January 29, 1915.

THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN.

243

matter that affects about 7,000 men throughout the coalfield.
Their contention was that by introducing the lamps, and.
refusing to give an additional percentage, the employers,
were breaking an old custom, and. they asked that a joint,
sub-committee should be appointed to go into the question,
and bring up a. recommendation to the Board on the general,
principle. The reply of the employers was that in the
electric lamps the light was so much better that the men
suffered no inconvenience. They would not. agree to the
appointment of a general committee, but were willing to.
take each case separately and deal with it through the Peace
Committee. Show-cards was the inciting cause of the next
demand, the men desiring that facilities should be afforded,
at the collieries, these having been hitherto refused. The
employers repeated the reasons previously set out by them,,
making it clear that they could not grant the request; but
they promised to place the request before the next meeting
of the Coal Owners’ Association.

A number of disputes were considered, and were referred,
to joint representatives for investigation, with power to,
settle. The owners brought up the question of the Gelli
stoppage, as to which the Peace Committee had reached,
agreement with the men’s representatives, but the men had
nevertheless refused to proceed to work. The employers,
now urged that steps should be taken to ensure resumption,
of work. The matter will be brought before the next
meeting of the Peace Committee.

The perennial question of amalgamating craftsmen and
miners came again to the fore on Saturday, when the.
quarterly meeting took place of the South Wales Association
of Colliery Enginemen, Stokers, and Craftsmen. A report
was presented from the deputation which waited upon the
Miners’ Federation with regard to the proposed affiliation..
It stated that the case had been laid before the miners’
executive, pointing out that the majority necessary to wind
up the association and amalgamate with the Federation had
not been secured, and they had therefore suggested a scheme
of affiliation to be adopted, which would not necessitate the
merging of the two bodies. But the miners’ executive
replied that they could not alter their previous decision on
the subject. The deputation’s report was accepted, and,
after discussion, a motion to take a further ballot of the
members was rejected. The association will therefore con-
tinue to work on the old lines. Immediate steps are to be
taken in order to secure reduction of the working hours of
men now engaged on 12-hour shifts, so that the limit be
eight hours. This point will be brought up also in any
negotiations for a new Conciliation Board agreement which
are entered upon by the Federation.

North of England.

Fifty lodges of the Durham Miners’ Association were
represented at a conference, held under the auspices of the
Durham Miners’ Forward Movement, at Houghton-le-Spring-
last Saturday. A resolution dealing with the high cost of
living, and calling on the Government to take possession
of the foodstuffs and shipping of the country was carried.,
A second resolution read “ This conference wishes a.
point out that, while there is a cry in the country about the
extremely high price of coals, at the same time the Durham
miners are having their wages reduced, in addition to losing
a great deal of time, owing to a so-called lack of demand in
the country for coal. While pricey are going up, wages are
going down. While there is an apparent lack of supply of
coal, thousands of miners are losing work because there is.
no demand for their labour. This conference is of opinion
that employers and Government alike ought to face these
contradictions, and solve the problems raised, or be prepared
for trouble in the Durham coalfield.” This was agreed to,
as was a third, demanding more adequate allowances for the
dependants of soldiers and sailors engaged in the present
campaign.

The dispute at Burradon Colliery regarding the supply of
coal to the workmen has been amicably settled. According
to a local agreement, the men were entitled to a load of coal
every fortnight, but, owing to the war, the owners found it
expedient to supply the quantity only once in each month..
The usual fortnightly supply, however, is to be delivered.

Trouble has arisen at Seaton Delaval through a difference
of opinion between the coal owners and miners there over
what the latter allege to be a county custom. The men
declare that it is usual for hewers to leave the.pit earlier
on the last day of the quarter, when, their working gear is
removed to the new cavils. Instructions have been issued,
however, that the men are not to be allowed to leave the
pit until the ordinary time for ascending. Several hewers
have been served with notices for having left the pit
earlier, and the affair will be discussed by the miners’ and
coal owners’ representatives.

After all, Morpeth Moor Colliery is not to be closed down,
the differences having been composed.

