The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1894-07-13
kiuIs and Death.

Chicago. July S.-The long inpend-
| ing conflict between the troops and
tine mobs in Chicago has at last come,
and the result is appalling. 1t is said
| that from 20 to 80 rioters have been
| killed, though this is uncertain, as the
| rioters carried away their dead. Two
| fights occurred in the city-one at For
| ty seven h and LoomiS streets, in which,
after being stoned, Company +. of the
| Second regiment, |. \. G., fired into
the mob.
In the Panhandle fight, strikers who
were setting cars on fire attacked the
| guards. Four or five were killed and
many wounded, the exact number being
| unknown. AS far as known the casual~
ities were as follows: The fight occurred
at the intersection of Forty ninth
street and the Grand Trunk tracks,
| locality which has always had an evil
name and which can produce any day
| two tOughs for every square yard of ter
ritOry within "A radius of half mile.
| Serious trouble was expected here early
in the morning. Before 9 O'Clock
mob had gathered and made threats of
burning the Grand Trunk roundhouse.
! Aid was asked from the authorities, and
| Company c. of the Second infantry, IS
strong, Commanded by Captain T. |.
Mair, was hurried to the spot.
| This condition of affairs prevailed for
| two or three hours, the militia behaving
with excellent spirit and showing good
discipline. Finally the mob. encour-
aged 10y the fact that the troops did not
fire, began active hostilities. \ crowd
OF men pushed a freight car from the
siding onto the track where the train
which had brought the militia to the
scene was standing with the evident in
| tentiOn of blocking the track so that the
militia would have no line of retreat
Captain Mair conferred with Superin-
tendent Atwater and concluded that it
was impracticable to clear the track, and
that as the mob was growing wilder ev-
| cry moment the best thing to do was to
| leave the place before the strikers pros
ceeded to such extremities as would ne
cessitate his opening fire on them. He
accordingly detailed Onehalf of his com
pany to move the car which blocked the
track on which the train was standing
and with the balance held back the
| crowd, which began to press close and
closer as 1t saw signs or the troops max
| ing a retreat.
He drew his men back slowly, several
times turning them to confront the
crowd when it came too close. Again
the mob, shouting. bowling and using
the ylleSt language, made a rush, but
every time Mair met them steadily with
his men, and the crowd paused before
the threatening rifles.
Finally the several toughs on the edge
of the mob made a rush at Yardmaster
| Mckee, one of them tiourishing a revol-
yer. Mckee drew his own revolver and
fired, but the bullet flew wide The
| strikers by this time were fairly wild
with rage, and bricks, stones, chunks of
oaai and coupling pins rained around
the troops. Lieutenant Reed was struck
twice on the head in quick succession by
the stones and fell to the ground like a
dead man. Mair then concluded the
time had come, and, wheeling his men
quickly, gave the word to charge, and
the handful of militiamen sprang for
ward with leveled bayonets
John Burke was standing in the front
of the mob throwing coal as fast as he
could move his arm. One of the first
soldiers In the charge plunged h is bayo-
net clear through his body, the point
coming out at the back. Burke went
down like log and died in a few min
| uteS. The mob broke before the charge.
but quickly rallied, and after short
pause came on again, sending a patter-
| ing OF revolver bullets before it,
The troops, the deputies and the DO
lice waited for no orders, but their rifles
, came to a level, revolvers were drawn.
and storm of leaden death swept into
the mob. Men fell right and left. but
! the militia, deputies and the police
pressed forward rapidly driving the
crowd before them in the widest confu-
| sion.
1t was all over in three minutes, and
the militia marched into their train and
with the deputies returned to the CITY
They looked as though they had been
through battle when they disembarked
at Dearborn station. Their uniforms
were torn, hats gone, they were covered
with dust and dirt, and many of them
had been badly bruised by flying stones.
| 81 believe said Superintendent At
water, THAT at least a dozen men were
Killed. L saw men strewn all over the
tracks, and they were dead men too.
The mob was not far away when we be
gan 10 fire, and for about three mins
utes the militia, the deputies and the
police, who fought like devils, were sim
ply pouring lead into the crowd. We
were close enough, and the mob was big
enough, and | don't think many bullets
went wide. There were more killed
than we Will ever know about"