THE PLEBS AND THE MINERS
By ERA GRAY (The Plebs are workers employed at a munitions factory some- where in England.)
TO say that the Plebs are disgusted with the Welsh miners in their present dispute is putting the matter mildly. They are not so much disgusted with the dispute, for they are familiar with disputes, as with the method of maintaining it. Their feelings run strongly on the point They say that the strike is a discouragement to the soldiers, and that the strikers should be put in the front line ; they call them Fifth Columnists ; in fact, they say, in language the strength of which can be imagined, that the strikers should be ashamed of themselves. All this is to some extent surprising, for in disputes with those to whom they refer as the "ruling classes" the workers as a rule hang together.
If, in reply to their observation that " the miners should be put into the front line," it is rejoined that the miners would probably prefer the front line to the pits, and the conscripts to mining are mentioned who have indeed indicated a strong preference for the Forces, the Plebs are a little taken aback. They are certain, how- ever, that something should be done, and done quickly, and that if necessary the miners should be forced to resume. They wonder grumblingly what would happen if they, the Plebs, were to strike, for their product is just as important to the war machine as coal. In fact, the mining machinery would not run without it. They surmise that if they should be so unpatriotic as to strike, the results might be as dire in time as those of a strike of miners. The conclusion is that the miners are to blame. The Plebs have their own gtievances, but manage always to get them settled, or partially settled, without recourse to drastic action.
For all that, there is not an entire absence of fellow-feeling with the miners. The Plebs, who deiire advantages for themselves, are with the miners and others who share this ambition. But the moment is inopportune. It is not now when Britain and her Allies are in the .throes of a life-and-death struggle that there should be any cessation of the production of the all-important coal. Work and negotiate, that is what the Plebs do, and that is what the miners should do.
Opinion is divided as to just why the miners are striking. Some say it is because they want fewer hours, and others say it is because they want more money. (Those who emphasise money confess to being puzzled, for they share a general belief that the miners are receiving more than factory workers. Why they all have £5 a week basic rate.) Others say that the miners are upset by the delay in opening a Second Front, for which, like everyone else, they are tired of waiting, and still others that the miners want the mines State-owned and controlled. It is suggested that the miners may be ruffled because we are not sending even today enough aid to Russia or because all men in the pits are being paid precisely the same wages as each other—skilled and unskilled alike. In the latter case, it is assumed that the skilled men are striking because they think they should receive a higher rate than their unskilled workmates, and the unskilled are striking because the attitude of the skilled is unfriendly and unjust.
Part of the trouble, the Plebs consider, is in the appointment of the wrong people to supervise mining affairs. If the right people had been appointed a solution would have been reached, the dispute ended, and the miners by now permanently back at work. At this stage criticism of the Government is general. What does the Govern- ment know about coal-mines or the lives of workers or anything? Criticism of the Government leads, strangely enough, to a recognition of the force of the argument for State control. Not only the mines but all undertakings should be State-owned or at least State con- trolled. State-control is a happy solution to every problem. It is a panacea which will bring Elysium in the post-war days. "Every day'll be Sunday by and by." How, one asks, if the Government knows nothing of industry, can State-control be expected to be a success? It is impossible to record any reply to this query, for on it the mind of the Plebs is dark.
Another question is raised: do the strikers know why they are striking? There are 9o,000 of them. Do they all know? Are they just cracking a whip as a little flourish, as a compensation to them- selves for the way in which they were treated during the Roaring Twenties? If this is so they are not out of tune with the Plebs, who like to do a little whip-cracking themselves, and the Essential Work Order, which induces an attitude of " they can't sack me ", makes this easy. But notwithstanding some sympathy with whip- cracking the verdict of the Plebs in the end is quite clear. The miners should go back to work, and go quickly. There will be other occasions for whip-cracking. The miners are jeopardising everything.
" Disgusting." " Make them go back." The indignation is not completely disinterested. The Plebs don't want to be cold next winter because of depleted coal stores, and they do want to feel that their wives and kiddies will be snug at home. The war factories, they are aware, have first priority for coal. Of course, there is always " the electric," someone said the other day, in the belief that electricity was a gift of nature, out of the blue. She opened in- credulous eyes when told that coal played a large part in the manu- facture of electricity and went away with the impression that electricity is a by-product of coal.
Yes, make them return, for, apart from all else, they must not stab the boys in the Forces in the back. But give them what they want because they have had many lean years. Work and negotiate— that's the solution. Work and negotiate.
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