Mr. HENRICI. Yes, sir; I have no doubt at all that that is so. Senator GOODING (chairman of the subcommittee). Is that all? [After a pause.] Well, I think we had better be moving along now. (Thereupon the subcommittee left the quarters of Mr. Lubreski, and after taking a view of the union barracks generally and the surrounding territory, they entered the automobiles and drove to the Kinlock Mine.) When the subcommittee arrived at the Kinlock Mine of the Valley Camp Coal Co., they entered the office and called for the superintendent. STATEMENT OF J. H. SCHWEINSBURG, SUPERINTENDENT OF THE VALLEY CAMP COAL CO. Senator GOODING (chairman of the subcommittee). You are the superintendent here? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. You probably know that this is a subcommittee of the Committee on Interstate Commerce of the United States Senate, sent here to investigate conditions. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. Will you be kind enough to tell about the explosion here, and how it happened? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Well, I don't know how it happened. I just know that it went off and 10 men were in it. Senator WHEELER. Tell the story, if you please. Where did it take place? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. At the fur end of the mine. Senator WHEELER. What do you mean by "the fur end of the mine." Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. The farthest end of the mine. Senator WHEELER. How far underground was it? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. About 2 miles, I suppose. Senator WHEELER. Who were the men that were killed? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I couldn't tell you that right off. But I have a list of them. Senator WHEELER. Will you get the names of the men for us, please? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. Were they white or colored? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Both. Senator WHEELER. How many were white and how many were colored? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I will get that information for you. The clerk it doing that now. Senator WHEELER. How many men were employed in this particular part? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. There were, I think, 20 in there that night, somewhere around that number. Senator WHEELER. Twenty at that particular end of the mine? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Not in that particular end. That was all over the mine. Senator WHEELER. How many men do you employ in that mine? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Four hundred and fifty in the daytime. Senator WHEELER. And this was at night? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir; just the cutters were in there. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. They are burying him to-day. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. Were those inexperienced men in the mine? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. There are no inexperienced men in the mine. Senator GOODING. How long had they been employed by the company? Have you got their records here? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. Let us have the record of them, will you? Senator WHEELER. How long have you been here? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I came here in 1916 and I have been here off and on ever since. In 1917 a fire took place at the other mine and I went up there, and I stayed there until-well, I have been here four years now at this mine. Senator WHEELER. How long had this mine been working? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I don't know how long. I will get the record, but a long time. Senator GOODING. This explosion occurred at what time, at night? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. At nine something. Senator GOODING. How many men were working in the mine that night? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. About 20. Senator GOODING. How many out of the 20 were killed? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Ten. Senator WHEELER. How many were injured? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Nobody. Senator WHEELER. Have the bodies all been recovered? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. What was the condition of the mine as to gas? Are these mines particularly filled with gas? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. No, sir. Senator GOODING. If the accident had occurred in the daytime, how many would have been lost? Mr. SSCHWEINSBURG. A good many. Senator GOODING. How many? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I don't know. Senator GOODING. Was it all over the mine? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. No; in that section. Senator GOODING. A pretty big section? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. How great a wreck was it? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. It wrecked it a good deal. Senator GOODING. How much of the area in the mine was affected? You are a miner and you can tell us how much of the area was affected or wrecked. Was it a quarter of a mile in distance or a half a mile or what? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. It went part way of the entries, and then came down other entries, about half a mile I would say. Senator GOODING. If it had occurred in the daytime would there have been 100 men lost? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. It would depend on how many men were up there. Yes; probably that many men would have been working in that section. Senator GOODING. The committee would like to know how long these men who were killed had been in the employment of the company, and if married, and so on. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. I will give you that. Senator WHEELER. There are about 450 men here now? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Between 450 and 475 when we have been working. Senator GOODING. What is your daily production? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. About 1,800 tons. Senator GOODING. All right, give us a list of their names. