Five Days per Week Movement--Fourth Sliding Scale--Second Relief Fund--Wheatley Hill "Putt Pay" The question of restriction of the output was again brought under discussion at the beginning of the year. It was not peculiar to nor spontaneous in Durham, but was of extraneous suggestion. It was the result of a miners' conference in Leeds, and was set forth under two phases: the reduction in the hours per day and the days per week to five--all the pits being off on the Saturday. The members were told plainly by Mr Crawford what the real issue was and what was the condition of the mining districts. While in other districts the hours had to be reduced, in Durham they would remain, but the days per week would apply to all alike. He, however, pointed out that there was only one-sixth of the miners of the county represented. A special Council was called, and the matter placed before it, when it was decided "that pits ought to work not more than five days per week and draw coal not more than ten hours per day--each and every pit being idle every Saturday, irrespective of how many of the preceding days of the week have been worked." A Second National Conference was held on the question. A report was issued by the representatives, Messrs Crawford and Wilson, which showed the fallacy of attempting any national movement. The conference was called to hear how far the decision had been carried out. The report showed that there were only 81,000 paying members in the districts represented, the total number employed being about 379,000; that there were only 9500 persons who had adopted the Leeds Resolution of Restriction, and some districts positively refused to carry it out. In the face of these facts the conference reaffirmed the restriction resolution, and resolved that the ballot should be taken in each district, and that there should be an adjournment to hear the result.