Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-04-19
THE DETROIT RIOTING.
sheriff Collins Probably Fatally
Wounded I'm the Fight.

In the night mentioned in the dispatches
70 yesterdays Star, which occurred yes
terday in Crosse Point township. just over
tie easterly county line. with a force Of
Polish laborers seeking employment on
the Detroit. Mich, waterworks extern
SIGN, Sheriff Collins was probably fatally
injured. two Polish rioters were shot dead,
half a dozen more were seriously injured
and at least three fatally. A police ofiicer
was badly hurt. and as the result the
county jail was last night filled with City
rioters.
Yesterday afternoon and evening deputy
sheriffs secured the Polish quarter for the
rioters, and by night fifty of the law
breakers had been gathered in. The cor
ridors of the jail were filled with them.
About o o'clock a group OF Polanders gath
cred about the jail and made ugly demon
STATIONS. One Of them. Anthony Poski,
was shot in the leg by a deputy sheriff.
and was carted on 10 a hospital. The
crowd about the Jail, mostly spectators.
continued until midnight
The Polish quarter was all excitement
last night. meeting was arranged IN
a Polish hall, from which II was declared
the Polanders would march 10 the jail and
wreck IL, but the police were watchful
and the meeting did not materialize.
Cause of the Trouble.
The trouble began Tuesday. when Engf-
Introduce a system Of paying the men by
the cubic yard of excavation instead OF .
daily wage rate. The Polish laborers re-
belled at this. and as a result the water
board decided to suspend operations.
Yesterday morning Engineer williams
and a small force of men, accompanied by
Sher1n Collins and five deputies. went TO
the scene of the disturbance TO remove
the city water department tools. There
were five hundred Polish laborers there.
who made demonstrations Of violence on
the arrival of Williams and his men.
Sheriff Collins and Deputy Sheriff Stey-
skall addressed the men in English and
German. and advised them not to break
the peace. when a Polander in the rear
speech. and the Polanders. who had picks
and shovels made a rush on Foreman
Cathey, who had just begun to remove q
prmp from Connor's creek, across which
a supply pipe was being laid
Cathey was one of those who sympa-
thized most strongly with the demands
which the workingmen had made. Then
somebody struck Cathey a blow on the
head, which felled him to the bottom OF
the excavation. Sheriff Collins waved his
arms wildly and fairly shriel1ed to the
mob TO stand back but no attention was
paid to what he said, and he drew his
revolver and aimed it point blank at the
crowd. The shots rang out from his
weapon as rapidly as he could pull the
trigger, when a long-handled shovel up
raised behind him. descended swiftly, and
a corner Of IL pierced his skull.
AS he fell another shovel struck him on
the calf of the right leg. and a stream OF
blood spurted from this new wound A
dozen gathered around him and were
aiming fresh blows at him when a man
rushed in and under the uplifted shovels
cried out: Hes dead; leave him alone"
The attention Of the crowd was thus
turned in another direction. and while
the confusion lasted the sheriff was car
ried of by some of the friendly working
men to a shanty about a furlong distant.
Cathey did not escape with the first
blow. Again and again did the sharp
shovels fall on his head and his uplifted
hands until consciousness left him and he
sank downward into the water which
covered the bottom of the excavation.
He would have drowned there but for
the assistance of another man. raised him
from his perilous position and carried
him of TO a place of safety.
When the sheriff fired Turnkey Stey-
skall and the four police officers who
had been deputized followed his example,
and for few moments there was a show
er of bullets, all fired at short range into
the dense crowd. There was no time 10
discriminate. Anybody who happened 10
be in the way of a bullet was struck.
whether he was taking any part In the
riot or not. This did not deter the in
furiated laborers Though several of their
rumber fell they pressed on until the
muzzles of the revolvers were at their
very breasts and moved down everybody
who opposed them