1178 __________________________________________________________________ MINING EMPLOYMENT STATISTICS, The Board of Trade Labour Gazette reports that employment in coal mining during May was slack in Fifeshire, fairly good in Northumberland} Durham, a,nd West Scotland, and very good in most of the other districts; it showed a decline on the whole as compared with a. year ago. Difficulties of transport continued to be reported from several districts. There was an increase of 8,902 (or 1-7 per cent.) in the number of workpeople employed at collieries making returns com- pared with the previous month, and 37,377 (or 7*5 per cent.) compared with a year ago. Of the 537,247 workpeople included in the returns for May, 283,828 (or 52-8 per cent.) were employed at pits working 12 days during the fortnight to which the returns relate, while a further 137,438 (or 25-6 per cent.) were employed at pits working 11 hut less than 12 days. Districts. Work- people em- ployed in May 1917.* A verage No. of days worked per week by the collieries in fort- night endeel Inc. ( +) or dec. ( —) in May 1917, on a “N A28ril Yea? 1917. 1917. 1916. ag0’ ag0‘ England Sc Wades. Days. Days. Davs. Days. Days Northumberland ... 29,884...4’91...4’95... 5'49... — 0 ’04... — 0’58 Durham ........... 92,077...5 05...5* 19...5'57... — 0'14... — 0'52 Cumberland ______ 6,821...5’90...5’87...5'79... +0*03... +0'11 South Yorkshire ... 68,646...5’90...5 93...5*86... -0'03... +0'04 West Yorkshire.... 2’,027...5’83...5'81 ...5*78 .. +0’02 .. s-0’05 Lancs. & Cheshire... 49.214...5’92...5’90,..5’83... +0‘02... +0’09 Derbyshire ......... 29,222...5’86...5’83 . 5’85... + 0’03... + 0’01 NotU and Leicester 32,132...5’69...5’16...5’68... +0*53... +0’01 Staffordshire ...... 26,737...5’88...5’91...5’80...-0’03... +0’08 Warwick. Worcester and Salop......... 7,647...5*86...5’86...5’83... — ... +0’03 Glo’ster & Somerset 3,964...5’87...5’88...5’95...-0*01...-0’08 North Wales ...... 5,614.. 5’81...6’00...6’00 -0’19...-0’19 South Wales & Mon. 109,806...5*84 5’80...5’94... +0*04...-0’10 Total ...... 487,791...5 64 5’63 . 5*78...+0’01 -0*14 Scotland. West Scotland ____ 21,647.4’97...5 02...5 49...-0’05...-0’52 The Lothians ...... 1,946 5’33...5'23...5'54...+0’10 ..-0’21 Fife ................ 25,421 4’32...4’34...5’56... - 0'02...-1’24 Total.______ 49,014...4’65 . 4’67...5’53...-0’0 !...-0’88 Ireland ........... 442 ..4’85 5’04...5’35...-0T9.. -0 50 Total, U.K. 537,247.. 5’55...5’54...5’75... + 0’01...-0’20 * At the collieries included in the table. The following table shows the numbers employed and the average number of days worked distributed according to the principal kind of coal raised at the pits at which the workpeople were engaged: — Average No. of days worked per Inc. ( + ) or Work- week by the pits dec. ( —) in people in fortnight May 1917. em- ended on a _________ ployed f-------A------(-------------- Tor *y W ATril oN Month- Year lyli. AV, <4jO, liHI. AO, A4, __ 1917. 1917. 1916. ag0’ ag0’ Days. Days. Days. Days. Days. Anthracite ________ 5.859.4’66...4’35 ..5’88...+0’31...—0’22 Coking ............. 26,858...5’71...5 75...5 80... -0’04...-0’09 Gas ................. 37,563...4’86 ..5’05...5’55...-0’19...-0’69 House............... 48,933...5’72...5’63 . 5’72... +0 09... — Steam............... 191.236...5’70...5 63...5’82... +0’07...-0’12 Mixed............... 226,738...5’52...5’53...5’74...-0’01...-0’22 All descriptions... 537,237...5'55...5’54...5 75... +0’01 .. -0’20 * At the collieries included in the table. Iron Mining.—Employment continued very good at iron and shale mines. Shortage of labour was again reported from several districts. Beturns received for each of the three periods named below, relating to the same mines and open works in each case, show that 14,979 workpeople were employed at iron mines included in these returns in May 1917, an increase of 211 (or 1-4 per cent.) compared with April, and of 1,241 (or 9 per cent.) compared with a year ago. Districts. Average No. of days worked per Work- week by mines people in fortnight em- ended ployed {----------A-------x in May May April May 1917.* 26, 2 A 27, 1917. 19,17. 1916. Inc. (+) or dec. (—) in May 1917 on a __________ Month Year ago. ago. Cleveland.... Cumberlan d Lancashire _____ Scotland ......... Other districts ___ Days. Days. Days. Days. Days. .... 6,254 ...5’94...5’98...5'85...-0’04...+0’09 and 4,909 ...5’85...5 93...5’95...-0’08...-OTO 730 ...5’59...5’76...5’59...-0T7... - 3,086 ...5’91.. 6’00...5’90...