The rustler. (Cerrillos, N.M.) 1891-1???, 1891-07-31
LABoR TROUBLES

striking Miners tArtaF~ hs st@ts
Troops and fhe Canxlats~The Governor
Calls cut the Entire military feres Of ths
state
KNoxvuLE. Tenn. July at-The
crisis In the attempt Of the coal miners
Of this district % keep ont convictS who
were brought FROM the state prison At
Nashville has ut last been reached.
When about 600 armed strikers at
tackled the guards who had charge of
ffty felons Al nriceville last "Wednesday
night and liberated their charges Il was
confidently predicted that this would
be but the beginning Of a general
movement throughout the entire mining
district In the state. Gov. buchanan
was Immediately notified and responded
by ordering two companies from Chat
tanooga and one from Knoxville 10 the
scene. OF the fifty ~eonviets taken from
the guards nj Briceville. two escaped
and the others were brought TO this
city.
When the militia arrived they took
the eonvicts along back with them and
warned the mob that they would pro-
tect them at all hazards Gov. Blu
chanan at once proceeded to the seat Of
trouble and In a speech explained his
position 10 the rebellious miners lie
told them that il was his sworn duty 10
uphold the law and II the convict lease
system was wrong he was not to blame
and the only o of the men was
through the Legislature. The miners
announced that their families were
starving and that they were compelled
to drive out the convicts, II 1t cost the
life Of every man in the valley. They
made all sorts of fun Of the handful of
soldiers and declared that they would
not harm the ''spider-legged, cigarette
smoking dudes but that as soon as
the militia were withdrawn they would
release every convict in the region
The crisis came at about II o'clock
when the miners and q crowd OF sym
pathizers from the surrounding country
gathered around the camp of the state
militia, capturing the troops and con-
victs, marched them TO the depot and
, put them on a train TO Knoxville.
The camp was on u little knoll in q
hollow and surrounded on all sides by
mountains The miners and their
friends to the number OF l, 500 or 2,OO(
, were divided into four equal squads
and approached on the four sides of the
square In which the camp was formed.
, The miners sent mp n flag of truce ane
, sent In a committee to the officer II
! command. The committee notified the
/. officers that they had come to take th'
convicts peaceably If possible, by forc'
. II necessary.
Fifteen hundred of the men were
armed with rifles, the rest had shotguni
and pistols. They came from all thu
mines In n radius Of fifty miles. TIL,
organization was complete and thei
leaders placed them along the hillside
a with military precision. At the call Z
arms, the little garrison turned out ga
: lantly and prepared for defense. ]
was apparent at a glance that fgh
would result in n massacre and a meet
g ing of the officers was called. Som
declared that n stout resistance to tn
first attack would be sufficient and tn
n mob would withdraw. Others though
It would be suicidal. Yet every on
:, was IN favor of doing his duty notwitl
= standing the exposed position they wer
l. to defend.
The miners called a parley and wer
met on neutral ground by Col. Sevie'
They stated hat they had suiiicier
force to o%verwhelm the soldiers, bt
* they did not care to shed blood ii I'll
- convicts were quietly turned over
them. This request vas emphaticall
:. refused
- The miners then asked Col. Sewer
he would remove his troops, and tai
the convicts with him. He asked win
- would be done to the mining company
property, which was also under h
>. protection. They replied that it won
- not be injured. He also asked If {
a attack would be made on the knoxvil
- Iron Co.'S stockade just below Brio
=. Vile. If such was intended, he inten
- ed TO fall back there and fight it out 7
- CARELESS of the consequences. The lea
" ers replied that no attack would
made.
y The troops then marched out of car
=. carving with them the ~convicts,
=. their commissarJ supplies and ba
gage. They marched TO Briceville a
ga there took the train TO Knoxville.
~ ALL THE MILITIA GALE oUr
nil NASHVILLE, Tenn, July 2L-G'
ire Buchanan received a telegram FRI
Tor Warden Blevins ut Briceville that oN
he 1000 men had gathered between I'll
ial place and Coal Creek, prepared
march against the Briceville briga'
he Gov. buchanan, who has been guid
not by the utmost caution since the tronb
ny began, ut once decided TO call out
I'VE entire military of the state, and
that purpose he Immediately t.
II graphed to each company and instrr
est ed Gen. J.. L. Weakly to arrange r
ure road transportation for them. Ia
-l.-.l A. aa..- Al