NEWS OF THE WEEK
WE have refrained from discussing the Coal crisis in our leading columns but not because we fail kto realise the gravity of the situation and the greatness _of the issues at stake. No final decisions have been reached by. the men, the employers or the Government. .We only know that negotiations are proceeding. That being so, silence on the merits of the dispute is best. We may, however, without fear of doing harm, endorse most heartily the plea made by Sir Alfred Mond in the Commons on Monday. He " hoped that the Government, if necessary, would not be deterred from taking firm :and strong action, in the national interest, to prevent a dislocation which might be almost fatal to our industries." We urge these considerations upon the Government with all the strength at our command. The times are Critical from every point of view. The depression may lift, developments in the proper utilization of coal, i.e., low temperature carbonization, may be more rapid than now seems likely, and new factors may arise. But how can we begin better times if in the last lap of bad trade we have let the mining industry, fall into ruins ? We dislike controlling industries, but we would rather see the mines temporarily controlled than permit a great trade conflict at the present moment, or than yield to impossible demands on either side.
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