lieds) ; The Falcon Ironworks
(1913) Limited (Oldham) ; Fastnut Limited (London) ;
Felber, Jucker and Co. (Manchester) ; Flottmann Engi-
neering Company Limited (Cardiff) ; J. Gillott and Sons
(Barnsley) ; G. St. John Day (Patents) Limited (Oldham) ;
The Herbert Frood Company Limited (Chapel-en-le-Frith) ;
John Hind and Sons Limited (Belfast); A. Hirst and Son Ltd.
(Dewsbury) ; J. Hopkinson and Co. Limited (Huddersfield) ;
Jandus Arc Lamp Company Limited (Manchester) ; Jeffrey
Manufacturing Company (Columbus, U.S.A.) ; Lancaster
and Tonge (Manchester) ; Lea Recorder Company Limited
(Manchester) ; Leskole Company Limited (Enfield) ; Lilles-
hall Company Limited (Oakengates) ; Mather and Platt
Limited (Manchester); Matthews and Yates Limited (Man-
chester) ; Mechanical Hammer Company Ltd. (Stalybridge) ;
Meguin and Co. A.G. (Saar) ; Miners' Safety Explosive Com-
pany Limited .(Westminster) ; W. T. Nicholson, Clipper &
Co. Ltd. (Manchester) ; Patent Safety Mining Gear Com-
pany (Smethwick); Henry Pels and Co. (London) ;
Protector Lamp and Lighting Company Limited (Eccles) ;
the Purdy Patents Company ' (Manchester) ; W. and J.
Richardson (Derby) ; J. Shaw, Son, and Greenhalgh Limited
(Huddersfield) ; Siebe, Gorman, and Co. Limited (London) ;
Snowden, Sons, and Co. Limited (London); Sueinle and
Hartung (Quedlinberg) ; Richard Sutcliffe (Horbury);
Thomas and Bishop (London); Tilghman's Patent Sand-
blast Company Limited (Broadheath) ; Trefor Societe
Anonyme (Bruxelles) ; J. B. Walsh and Co. (Manchester) •
Wilsm and Stockall (Bury); Witting Bros. (London);
Wolf Safety Lamp Company (Sheffield) ; Hugh Wood and
Co. (Newcastle-on-Tyne); James Woolley, Son and Co.
Limited (Manchester) ; Works Control Limited (Newcastle-
on-Tyne) ; Yorkshire Engine Company (Sheffield).

________________________________________________

TIE BOIL TMDE.

Thursday, April 16.

Mlin,

Except for the brief stoppage for the holidays, there has
been a fair demand in the coal trade generally since last
report, and work on the quays has not been affected to any
great extent, as the unloading of cargoes has been proceeding
as usual. There is no change in prices of any class of fuel,
quotations standing as follow:—Best Orrell, 28s. per
ton ; Abram, 27s.; best Wigan, 26s.; Whitehaven, 26s.; best
kitchen, 24s.; steam coals from about 22s. per ton; best
slack, 22s.; best coke, 21s. per ton; house coal, retail, is. 8d.
per sack. The coaling vessels arriving during the past week
amounted to 45, as compared with 70 the week previously,
chiefly from Garston, Glasgow, Newport, Liverpool, Cardiff,
Maryport, Harrington, Ayr, Workington, Troon, Preston,
Neath Abbey, Campbeltown, Saundersfoot, Irvine, Swansea
and Manchester. The total quantity of coal discharged
upon the quays was 22,729 tons.

Belfast

The local market is still rather quiet upon the whole, but
prices continue to bo firm, owing to the Yorkshire strike
and the consequent scarcity of best English coals. The
following are the current quotations:—Best Arley house
coal, 27s. 6d. per ton; Hartley, 26s. 6d.; Wigan, 25s. 6d.;
Orrell nuts, 26s. 6d.; Scotch house, 23s. 6d.; Orrell slack,
23s. 6d., all less the usual Is. per ton discount for cash.
Steam coals:—Scotch, 16s. to 17s. per ton; Scotch slack,
Ils. 6d. to 12s. 6d.; navigation steam, 17s. to 18s. per ton
delivered. Coal cargoes arriving during the week were
chiefly from Glasgow, Ayr, Girvan, Ellesmere Port, Neath
Abbey, Maryport, Point of Aire, Ardrossan, Garston,
Swansea, Cardiff, Partington, Lydney and Troon. The total
number of collier vessels entering the harbour between
March 15 and April 4 was 182.

__________________

TK1	WE.

Tar Products.—The market, though quiet, is fairly steady
and prices show little or no movement. Benzols are firm.
Pitch remains much about the same. Naphthas are quiet,
creosote is steady and unchanged. Nearest values are:—

Benzols, 90’s ................................
Do. 50’s ................................
Do. 90’s North ..........................................

Do. 50’s North ____.....'______________,______

Toluol .......................................

Carbolic acid, crude (60 per cent.).............

Do. crystals (40 per cent.).................
Solvent naphtha (as in quality and package) ...
Crude ditto (in bulk) ........................
Creosote (for ordinary qualities) .............
Pitch (f.o.b. east coast) ......................

Do. (f.a.s. west coast) ......................
Do. (f.o.b. gas companies) .................

1/1

/Ilf

/10 to/lO-J

/10

/lot

l/0£ to 1/1

/3£

/9|

/5

/3J

37/
36/ to 36/6

Sulphate of' Ammonia.—There is only a moderate amount
of business passing and prices are scarcely representative.
The forward market is neglected. On the west coast there
are promises of a slightly quickened enquiry, but they
seem slow to fructify into sales. Closing prompt prices
are:—

London (ordinary makes)........................ £11/10/0

............

Beckton (certain terms) ....................... —

Liverpool_____................................. £12/5/0

Hull ______..................................... £12/3/9

Middlesbrough	....................	£12/3/9

Scotch ports........................ £12/7/6 to £12/10
Nitrate of soda (ordinary) per cwt. ...	10/4|