The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-09-24
ANOTHER CORY TALE
Comes From Scene of Recent Italian Riot
In Oxford County.
ESPECIAL TO THE pREss.1


Waterford, September 23.-The evidence
that a double homicide may have oc-
CURED at the camp of the striking Ital-
ians on the Oxford Central electric rail-
road at Rice's Junction, is accummulat-
ing.
This afternoon PRESS correspondent
found four respectable citizens of this
town who said they had heard the Ital-
ian admit on different occasions and in
different places that two men were killed
in their camp during dispute last week.
These men are John Haskell, merchant;
f. H. .Ames, blacksmith; Clarence
Coffin, engineer in the wood turning
factory and Oliver Martin, farmer.
They live at Peterville, the nearest vii
lage to the Italian camp. Although these
men heard the story at different places
and from different Italians, their state
ments agree on the main points.
John Haskell said: Sunday night,
soon after Detectives Wormell and Bassett
ians held as security for their pay, several
Italians came to my store with a wound
ed companion. While attending to his
injuries one of their number, a one-eyed
italian, called Fred, remarked that dur
ing a. fight among themselves, ma W
killed. He WAS shot in the upper part
of the face with double barrelled.. shot
gun, tell over on his back and died.
Then younger member of the party
said another man had been killed. He
was struck in the head with an axe.''
Owing to their imperfect knowledge of
our language no further details were as
certained of these men. There is nothing
to show whether the homicides, If they
occurred, were accidental or intentional.
Clarence Coffin stated further that 1t
was said the bodies Of these two men had
been buried in the surrounding woods.
Some search has been made for their
bodies, but no trace of them found. These
woods are very thick and extensive with
underbrush of such a nature that bodies
might be hidden in them and never
found.
Before the strikers left the camp they
burned two or more trunks some cloth
ing and other personal property They
said they did this because the men were
gone. but 1T is somewhot singular that
they burned such articles when trans
portation of their baggage was free.
There were two clans of these Italians,
one from Naples and the other from Sici-
ly. The former had been in this country
long. enough to. become accustomed to
American ways and laws. The others
were recent impertations from southern
Italy. The former are said to have been.
In favor treating their prisoners kindly !;
the latter were more vindictive. 1t is
alleged that these clans quarreled Friday
and Saturday about how the prisoners
should be treated, and that the homicides,
If they occurred at all, took place during
these wrangles.
One hundred and forty-eight Italians
started for Boston today, leaving about
40 who refused to go. Chief Of police
Hathaway has issued orders to arrest any
of them who may bo found upon the
streets tonight.
G. I. Davis of Boston, the superintend-
ing of grading, who was one of those held
by the strikers as security for their pay,
has sued the Oxford Central electric
railroad company for $40, 900. The papers
were served on Treasurer Stearns this
noon.