At a meeting of the Cumberland Coal Trade Conciliation
Board, held at Workington, last week, the men employed in
a certain part of the stoneyard district at Buckhill Colliery,
who have been receiving 2s. Id. per ton, were awarded an
advance of l|d. per ton, bringing the tonnage rate up to
2s. 2Jd. The men in No. 2 Little Main seam were granted
an advance of l|d. per ton. The tonnage rate, which was
formerly 2s. 4-}d., is now 2s. 6d. in this district.

Federated Area.

The miners’ section of the Coal Conciliation Board for the
federated mining districts in England and North Wales met
in London on Wednesday, as a preliminary to the joint
meeting called for the following day, to resume the dis-
cussion of the proposals for a new wage agreement for
a further period of three years. The meeting was entirely
devoted to the business to come before the joint meeting, and
there was no report.

Further meetings of the sub-committee which is carrying
on the negotiations for the new agreement, and of the two
sections of the Conciliation Board, took place on Thursday,
and extended from 11 o’clock in the morning until six o’clock
in the evening, when the meeting was adjourned until
Friday week, February 5. The men’s section of the Board
will meet this morning (Friday), when .the members form-
ing the sub-committee will report to their colleagues the
progress made with the negotiations.

Details of the ballot of the West Yorkshire miners on
the question of the strike have been issued by Mr. Thomas
Ashton, general secretary of the Miners’ Federation of Great
Britain. The figures, which show a larger majority in
favour of the handing in of notices, are as follow :—

Number voting for giving in notices... 26,676

Against ............................... 7,211

Spoiled papers........................... 245

Total...........................   34,132

Majority in favour, 19,465.

These figures have been forwarded to Mr. Ashton by Mr.
J. Wadsworth, M.P., general secretary of the Yorkshire
Miners’ Association, who states that the financial member-
ship is 37,812. Mr. Wadsworth points out that the ballot
represents West Yorkshire only, where the dispute has taken
place, and not the whole of the county.

The owners state they are awaiting the reply of the
men’s officials to the circular letter giving the owners’
opinion on the point in question. The owners ask to meet
dhe men’s representatives to discuss the matter.

In the course of a statement that has been issued, the
West Yorkshire owners refer to the resolution adopted by
the Conciliation Board in 1912, to the effect that those men
not earning the minimum, and whose wages had to be made
up, should have added to the minimum an additional 5 per
cent, on their earnings. The letter adds :—“ This resolu-
tion applied only to men paid by contract, and not to those
■on day wage, and applied solely to those men who did not
earn the minimum wage. It was not to be applied to those
who did earn the minimum, if so it would have meant an
advance of 10 per cent., which the coal owners could never
have agreed to. Moreover, if it had meant to apply to men
earning the minimum rate, why were the words ‘ not earning
the minimum ’ put in? In working this arrangement out it
was found that in. some instances a workman who did not
-earn the minimum was better off through the extra 5 per cent.
than some men who just earned the amount of the minimum
•or a little over, therefore at some collieries, and in some
districts more favourably situated than others, the employers
voluntarily gave the additional 5 per cent, to those who had
just earned the minimum or -slightly over. ... To show more
•clearly the following illustration is given :—■

Per day.

s. d.

Per day.
s. d.
A miner’s actual earnings
at 1888 rates ............ 3	8

Add 50 per cent........... 1	10

Add 15 per cent., i,e.f the three 5 per cent, ad-		
vances given by the Con- ciliation Board		0	6'6
Total earnings			6	0'6
Amount to make up to		
minimum of 6s. 2d. per day 		0	1’4

6 2

Add further three 5 per
cents., or 15 per cent, on
1888 basis, as this work-
man had not earned the

A miner’s actual earnings
at 1888 rates ............ 4	0

Add 50 per cent........... 2	0

Add 15 per cent., i.e., the
three 5 per cent, advances
given by the Conciliation
Board .................... 0	7'2

Total earnings ......... 6	7 2

This man having earned the
minimum wage is not entitled to
anything further.

minimum ................. 0	6’6

Total wage.....*....... 6	8*6

Some individual collieries having made the voluntary con-
cession of adding the additional Conciliation Board advances
of 15 per cent, to those miners who had just earned the
minimum or slightly over, the miners’ representatives
demanded that every colliery should do the same. .. . .
The coal owners are at present paying a wage higher
than the new minimum wage awarded by Judge Amphlett,
and they are also paying the three 5 per cent, advances given
by the Conciliation Board, strictly in accordance with the
resolutions. It is the application of these resolutions which
is the cause of the trouble, the miners’ representatives
demanding what they are not justified in asking. The
workmen themselves appear to misunderstand the dispute.
The coalowners have shown every desire to meet and
discuss the difficulties, and try and surmount them, but up
to now without avail.”

