◆ SpookStack

RE: JOBN L. LEWIS, ETAL N WITH "About a month before the strike in 1937, and before he was oral thrown out of PMA, FRANK AUSTIN came to my room in the mine, ontinus I was a digger. He told me if all of us would sign up with the UMY ELSHOFF would sign @ sontract. He said he did not know what I was working for because PMA did not have a contract with ELSHOFF. He wanted me to sign & UM! oard. I would not. I saw some of these agitators talking loudly with PMA members and heard they tried to get these PMA men to sign up with the UMY. There was a lot of talk before the strike at the mine to sign up the miners with UMW. "I heard each one of these agitators were gotting ten Goltaras for each PMA man they signed up with the UMY. They a11 looked like they were making more money then they had before when they worked as rogular mine workers, TONY PLOTCH, FRANK AUSTIN, and ANDREW SCHRELEVIOUS bought new automobiles about this time. I saw the new oars. "Tl am not familiar with the wage scale trouble, except I know I was supposed to got some back pay which I never reosived. "Y do not remember if I went to the PMA meeting of May 11, 1957. I kmew some UMi agitators had been throm out of the PMs at this meoting. hetrd about this the next morning from miners at the mine. I worked in sox® on the south side. I did not know ooal cars wero being loaded short. When I come out of the mine that day I heard that oars from the west side had been loaded short. J did not hear why they were loaded short. "At 3:00 pom. on May 12, 1937 the company men cama down to my room and told me to come out of the mine. I usually quit work at 3115 p.m "T want back the next morning but the strike had started and no one went to work. "I helped picket Mine B for more than throo weeks. “I never worked at Mine B again, “After the mine opened in November 1939 I wont to the mine and saw PALCETTI and told him I wes sick. He told me to bring a dootor's certificate. took him a doctor’s certificate and he kept it. About eleven months later i I wos ables to work arain and eot another sertifionte to show T eauld work. aviLG we res “Eee Seaton ee aes ee ee I took this to FALCETTI and the PMA Pit oommittes went with me. I was still & PMA member. I showed the certificate to him and he refused to let me work. ~ 108 - —