The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-05-19

OF rough boards has been erected with
open sides and rough tables and benches.
This Is the eating house, and it is in charge
OF white-capped negro cook and a force
of walters and other attendants. From an
early hour this morning the negroes were
pouring into this building, where they were
plainly but bountifully fed. Their prin-
cipal sleeping quarters were the engine
house. The floor is covered with their
beds all around the big engine in double
rows and here some of them. who had
been up late overnight shooting crapss
and playing poker, slept till late this
morning. They were also crowded into
some Of the houses which were vacated
when they arrived and several Joined in
putting up board cabin on the hillside.
The bitterest complaints of the white
miners-are in regard to the building of a
barbed wire fence in front of
the school house, leaving only n
narrow alley by which the building can
be reached and preventing the children
from passing direct from the door to the
playground. 1t is designed to prevent
crowds from assembling on the play
ground, which Is the largest level space in
the upper town. The miners claim that
TINS action is illegal, as the ground was
donated by the company for the purpose
and with that understanding was cleared
and graded by the miners themselves The
children are allowed on it, however, and
have been playing ball on it at intervals
during the day.
Deputy Sheriff Ben Stretch. who ia
watching affairs on behalf of the county
authorities, talked guardedly but point
edly about the presence of the guards to-
| the PosT-ISTELLIGEscER reporter He said !:
ldon't think such large body of armed men
is necessary here to keep the peace They claim
TO have United States deputy marshals com
missions, but don't know about the legality OF
the granting of such commissions in a case such
as this. That is legal point to be tested by
the men who are interested In the matter
negroes as guards or TO allow them to carry
arms For the purpose of seif-protection they
might be organized into squads.
Those of the negroes who were not at
work at the mines busted themselves in
building board shacks for themselves on
the company's property adjoining the
store. They went at it with will, and be-
tore night the wide space between each Of
the two houses was occupied by one-story
building, rough but roomy and sufficient
for temporary shelter. To these they re-
moved their bags, and thus made more
room in the general dormitory at the en-
gine-house
During the afternoon there was rush to
the Office and the guards had some diff
entity in keeping back the crowd. The
cause was distribution of revolyers in
place of the carbines. The latter impie-
ments of warfare were not well appreciated
and were not easy to carry. One colored
man remarked: "a feller can't hit a
darned mountain side with that thing y
Hence the anxiety for the more convenient
and more reliable revolver. About supper
time the negro guards were put through
the manual of arms on the depot platform,
and any mistake in the motion by any of
them was signal for q roar of laughter
from the others and from the bystanders
Everything was SO extremely orderly
all day that the presence ofth guards and
the occasional sight of negro carrying a
carbine were the only signs that there had
ever been any danger Of conflict. This
would be the view of the casual observer.
but if he looked more closely he would
see other signs. At one end of the depot
was constantly moving throng of colored
people, merry. laughing, joking, some car
rying boots over their shoulders, some GO
ing in and out of the store and some sitting
on the steps reading the PosT- IHTELIt-
GENcER. For some distance away the street
was crowded with them and they pervaded
all that end of the town. At the other
end of the depot on little
slope from the road to the rail-
road was a group of white miners.
sullen and only speaking when they
wanted to give vent to their pent-up rage
at the company, the negroes or guards.
The negroes came in for sarcastic remarks
on their appearance; but the guards
formed such barrier that they could not
hear what was said and the whites alone
would enjoy the caustic witticism. The
guards came in for their share of abuse
and the negroes also. An occasional hot
head would seek to get into an argument
with them and would often curse them
roundly; but the majority steered clear of
them and the so-called thugs" managed
to keep their tempers and allowthe talking
to be all on one side. That's what we're
hired for, /" remarked one of them.
Considering the bitter feeling which
exists against the negroes and the guards,
and the proyocation which the miners
consider they have had. there has been
remarkable exhibition of selfrestraint on
the part of the locked-out men. They have
gone the best way about proving that the
guards were unnecessary by not molest-
ing either them or the negroes, not heed
ing noisy demonstrations and keeping
without the dead line without useless pro-
tests.
A meeting was held this afternoon by
the knights of Labor assembly at which
the action of the company was denounced,
as a matter of course. but any proposal to
resort to violent means was frowned down.
The only action taken was the appoint
ment of committee to appeal to Captain
Foley, of the guard, to change the line so
that those men living below the black
smith shop can reach the store more
speedily. They are leaving the affairs
principally in the hands of the Western
Central Labor Union. and their leaders
confine their attention to inducing any of
the colored men to quit with whom they
can secure an interview.
The absence of resistance to the entrance
of the colored men yesterday morning was
a positive surprise to the guards. They
really feared an attack in the forest, as
one of them admitted today. Every
preparation had been made for . warm
time, but the town was reached and it was
a most agreeable surprise to find it not on
the programme. It In q fact that some of
the more hot-hesded miners talked OF
burning the store and the bunkers, but
they were sat down upon by
the cool heads. who were in
the great majority. Amy intention
they might had Of giving the negroes re-