An important meeting of the council of the Yorkshire
Miners’ Association was held at Barnsley on Wednesday,
when the decisive character of the recent ballot was laid
before the meeting, which adopted the following resolu-
tions :—“ That notices be tendered on Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, and Friday next week, according to the making-up
days, at all collieries in West Yorkshire where the owners
have not given written undertakings that they will pay
Judge Amphlett’s award of July 21, 1914, together with the
15 per cent, advance, due under the Coal Conciliation Board’s
resolutions, and also all arrears.” “ That Mr. Ashton,
secretary of the Miners’ Federation of Great Britain, be
written to stating that we are willing to meet the coal
owners with the Federation representatives, but can in no
way concede anything from our claim.” Mr. J. Wadsworth.
M.P., general secretary of the association, was instructed to
write to those coal owners who had already given an under-
taking to pay the award, plus the percentage, that the
members of the Miners’ Association at these collieries will
be instructed to continue working and not serve notices.
Commenting on the position, Mr. Wadsworth referred to the
case of a large colliery employing about 4,000 hands in the
western subdivision of the West Yorkshire district, which,
he said, since the minimum was established in 1912, had
admitted the principle of adding the percentages to the
amount of the award. They, the officials, considered the
present attitude of the West Yorkshire coal owners to be
very unpatriotic, because they were now getting plenty of
money for their coal, and were actually asking the men to
temporarily suspend the Eight Hours Act. Such an extra-
ordinary demand they contended was not absolutely neces-
sary, and they should resist to the utmost.

An important case having a bearing on the threatened
Yorkshire coal strike was mentioned to Justices Ridley and
Atkins, in the King’s Bench Divisional Court on Wednesday.
Mr. Macmorran, K.C., asked that the hearing of the pending
Crown Paper case of the King and his Honour Judge
Amphlett should be expedited. It raised an important
question under the Coal Mines Minimum Wage Act, 1912,
and, at the moment, partly in consequence of this matter
being pending, there were threats of strikes in the Yorkshire
coalfields, to which the Act applied. The case was of great
interest and urgency, and the Attorney-General, who was
on the other side, concurred in the application. Tuesday
next had been suggested as a suitable day for the hearing.
Mr. Justice Ridley said every effort would be made to hear
the case on that day.

Scotland.

A meeting of the executive of the National Union of
Scottish Mine Workers was held last week at Glasgow. It
was agreed to write Mr. Thomas Ashton, secretary of the
Miners’ Federation of Great Britain, asking that the
executive of that body should approach the Government with

reference to the increased cost of living, and urge that the
State should take over the control of the principal food-
stuffs. It was further suggested that the Government
should be asked to deal with the question of shipping
freights. Mr. James Tonner reported with regard to a
dispute at the Eastfield Colliery, Longriggend. It vas
agreed that the union should take over the strike, and a
committee was appointed to interview the general manager.
Mr. James Brown reported on a dispute at Annbank
Colliery, Ayrshire, and it was also agreed to take over this
dispute ancl grant strike pay. The secretary submitted a
communication with reference to the demand for an advance
of wages by the firemen in the employment of Messrs. J.
and R. Howie, Hurlford. He was instructed, in the event
of the concession claimed not being granted, to request that
a deputation be received by the general manager to discuss
the situation.

Iron, Steel and Engineering Trades.

The annual meeting of the Board of Conciliation and
Arbitration for the Manufactured Iron and Steel Trade of
the North of England was held at Newcastle on Monday.
The annual report stated that the membership of the Board
remained the same as six months ago, namely, nine works
owned by seven firms. The average number of operative
subscribing members during the past half-year was 3,516,
as against 3,639 in the previous half-year, a decrease of 123.
Two ascertainments of the average selling price of finished
iron had been received since the last report. The wages of
steel mill men were advanced 2| per cent, as from the
beginning of October.

miB MD OTHER KOTES.