-0’06... +0’04 _______ All districts... 14,979 ...5’89...5’95 . 5’88...-0'06...+0’01 * At mines included in the returns. Pig Iron Industry.—Employment continued good; it showed a slight improvement on a month ago, and a marked improvement on a year ago. Shortage of materials, difficulties of transport, and scarcity of male labour were again reported from several districts. Beturns received show that 298 furnaces were in blast at the end of May, compared with 296 a month ago, and 270 a year ago. Iron and Steel Works. — Employment at iron and steel works continued very good, and was better than a year ago. From every district a shortage of labour was reported. Engineering Trades.—These trades continued to be extremely busy during May, and a great amount of overtime was worked. The output was, however, affected by a stoppage during part of the month. Trade unions with 289,931 members (mostly in skilled occu- pations) reported 0*1 per cent, unemployed at the end of May, compared with.0’1 per cent, in each of the previous three months, and with 0-3 per cent, a year ago. Tin-Plate.—The number of mills working at the end of May showed a decrease of 5 compared with the pre- vious month and of 147 on a year ago. The decline in THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. _____________________________ June 22, 1917. the number of mills working was due to the restriction in the supply of steel bars. Steel and Galvanised Sheets.—The number of mills working at the end of May showed no change from a month ago, but a decrease of 16 compared with Mav 1916; Tubes..—Employment continued very good at Bir- mingham and good at Wednesbury. IF/re.—-Wire Workers continued well employed in most centres, and there was again a shortage of labour and materials in some cases. Fatal Accidents. -— The fatal accidents in mines (underground and surface) numbered 123, an increase of 20 compared with May 1916. Disputes. — Three new disputes in coal mining occurred. These affected 881 persons directly and 850 indirectly. Changes in Wages.—No change took place in miners’ wages in Durham as a result of the ascertained selling- price of coal for the first quarter of 1917. The sell- ing price averaged 15s. 7d., a decline of 2Jd. on the previous audit, and an increase of Is. ll|d. a year ago. Manufactured Iron.—Following the March-April audit in the North of England and in the West of Scotland, the wages of puddlers and millmen remained unchanged; whilst in the Midlands puddlers’ wages were increased by 3d. per ton and millmen’s wages by 24 per cent., the increase to take effect from June 4. ____________________________ MINING INDUSTRY AND MILITARY SERVICE. The Nantyglo and Blaina tribunals have dealt with the cases of colliery clerks. There were seven from one colliery, three of them in Class A. An appeal had been made on behalf of the employers, and the case was adjourned because the men wished also to make personal appeal. In the result, the tribunal decided to grant con- ditional exemption to six out of the seven, in view of their personal claims and of the responsible work they had to perform. Strong protests are being made in regard to medical examination of men for the Army; and, in addition, the tribunals continue to make their protest against being called upon to deal with the cases of married men whilst single men are still left at work. It was stated at a meet- ing of the Pontypool tribunal that there are more single men in the collieries of that area at the present time than there were before the war; and the speaker said he was certain the large majority of miners thought that most of those young men ought to go into the Army. The Gelligaer tribunal has also protested against taking from the colliery young men who had worked there since boyhood, whilst other young men, “ shirkers from North Wales and other places,” who had entered the mines since 1914 were allowed to remain. Coun. Hughes, of Pont- lottyn, directed special attention to the fact that young men of this latter class, having no responsibilities, who had entered the collieries, escaped military service, whilst tradesmen, with heavy financial and family obligations, were taken to the Army; and Coun. Edwards said the time had come when the authorities should “ comb out ” the young men who had migrated to the mines, before the/took boys who had been there since their school days. As"a protest against the policy they were- criticising,.the tribunal granted two months' exemption to a colliery worker i/Class A, 18 