The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-03-22
a liar for accusing him of hitting patrol
man Slate. He supplemented his statement

by applying to Leppert a vile name.
Jollic was at Lepperts side. He suddenly
! drew his revolver and shot 1t in the air.
| That was the signal for a general riot. The
/ molders in the front ranks OF the party
| did not know that one of their own number
frightened They imagined that the shot
had been fired by a striker. They broke
ranks in confusion and scattered IN
firing their weapons as they ran
The sounds of the firing attract
| part of the town the denizens are in SYM
| pafhy with the strikers, and they bear a
| grudge against the nonunion workmen, some
| of whom have been brought here from other
/ cities. Many men who had been simply
bystanders up to that moment took a part
| in the fight and rushed into the street. sez-
/ ing clubs, bricks, stones and anything else
| they could lay hands on for weapons. 1t is
| believed that the workmen had a sufficient
| number of revolvers among them to have
| flred all the shots which were heard. In a
| Jammed with fighting men, drunken hood
lums, strikers and moiders.
pressed by the rioters when he ran to patrol
man Leppert for protection. Leppert hurried
him to store. The proprietor took him
ing mob. Leppert went to a telephone and
| called up headquarters. For Gods sake
he shouted, ''send help down here at once.
afs was aSos $50 oeock % tne hs Gay
| force had gone home and the night men had
not yet reported for duty. Telephone oper-
''hurry-up' call. and as the night men came
| to roll call they were sent down TO the scene
| OF the trouble on the double-quick.
| Meanwhile the riot waged hot, and bullets
flew everywhere. The colored man, Walker
| Davis, had been making purchases on the
market. AS he came from meat shop he
/ and sank 10 the ground his shout that he
had been shot being scarcely heard in the
h an cried sS he had een sho
| That was when william Watson received a
bullet in his leg. All this occurred in very
| away and started toward the center of the
| city, running fight took place.
PURDUE'S CLOSE GALE.
]. B. Purdue, one of the workmen, after
firing off all the cartridges in the chamber
of his revolver started to run east on Wash
ington street. A gang of the strikers started
after him, shouting that he had killed man,
| and calling to bystanders to stop him. At
| Senate avenue he darted diagonally across
the street and jumped up on the Statehouse
terrace. John Shaw. the deputy marshal of
Haughville, who is also a constable of Gen.
ter township. had been to the Capito, Steam
Laundry to serve an execution. AS he came
from the laundry he saw Purdue leap Tor
| the terrace. A man. bareheaded and in his
coat sleeves, was following in Purdue's wake,
crying: stop him. Stop him. He has shot
| a man" Shaw says that he knew nothing
| about a riot having taken place, and sup
| posed that Purdue was an escaped murderer.
| yard the man ran. flying for his life. When
| he reached Capitol avenue he jumped to the
sidewalk and Shaw overlook him at the Park
| Theater. Purdue was painting and out Of
breath. He was grabbed by a bystaDder.
When Shaw came up he Informed Purdue's
captor that he was an officer of the law.
Purdue turned to him and said imploringly:
place me under arrest Those strikers are
after me. 1 am afraid they will Kill me-"
| Shaw assured him that he should have pro-
| lection. He had scarcely uttered the words
| when gang OF the angry strikers came
running. up. crying Hang him. hang him.
Hang the scab.' Shaw recognized some of
them and told them that Purdue was under
/ arrest. They were about to drag Purdue
away from Shaw, when patrolman Doss
Shafer came up. Shaw turned his prisoner
| over to the patrolman. Shafer was jostled
| by the rioters in their efforts to get Purdue
When the man was placed in the patrol
would be necessary for him to go to the
station house. Upon their arrival there
| Shaw was unable to explain things satisfac-
himself detained OH the charge of loiter-
ing. 'I think this Is pretty hard said
he. Il saw that man Purdue running away
carrying a revolver in his hands and sup
| posed he had led scYoebady. Here / am
| locked up tor helping 10 enforce the laws"
Others Of the mol0ers were less fortunate
in finding protection. They ran in all di-
rections with howiing rioters following at
their heels, shouting: xiii them. Hang
men fled into stores and blocks, seeking
for places of safety. A number ran to the
statshouse, while 90 Others ran ITO to private s,r
ious mob Late last night great many
of the men had not returned to their
homes and it was feared that some had
been killed, but the police thought they
We're st;ll in hiding and We're afraid to
come out for fear they might be mobbed.
1t is not known whether any of~the strikers
heads head H, We're e. bruised by flying bricks and
stones, and a good many men were cut about
Mser ana and William t9s
was also reported that Hook Lee. young
man living at los Geisendorff street. had been
mother, however. that her son was at home
at the time of the riot and was not injured.
Others say they know Lee was shot. He ap-
piled TO DR.. Eissenbeiss to dress a wound,
but left, as the Doctor was busy. Watson
did not seem TO be very badly hurt. DIR.
Boaz: at the the City Dispensary, probed for the r.
Walker Davis, the coored man, was the
most seriously injured. He was shot in the
and the bullet may vBo Ssd fata is
returned from Davis's home, reported that
the colored man had but slight chance to
recover as the bullet cut the anterior jugular
vein He worked more than an hour to
check the flow of blood
Last night 1t was impossible to determine
rea an sne PURDUE sd e aa
from his revolver and started to run, just as
the colored man cried out that he had been
shot, and for this reason it was thought he
had fired the shot. At any rate, the strikers
seized this incident as reason for shouting
desperate race for his life. One man grabbed
him by the throat and nearly strangled him.
The marks of the mans fingers visible
on his throat. He managed to break away
and started on down the street. He consid-
ers that it fortunate that Shaw over
took him and placed him under arrest.
When the rioters saw the patrol wagon
nd oft 10 nj oh mar hod hon an
sent from the staticn house. they quit fight
| ing. but did not dsband. They gathered in
| large bands along the sidewalks of Wash
| ington street from West street to the Park
| Theater and sullenly discussed the fight.
| The presence of a large squad of patrol
men quelled the riot but did not subdue
| the angry feeling of the men. Superintend-
| ent Colbert hurried to the scene of the
battle and did what he could to restore
| order He left score of officers patrolng
| the district, with instructions to arrest all
men that could be found that had taken a
hand in the fight. Then he went to roll
call. He fingered but a few moments and
drove back to West street. Finding his
presence no longer necessary. he returned
oDments
NONE OF THE STRIKERS ARRESTED.
Several of the patrolmen know the faces
of some OF the strikers, but are unacquainted
with their names. An effort will be made to
arrest every one who Is supposed to have
had any connection with the riot. At mid
night none of the strikers had been taken
in custody.
All Of the nonunion workmen who were