At a meeting of Glasgow University Geological Society
a paper was read by Mr. David Ferguson on the geological
results of his recent travels in the Falkland Islands, the
South Shetland Islands, and Graham Land, Antarctica.
The starting point was the Falkland Islands, and the
importance of their fine harbours and their value as as a
naval base and coaling station pointed out. Examination
of the Falklands showed a considerable area of Gondwana
rocks, which makes the existence of coal deposits at least a
possibility, as they were the repository of the coal deposits
of Brazil, South Africa, India, and Australia.

The late Mr. Richard Cory, of Cardiff, a director of Cory
Brothers and Company Limited, left estate valued at
<£528,364 gross in the United Kingdom with net personalty
<£525,340.

At University of London, University College, the six
Newmarch lectures on statistics will be given by Mr. A. W.
Flux, M.A., F.S.S., on “Fluctuations in the Returns on
Investments.” The lectures will be delivered on Mondays
at 8 p.m., beginning February 1, and are open to the public
without fee or ticket.

A scholarship will be offered for competition among
graduates of the. North-east Coast Institution of Engineers
and Shipbuilders in September next. The scholarship is
tenable for two years, and is of the annual value of J25O.
The scholarship will be awarded on the results of an
examination held in Newcastle during September simul-
taneously with the matriculation examination of Durham
University, in English, mathematics, and experimental
science. Every candidate for the scholarship must be a
British subject and a member of the graduate section of the
institution of not less than one year’s standing ; and shall
have served or be serving an apprenticeship on the north-
east coast. The successful candidate must attend a college
or technical school on the north-east coast of England; and
the scholarship cannot be held simultaneously with any
other scholarship, bursary, or prize which is awarded in
money. It will be held for two years, and, in the option
of the institution council, the term may be extended for a
third year. Candidates for the scholarship must forward a
written application on the prescribed form to the secretary
of the institution, on or before August 1. Conditions for
membership of the graduate section of the institution,
entry forms for the scholarship examination, and detailed
syllabus of the subjects of the examination may be had on
application to the secretary, North-east Coast Institution of
Engineers and Shipbuilders, BolbecHall, Newcastle-on-Tyne.

The Coventry Corporation has placed an order with
Edward Bennis and Company Limited, of Little Hulton,
Bolton, for a complete coal and ash handling and storage
plant, consisting of wharf conveyor, cross conveyor, dis-
tributing conveyor, ash-gathering conveyor, ash-discharging
conveyor, and all structural supports and accessories; also
the whole of the steelwork contained in the boiler-house,
overhead bunkers, boiler-house roof, economiser floor and
boiler-house floor. The order also includes eight “Bennis ”
patent chain grate stokers, each 7 ft. wide by 13 ft. 6 in.
centres, to be fitted to eight Babcock and Wilcox boilers.

In consequence of the huge demand for war material the
Birmingham Small Arms and Ammunition Company,
Bimingham, have had to make great extensions to
premises and plant, and for the silent and efficient trans-
mission of power to the latter, “ The Coventry ” Chain
Company Limited, Coventry, received instructions to instal
80 Coventry noiseless chain drives from electric motor to
lineshaft, transmitting 25-horse power at a motor speed of
720 revolutions per minute to a lineshaft at 150 revolutions
per minute. The chain wheels have 19 and 90 teeth 1 in.
pitch, and the chain combination is 4 x 5 at 30 in. centres.
All drives are provided with gear cases and lubricators.

General meetings of the North Staffordshire Institute of
Mining and Mechanical Engineers will be held during the
present session on March 15, May 17, July 19, and October 25t

Sir Henry Miers, principal of the University of London,
has tendered his resignation to the Senate, who have
accepted it with regret. Sir Henry has been offered the
post of the Vice-chancellor of Manchester University in
succession to Sir Alfred Hopkinson.

Mr. Robert Sharpe Scott, engineer to the Thornhill
Colliery, owned by Ingham’s Thornhill Collieries Limited,
Dewsbury, asks us to state that he is not in any way
connected with the Thornhill Iron and Steel Works, where,
the recent boiler disaster occurred.

A new steamship company has been formed by well-
known Cardiff docksmen, with Mr. D. A. Thomas as
chairman.