The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1896-01-29
Great stuff This.


fishing such rot as the article below.
they are badly of their feed. No one
IN this city is aware Of any such
itranspirings and the brain of the
reporter producing such stuff should
be ditched TO allow the softness 10
escape. By reading the article one
would be led TO believe that the
people OF this end Of the country were
desperadOes and all around criminals
and not the peaceable law-abiding
citizens that they are. Here is the
production. judge for yourself:
"A newspaper man Of this city. who
has been up in the iron mining
country for some time. reports the
capture Of blind pig by a deputy
sheriff Of st. Louis county. in the
Chandler mine, $50 feet beneath the
surface of the earth.
The Chandler is one of the numerous
mines in the Eermilion range. or
bard ore belt, in the northern part OF
the county. and 80 miles from Duluth.
The miners that work on the range
and in the different mines are mostly
Hungarians or Finlanders. They are
very fond Of alcohol, and when under
It's influence are quarrelsome. They
all carry knives with blades about
four inches in length and wooden
handles, which they make themselves.
These knives, worn in a belt. are
drawn On the slightest proyocation.
Several Of the miners were arrested
for fighting in the mines and sent
down TO Duluth for trial. and every
one Of them when taken from the
mines were drunk. The men who
went down the shaft to work in the
morning, perfectly sober, would come
up at the end Of their shift glorioGsly
drunk The managers Of the mine
and the authorities We're at loss TO
account for il until one of the miners
who was seriously cut in one Of the
fights told about miner who sold
liquor to the other men while they
were supposed to be at work. Notice
was sent To the sheriff OF ST. Louis
county and a deputy was ordered TO
Investigate it.
On arriving ct Ely the official was
taken TO the very lowest shaft, where
the informer had told him he would
find the blind pig. This was over 700
feet underground The man who was
said to sell the liquor was called by
the foreman and asked about it. He
lcould not speak English. and another
miner was called to act as interpreter.
When Mosjeckja, for that was his
name. was made to understand what
was wanted. and that one Of the men
present was an officer sent to arrest
him he wiltea at once and took the
party into a shaft that had not been
worked for some time and showed
them his bar which consisted Of d
board, one END resting on a pile of ore
and the other on an empty powder
keg. His stock on hand consisted Of
four quart bottles of raw alcohol.
three quart bottles Of very bad whis-
KEY and three powder cans full Of beer
He was very much alarmed at the
prospect of going to jail. and claimed
that he did not know il was against
the law This made no difference
however and he was taken TO Duluth
and bound over TO the grand jury
his name was Orna Mojeckja. and
before he was taken from the rhine
he admitted that he had been selling
liquor to the men for nearly two
months. and said thathe made on an
average about $3.50 a day from the
sale Of alcohol alone.
There are numerous galleries or
shafts in the mine, ona they are work
ed by different gangs under separate
foremen. When a man wished to get
! a drink he would slip away from the
gang, which was an easy thing TO do.
as the only light furnished comes
from the lamps in the mems caps.
Mosjeckja worked by himself around
the bottom Of the main shaft. and SO
was able to avoid any interference on
the part Of the foremen.
At the hearing in Duluth his bonds
were fixed at $50, but as lie was IN
able TO furnish them he was sent to
the county Jail to await trial
Biwabik viii not be incorporated as
city-not just yet. The election