16 OCTOBER 1920, Page 3

When the delegates met on Thursday morning, they were informed

that, while 181,428 miners had voted for the accept- ance of the coal-owners' offer, 635,098 miners had voted against it. The executive of the Miners' Federation recommended that, in view of these figures, the strike notices should be allowed 10 expire on Saturday. The delegates, by 154 votes to 27, accepted this advice. A proposal made by the Northumberland delegates to refer the wages dispute to arbitration was rejected. We are thus faced with the prospect of a coal strike, tiniest reason prevails with the miners' leaders before Monday. The leaders, to judge from the admissions of Mr. Herbert Smith, are afraid of their followers, whom they have incited for months past to strike for still higher wages and whom they can no longer controL