The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-08-09


rived tonight, and If there is no i'm
Drovement by morning, several COM
panies of militia will be sent to South
Omaha and the packing house district
placed under martial law.
The situation is most serious tonight,
and the 1,50O strikers have been doing
about as they pleased.
At o'clock this evening, they forced
their picket line. that has for forty
hours surrounded the packing houses,
LisIAder the walls of the big buildings,
: and their number was increased by
the addition Of several hundred men.
At s O'Clock, Mayor Johnson, of South
Omaha, went before the Omaha police
board and asked that a detail of police
be sent there, as he was powerless TO
control the lawleSs element.
he said he had driven all over the
city tonight, and found gangs of strik-
ers patrolling the streets, waiting for
some of the workmen to show up on
their way TO work. He had found
gangs of fifty to seventy-five strikers,
all armed with clubs The local police
force was powerless to cope with these
organized mobs, and unless some radi-
cal measure was taken to suppress the
disorderly element there would be men
murdered and the packing houses would
be in ashes before tomorrow night.
% Martial Law Probable.
QThe board was informed that the gov
lNmor was in consultation with the
4 hackers, with a view of putting the
packing house district under martial
law. and concluded to await his action.
The packing house managers held a
conference, and at its close, Mr.. Cudahy
notified the adjutant general that I'M
less the workfnen could be given bet
ter protection all packing houses would
he compelled to close down tomorrow.
He said the managers do not like
endandering their plants by keeping
them at work while their men are in
danger of assault. Every fresh assault
they claim, increases the seriousness of
the situation, and they believe that
there is but a step from violence to-
ward the men to violence to the pack
ing houses.
In the evening the governor and the
adjutant general met the packers to
canvass the matter. The packers de-
'clared that the situation was most
critical and the governor finally con-
cluded to do nothing till morning. and
then if there was no Improvement to
call for troops.
Militia Ready For Action.
General Gage is on the scene to-
might keeping a close watch on the
situation. He is in constant commune
CdCO0, not Only Win the UldidSeIS oL
the several packing houses but with
prominent leaders Of the strikers. If
st shall be decided that it is necessary
to call out the state troops, the two
companies in Omaha will be first
brought into service and If more are
needed the companies from York, Lin
c6ln, Fairbury and other points within
uulck-running distance from Omaha
will be summoned. Here in Omaha the
a0jutant general has standing ar
rangement designed to expedite the
movement Of the Omaha Guards and
Ne Thruston Rifles in case the state
u6eds their services. The company
sergeants are required to keep the men
in their squad and constantly in reach
of telephone or quick messenger ser
vice. All that is necessary is to notify
the sergeant that the company has
been ordered into service, and the men
will be summoned to the armory with
sn an hour. 1t is believed that both
Omaha companies could be thrown into
South Omaha within two hours If neces-
sary.
Il Employees Assaulted.
oAEany employees tonight on their Wy
Eom work were assaulted by strikers
who were stationed at all points to in
fercept them Many of the men who
left the plants last night and went
home TO sleep were unable to return
70 work today In some instances their
houses were watched by strikers, and
they were afraid to go out. Men who
were on their way to work were turned
back by strikers and not allowed to
pass the striker picket lines. In one
instance three policemen were unable
10 escort one Of the night tank men to
his home a mob of 100 or more strikers
would not permit them to pass and the
laborer had 10 return to the plant and
stay there.
A number of the most prominent citi-
zens. merchants and other business
men, were called on this evening and
were asked to act as deputies Many
sfsnifed their willingness and met this
Nkfternoon and were sworn in. Mayor
Eohnson and Sheriff DreXel visited the
Shrious avenues leading TO the differ
- packing houses tonight. They both
~eMert the strikers TO be in an angry
ffSkie Of mind. They said the entrances
TO he packing houses were guarded by
heEstrikers with an armed force OF men
witiS clubs, revolvers and stones, and
effC5rts were made to prevent the new
meh from going to work.
Several conflicts occurred between
theistrikers and the men going to work,
in (which the latter were more or less
bruised.
Regular Army May BE Needed.
Mayor Johnson predicts serious trou-
BILE. and unless the militia is brought
into action at once ne says Lndl the
regular army will have 70 be brought
into action to prevent bloodshed on a
large scale Sheriff Drexel is inclined
t,1iink the police and deputy sheriffs
4 " preserve the peace, unless some
thing unforeseen occurs, but he does
not favor the idea of calling out the
militia at once.
Captain Mostyn, in charge of the
soecial deputies, received a telephone
message from Shelly this morning
that a mob of 200 men had assembled
along the tracks to sidetrack the re-
frigerator cars, containing meat shipped
east from the packing houses The
patrol wagon load of police was sent
to Sheely, but before it arrived there
the meat train had passed unmolested.
The regular dummy train which left
Omaha for South Omaha with packing
house employees, was stoned at Shelly,
and a derisive howl greeted the train
as it passed through the suburban sta
\ 4ion.
At 1 O'Clock this CThursday) morning,