years of age; and when the military representative said he would be bound to take the case to a higher court, the clerk was instructed to inform the recruiting authorities of the tribunal’s reasons for grant- ing the exemption. He was also to write to the colliery recruiting court and protest against “combing out’’from the collieries young men who had worked therein prior to 1914, whilst young single men who had gone there since were allowed to remain. Hexham appeal tribunal turned down the application on behalf of a colliery banksman from the Haltwhistle neighbourhood. The youth was stated to be. 19 years old and single. He was the main support of his father and mother, and his calling-up would involve considerable per- sonal hardship, besides which he was indispensable to the colliery. One of the conditions of the recent agreement with the Miners' Federation was that no more surface workers should be taken, stated Mr. Shield, a local miners' official. The youth was ordered to serve, however, the tribunal being’ of the opinion that, as his wage was stated to be only 25 s. or 26s. per week, there would be no finan- cial hardship. The Auckland rural tribunal adjourned for two .months, in order that work of national importance might be secured, the case of a Toft Hill miner, who said that, since 1906, when he met with an accident in the pit, he had done no work, and had been in receipt of compensa- tion. His legs had been run over by a set, and both his ankles were smashed. Sometimes even now he was unable to walk across the room. ' The military representative thought the man could get about sufficiently to do light work, but a member of the tribunal countered this with the remark, “If he had been able to .work, his compen- sation would have been stopped ere this.” At a largely-attended meeting of Buckhill miners at Broughton last week, Mr. S. Stephenson presiding, refer- ence was made to the military medical examinations now being made, and it was unanimously agreed to enter a protest against keeping men from work for the purpose, of attending" for examination; and a resolution was carried to claim° for these men a day’s pay, and urging the authorities to examine men when necessary in each locality. _______________________________ A thousand iron ore miners at Hodbarrow, Millom, Cum- berland, still refuse to resume work after being on strike a week relative to wages. A new company, styled the Channel Steel Company Limited (capital £750,000) is to be formed to acquire Kent Collieries Limited and the Channel Collieries Trust Limited. CoaS Controller and Pit Prices. — The Coal Control Department of the Board of Trade has given notice that there is no reason to anticipate any change in pit prices or in contract prices in the immediate future.. The arrangements made some time ago in connection with the Price of Coal (Limitation) Act are found to be working satisfactorily, and the Board of Trade contemplates con- tinuing the same system until further notice. PARLIAMENTARY INTELLIGENCE. ______________ HOUSE OF COMMONS— June 15. Coal Storage in Winter. Capt. Barnett asked whether, in order to provide against the probable shortage of fuel in London next winter, the Coal Mines Department would arrange to store large sup- plies of coal during the summer months in Begent’s Park and other suitable open spaces, so that the same might be available for purchase at reasonable prices either by coal merchants or consumers. Mr. G. Roberts replied that the Controller was investi- gating the question of providing suitable sites for storing emergency supplies of house coal, but he did not think that public parks could be suitably utilised for this pur- pose. Transport was one of the chief difficulties which confronted the Coal Controller. _________ June 18. London’s Coal Supply. Air. Roberts stated, in answer to Air. Rowlands, that the quantities of coal brought to London in the first five months of 1914 and 1917 respectively were: Railborne, 3,369,518 and 4,571,306 tons; seaborne, 3,657,090 and 2,560,082 tons. The last figure included a small quantity of Admiralty coal. _________ June 20. Irish Coal Fields. Sir T. W. Russell, replying to Mr. Nugent, said that boring operations would be necessary if it were desired to ascertain how far the Tyrone coal field extended towards Lough Neagh. Enquiries were being made regarding Irish mineral resources. _________ June 21. Miners and Military Service. Air. C. Edwards, in the course of a debate on man- power, drew