August 26, 1922





RECORD   AND   GUIDE





261







No Relief Yet in Coal Crisis

As this issue of The Record and Guide goes to press,
the prospect of an early settlement of the coal strikes
is anything but bright. Progress undoubtedly is being
made in the efforts to assure a better supply of bitum¬
inous coal, but it is most unfortunate that the outlook
tor a supply of anthracite has become positively dis¬
turbing.

New York City is seriously menaced by the con¬
tinued inactivity in the anthracite fields. The distress
which New Yorkers suffered because of the coal
shortage during the winter of 1917-1918 was of too re¬
cent occurrence to be forgotten, and yet it is agreed by
those in closest touch with the situation that unless
the mining and hauling of anthracite on a large scale
gets under way immediately the people of the metrop¬
olis must prepare for more serious hardships than they
underwent during the shortage five years ago.

It seems little less than criminal that something
drastic cannot be done by the government authorities
to avert the grave danger which threatens the seven
million inhabitants of the nation's metropolis. For
five months now the miners have been idle and the
squabble between workers and operators has proceeded
without result. President Harding has been able to ac¬
complish practically nothing in his efforts to compose
the situation, and it remains to be seen what Governor
Miller can accomplish through the Special Session of
the State Legislature which he has summoned to meet
in Albany next Monday. Between the government
forces at Washington and Albany it may be possible
to do away with the discriminative and haphazard dis¬
tribution of such coal supplies as become available dur¬
ing the next few months, but at best these efforts can
only be of temporary advantage.

The public, because of many sad experiences, has lost
faith in the efficacy of official investigations. All too
often they have started with a blare of trumpets and
ended in futility. For this reason, it is idle to expect
that the public will take over-seriously the present
efforts of Congress for a further investigation of the
coal industry. At the same time the plan for the
creation of the United States Coal Commission will be
followed with interest. Senator Borah's idea in some¬
what different form has been presented in the lower
branch of Congress by Representative Winslow, chair¬
man of the House Interstate Commerce Committee.
The Winslow plan, which has the support of President
Harding, differs from the Borah plan in that it pro¬
vides for a commission of nine members, whereas
Senator Borah proposed a commission of three, one to
represent the operators, one the miners, and one the
public.

President Harding is believed to prefer the Winslow
plan because it contemplates a commission entirely
independent of either operators or miners, one having
as its main concern the interests of the public as a





whole. This commission is to "investigate and ascer¬
tain facts in the coal industry as to ownership of coal
mines, prices of coal, wages, wage contracts, conditions
of employment, distribution, waste of coal, profits
realized by owners or operators of coal mines or by
other persons or corporations having to do with the
production, distribution or sale of coal, and any other
material facts in connection with the coal industry
generally and the organizations and persons con¬
nected with it." The commission is required to report
not later than January 1, 1923, its findings of fact and
such recommendations as to methods and measures as
in its judgment will promote continuity of production
and efficiency in mining and distribution, and maintain
the uninterrupted movement of coal in the interstate
commerce and safeguard the interest of the workers,
operators and the consuming and general public.

This plan seems all right, so far as it goes. Such a
commission should be able to lay the basis for the
future protection of the public against the ills con¬
stantly recurring because of the quarrels between
operators and miners. The plan is futile, however, so
fa.r as concerns relief in the immediate future. The
only action that will insure New York City and the
rest of the country from serious disaster this winter is
the prompt resumption of mining on a very large scale.
Until provision for this action is made, all other efforts
must be regarded merely as by-play.





Too Extensive to Be Halted Now

Builders who are showing some anxiety over the
conditions resulting from the prolonged railroad and
coal strikes need have little fear that the prosperity of
the industry is in jeopardy. While the shortages of
fuel and the difficulties of transportation have slowed
down building to some extent, the unprecedented build¬
ing movement now in progress cannot be halted and
is only temporarily slowed down until material pro¬
duction and supply conditions improve.

The great national building boom, predicted since
the close of the war, is now at its peak. Although its
progress during the next few weeks or even months
may be hampered and delayed by fuel scarcity and rail¬
road transportation disturbances, the boom cannot be
halted, at least not by these factors alone.

A graphic idea of the intensity of the current con¬
struction program may be gained by a study of the
statistics compiled by The F. W. Dodge Company for
July. According to the totals for the active building
and engineering operations in the twenty-seven North¬
eastern States, July was the fourth consecutive month
of unprecedented activity in the construction field.

Contracts awarded in this territory during July in¬
volved a total investment of $350,081,000, an increase
of 2 per cent, over the preceding month and a gain of
65 per cent, when compared with the same period of