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. The clerk will give it to you here. (The following information was furnished by the clerk from the records:) Wesley Blackman, colored, single; entered the service July 26, 1927; 18 years' experience in mining; 38 years of age. William Casey, colored, single; entered the service June 1, 1927; 5 years' experience; 23 years old. Kinsey Nice, white, single, 21 years old; 3 years' experience; entered the service May 26, 1927. Thomas Burtoft, night foreman, white, married; age 47; 33 years' experience; entered the service September 26, 1927. John Poole, white, single; 27 years old; 12 years' experience; entered the service July 12, 1927. Parley Bell, colored, single; 24 years old; 4 years' experience; entered the service June 7, 1927. He was one of the cutters. Andrew Stroder, colored; 24 years old; married; 5 years' experience; entered the service August 4, 1927. John Clark, colored, single; 30 years old; 12 years' experience; entered the service July 18, 1927. William Iveory, colored; married; 30 years of age; 9 years' experience; entered the service June 10, 1927. Charles Wise, white; 23 years old; 8 years' experience; entered the service June 1, 1927. Senator GOODING. What is the record of the mine as to mine explosions? Did you ever have an explosion before? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Not in this mine. Senator GOODING. This is the first. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator GOODING. How many men do you have here who have entered the service since the first of the year, what percentage of them? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. There has not been a great turnover since the first of the year. Senator GOODING. Was this property shut down before the strike occurred, or was it in operation at the time the company repudiated its Jacksonville agreement? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. It was open until the 1st of April. Is that what you mean? Senator GOODING. Up until the 1st of April of this past year? Senator WHEELER. Did this company repudiate the contract before the contract was up, or did you just refuse to enter into a new contract? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. We worked until the last day. We even worked the night shift. Senator GOODING. On the union scale? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. Whom do you sell your coal to? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. We sell to the Pennsylvania Railroad and some to other places. We sell some to the United States Aluminum Co. Senator WHEELER. What does the railroad company pay you for coal? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. That goes to the Cleveland office. We don't know. Senator WHEELER. You keep a cost sheet here of your production? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. That is all handled at Cleveland. They make it up in Cleveland. Senator WHEELER. Don't you have a cost sheet here? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. It is only the pay roll that we have here. It is made up in Cleveland. Senator WHEELER. Have you one of your pay rolls here? Senator WHEELER. Please get one for us. Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. All right. The clerk will do that. Senator WHEELER. Can you tell us the difference between the cost of production now and the cost of production before? Senator WAGNER. I would like to know the amount of tonnage. how much did you produce during the life of the agreement? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Under the Jacksonville scale we were running about 4,500 tons. We had 950 men here. Senator WAGNER. How many have you now? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Four hundred and fifty or somewhere around there. And we run here from 1,800 to 2,000 tons. Senator WAGNER. What do you pay a ton? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Fifty-two cents a ton. We pay $5.10 for motormen and for labor $5. Senator WAGNER. How many colored workers did you have here during the life of the agreement-what percentage? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. When running under the Jacksonville agreement, I think we had as high as 100 out of 900 men. Senator WAGNER. What is your percentage of colored help to-day? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. About 450, but the boy can give that to you. The CLERK. It runs about 50 per cent according to the slips sent in. Senator WAGNER. How much was it before? About 10 per cent? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Something like that. Senator WHEELER. Do you use coal and iron police here? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. No, sir. Senator WHEELER. Do you use deputy sheriffs? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. What do you pay for deputy sheriffs? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. $7.50 a day. Senator WHEELER. That is paid to the sheriff, is it? Senator WHEELER. What I mean is, do you pay $7.50 to the sheriff or do you pay it to the men? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. That is where we get the men and very likely we pay it to him. Senator WHEELER. You don't know? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. You turn that over to the sheriff? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. How much does he pay his deputies? Senator WHEELER. Have you a deputy sheriff here? Senator WHEELER. How many have you? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. Seven deputy sheriffs. Here is our pay roll now. Senator WHEELER. Do the most of these men board in your own houses? Mr. SCHWEINSBURG. They stay all around, in the houses and so on. Senator GOODING. Here is a deputy sheriff. STATEMENT OF E. M. KEPPLE, DEPUTY SHERIFF AT KINLOCK MINE Senator GOODING. What is your name? Mr. KEPPLE. E. M. Kepple. Senator WHEELER. How much are you paid a day? Mr. KEPPLE. I am paid $6. The rest of them are paid $5. Mr. KEPPLE. The sheriff. Senator WHEELER. Who pays your board? Mr. KEPPLE. The coal company. Senator WHEELER. The coal company pays your board and furnishes you a room? Mr. KEPPLE. Yes, sir. Senator WHEELER. What becomes of the difference between the $5 and the $7.50 that the company pays? Mr. KEPPLE. I hire the men, or of course the sheriff really hires them and I have to look after them. Senator WHEELER. You are the chief? Mr. KEPPLE. Yes, sir.. Senator WHEELER. What becomes of the difference between the $5 a day that you pay your men and the $7.50 a day that the company pays the sheriff? Mr. KEPPLE. I don't know what the company pays the sheriff. Senator WHEELER. The superintendent has just told us that. Mr. KEPPLE. Well, I don't know. Senator WHEELER. I am saying that he says the company pays the sheriff $7.50 a day. I was asking you if you knew what becomes of the $2.50 difference that goes to the sheriff. Mr. KEPPLE. I don't know what becomes of it. |