attention to the grave discontent existing throughout the country at the fact that there were hun- dreds of thousands of young unmarried men of military age who could be spared. To-day the Glamorgan collieries were working short time, and a large number of pit-head meetings of miners had passed resolutions in favour of the recruiting of young unmarried men before older and married men were taken. He challenged the Government to consult their expert advisers. He was confident that they would be told that all the unmarried miners up to the age of 31 years could be taken. The following figures were given: Miners of military age, 573,000; unmarried, and under 25 years, 157,835; unmarried, and between 25 and 30 years, 34,727; unmarried, up to 31 years, 205,000. Already 117,000 miners had attested, and as a body they were, more enthu- siastic for war than were the majority of members of the House of Commons. _________ Exemption Certificates. . Air. Macpherson, replying to Air. Hancock, said that coal mining was not an exempted trade. A miner possess- ing a certificate of exemption issued by a colliery recruit- ing court was not liable for military service. _____________________________ OBITUARY. The death is announced, after a very short illness, of Air. W. Morgan, manager of Garngoch No. 1 Colliery. Air. Morgan was 64 years of age. Air. Ely Ainley Sutcliffe, aged 55, of Messrs. H. and E. A. Sutcliffe, coal merchants, Lister-lane, Halifax, a branch of the Halifax Coal Supply Association Limited, died last week as the result of injuries received in a trap accident near Selby on Whit-Tuesday. Air. Sutcliffe suffered an injury of the spine. Mr. Geo. H. Marshall, a well-known representative on Newcastle Exchange of Messrs. John Hudson and Com- pany, coal exporters, has been killed in action. _____________________________ London’s Coal Supplies.—The representatives of London boroughs, and their surveyors, had a conference on Thursday with the Coal Controller, relative to provision for the storage of coal in the various boroughs, so as to ensure proper supplies for domestic consumers during the winter months. At the present moment the workmen employed at many of the collieries are working short time. Coal Distribution in Winter.—The method of coal dis- tribution. during the coming winter (especially for the poor of London) is still occupying a good deal of attention. No definite scheme has yet been announced, but as the time for large households and institutions to lay in their stock has been shortened from September 30 to July 31, it is anticipated that some new plans will be evolved directly after that date. Industrial Compulsion. — A special conference of the Triple Industrial Alliance — composed of the Miners’ Federation, the Railwaymen’s Union, and the Transport Workers’ Federation—was held in the Central Hall, West- minster, on Thursday, to ratify the constitution of the Alliance and to consider the question of industrial com- pulsion. Air. R. Smillie presided. The principal business related to the question of industrial compulsion, and a resolution empowered the calling of a special conference if the Government attempted to introduce such a scheme. Another resolution affirmed that conscription of wealth should have preceded conscription of men. It was stated officially that the representation at the conference was: Miners, 716,000; railwaymen, 340,000; transport workers, 230,000. Action Against Belfast Coal Importers.—In the King’s Bench Division of the Dublin Law Courts recently, before Mr. Justice Gibson and Mr. Justice Aladden, an applica- tion was'made on behalf of the defendants for a stay of execution pending an appeal to the Court of Appeal. The action was brought by Francis Shannon, a Belfast coal factor, against the defendants, a firm of coal importers in the same city, for breach of contract in supplying coal, as alleged, deficient in quantity and inferior in quality, to plaintiff’s customers. The. action was heard at the" last Belfast Assizes, gnd resulted in a verdict for plaintiff for £65 damages, less £10, the amount of defendants’ counter- claim. The defendants brought a new trial motion before the Divisional Court, which was dismissed with costs. Air. D. M. Wilson, K.C., for the defendants, said they were considering the question of an appeal from the decision. The court ordered the amount of the verdict, £65, less the amount of the counter-claim, to be paid to the plaintiff forthwith, and granted a stay as to costs for one week.