means all there is to being an industrial union. Industrial unionism, as exemplified in the I. W. W., means something entirely different from the U. M. W. of A. The U. M. W. of A. reconciles its members to holding aloof from the other workers. If the I. W. W. organization held a commanding position in industry, when the mine workers threw down their tools and walked out of the mines on April 1st (1922), that hour the hauling of coal would have stopped. The operators and "the public" would not be figuring how long the surplus and scab production would suffice. The strike would have had an entirely different aspect from the first day, and, in all likelihood, would not have occurred at all. It would avail nothing to mine coal in scab territory for no train crew would haul it.
- If the I. W. W. was in the coal industry, the tonnage (piece-work) system of mining would not be in vogue. The miners would be spared all the inconveniences and controversy growing out of that operators' scheme. Miners would work by the day. There would be no check-off, for the miner would have his wages without bothering about dockage, short weight, minimum turn, or what not. There would be no danger of "sell outs" in negotiations, or forced arbitration, for a united working class would secure justice for the miners, and could depend upon the miners in their turn. The miners constitute about the most dependable element of the American working class and it would be strange if they were not the first to see the light—and soon. The U. M. W. of A. with the most intelligent and largest aggressive minority in the American organized movement is not an industrial union. More is the pity.
- 208. Has the I. W. W. conducted any strikes?
- Yes, many. In 1906 the I. W. W. established an eight hour day for hotel workers in Goldfield, Nevada. This town had the first universal eight-hour day in the United States as a result of I. W. W. activity, and a minimum wage of $4.50 per day for unskilled labor.
- 209. Was it retained?
- Through the combined forces of the mine operators, the business element and scabs led by Grant Hamilton,
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