The Ailing Giant.

In 1918, nearly 180,000 miners worked in northeastern Pennsylvania every day in the year except Sunday to fill America's household coal bins. But the preferences of householders have changed a lot since then. In consequence, the number of miners of this region has shrunk to less than 31,000. In the eight years that have passed since World War II, America's fuel requirements have expanded more than 10 percent, but coal production and consumption have declined more than 35 percent. The anthracite industry is an ailing giant that cannot help itself.