MINERS RESUMING.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1410, 10 April 1912, Page 5

MINERS RESUMING.

ANOTHER STRIKE THREAT. TWO MILLION MEN EXPECTED TO STOP WORK. NATIONAL MINIMUM SOUGHT' By Telegraph-Press Association-Copyright (K«c. April 9, 11.15 p.m.) London, April 9. There arc now 180,000 miners working. The majority of the others will resume to-day, though there is much ill-feeling in the North of England. Resumption in Durham and South Wales has been delayed by the attitude of the enginemen. The Durham enginemen, who are earning ss. 4<l. per shift, demand an. increase of Bd. and an eight hours' day. The masters are offering an increase of fourpence. Mr. Hartshorn, secretary of the Miners' Federation, ia a speech at Maesteg, said preparations were being made for a labour movement of an unprecedented magnitude. The threatened pressure upon the Government to introduce legislation preventing workers from holding up tho country had necessitated a union between the transport workers, the rnilwayjinen, and the miners. He believed two million men would be striking within a' few months- for a national eight hours' day and a national minimum wage. ANALYSIS OF THE VOTING. GENERAL DESIRE TO RESUME WORK London, April 8. An analysis of Saturday's voting shows that the miners in Durham, Northumberland, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, and Cumberland reversed their ballot decision, and joined South Wales and the Midlands in favour of the resumption of work. Probably Scotland did likewise, and the minority in favour of continuing tho strike would thus consist of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire. There are indications that those delegates who wero not bound by instructions concluded that on the part of the men there was a general desire to resume work, a desire not attributable to exhaustion of funds, inasmuch as Durham and Derbyshire have ample funds. Tyn'eside coal merchants predict a permanent rise of Is. Gd. to 2s. in the price of household coal to cover tho increased cost of production owing to tho granting of the minimum wage. The collieries intimate that there ivill be regular supplies of coal in three weeks' time. Mr. George Barker, 'a member of tho Miners' Federation Executive, hints at the possibility of n strike of all classes of workers if the district boards fix the minima below the schedule. The miners at Cannock Chase (Staffordshire) and in Scotland, except Fifeshire, have resumed work. Mr. V. Hartshorn, the Glamorgan Labour leader, speaking at Maesteg, Wales, said a transport workers' strike would take place early in the summer. WHAT THE STRIKE COST. TOTAL LOSS OF ,£50,000,000. London,- April 8. Mr. John Holt Schooling, the wellknown statistical authority, calculates that the miners lost .£6,000,000 in wages and .62,000,000 of trade funds and personal savings, and that other workers lost .68,000,000. His estimate of the loss in coal production is X 10,000,000, and Iho loss in production in other industries .£10,000,000, the total loss to the community being .£50,000,000.

SYDNEY AID FOR THE STARVING. Sydney, April 9. The Lord Mayor (Sir Allen Taylor) ha 3 sent a second thousand pounds to assist the starring in England.