The Bitter Coal Mine Split at Newcastle

Residents of Newcastle, all of whom are practical miners at the camp, desire to publish through the volume of your widely circulated and influential journal a true and fair statement of the situation at Newcastle. In the first place, we will say that the statement too published some time ago that there is really no difference between the company and the miners is untrue. Recently, a number of men decided to call a meeting to be held last Thursday evening to talk over matters and come to terms. Our report states that at that time a reliable source maintained the company willing to pay a certain rate per day for mining coal, and it was for the purpose of submitting a proposition on that basis to the company that the meeting was called. But before the meeting, one man contradicted the previous statement, and said that he had talked with Mr. Watkins three hours after the other man did, and that Watkins' statement to him contradicted the previous statement. As the men felt this was incapable of being settled by the Knights of Labor and miners who did not belong to that order, a motion was made to retain a committee to investigate the statements of both Mr. Watkins and the other man, to report at a subsequent meeting. A motion was made to vote by ballot, so that every man could express his feelings on the resolution without fear or favor, but the Knights and their followers objected to this. Many of the best miners at Newcastle, both in the Knights of Labor and outside the order, are willing and anxious to go to work at the wages the company is willing to give, but are prevented by a lot of men who seem to be holding out to spite the company. Three are there, and by publishing this, the men who want their jobs will be brought before the public.