The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-08-14
For Possession of Modern Wood
men Headquarters.
BREAKS OUT AFRESH,
575 Rock Islanders SwoOp
Down on Their Brothers.
Many Are Badly Hurt in the
Fight Which Followed.
$50 of the Invaders Are Placed
Under Arrest.

Fulton, Ill, Aug. 14.-The long stand
ing fight between this town and ROCK
Island, ILL.,, for location of the head
quarters of Modern Woodmen of Amer
lea, eliminated yesterday in hand to
hand fight between scores of part1sans
of the respective towns, in which a
number of persons were seriously in
jured.
AT the recent convention of the order
held at Dubuque, Iowa, it was decided
to move the offices and books of Head
Clerk Halves to Rock Island. Citizens
of Fulton thereupon applied to the
court for an order restraining the re-
moval. A temporary injunction was
granted and the controversy went over
until the fall term of court. The slow
process of law was not satisfactory to
the Rock Islanders, however, and they
determined to take matters into their
own hands. Yesterday a party was
made up in the city by the Mississippi
and plans were made for a raid on the
Fulton headquarters, with the object of
forcibly taking possession of the books,
records, ETC., of the order and removing
the office of Head Clerk Halves to Rock
Island. A train was chartered, con-
sisting of three coaches. a baggage car
and two box cars, and the invaders were
soon on their way to Fulton. The in
habitantS of the latter town were fore
warned however, and made ready to
give their unlimited guests a cordial
reception. A fire alarm was sounded
and lines of hose were laid to the points
where it was thought the Rock Island
ers would be most likely to stop.
The arrival of the special train was
the signal for hOStilitieS to begin and
the scrimmage which followed resulted
in the following casualties:
Will Bennett, city marshal of Fulton,
head cut, believed to be fatally hurt
w. H. Flanagan, head badly cut.
Ed Bare, head cut and arms injured
Chris Miller, Lyons, Ia, head cut.
Cornelius O'Brien, Rock Island injur-
| ed in arms.
Albert Spencer, Rock Island, face cut.
| Walter Fowler, Fulton, head cut.
Charles w. Warnberger, Rock Island,
| head cut.
r. Winters. Rock Island, cut over
| right eye.
| T. B. Burns, Rock Island, head cut.
G. w. Sample, Rock Island, head and
| face cut.
| James Mulcahy, Rock Island, head cut,
| condition serious.
Andrew Lunheim, Fulton, head in
| jured, condition serious.
L. V. Eyckhart, Rock Island, head
P. F. Casey. Moline, ILL.,, head badly
| injured.
A score of others were more or less
| bruised or cut.
| The free fight lasted for an hour or
| more, rocks, clubs and missiles of eve
| ry description being welded indus
| triously by the opposing forces. The
F'ultonftes finally got the better of the
| fight, and Deputy Sheriff Farley effect
ed the arrests of Head Attorney john
I son, of the Modern Woodmen, one of the
Rock Island party, and a number of his
companions. The railway track on each
side of the cars that brought the Rock
| Islanders, was torn up by the Fulton
ties, the latter evidently aiming to cut
off the retreat of their enemies. The
sceneof the fighting bears every evidence
| of the liVeliest warfare and as there
| were a number of fire arms in both par
ties, it is a wonder the affair did not
| result more seriously than it did. A
| large force of police officers has been
| sworn in and as the invaders or most
of them are still in Fulton, there is
great difficulty in preventing a renewal
| of the trouble.
The action of the Rock Island people
| was prompted by decision of Judge
Cast rendered at Cambridge dissolving
the injunction which had prevented the
removal of the headquarters from Full
ton.
The Rock Island delegation arrived at
| $3.50 with SIS men, and Immediately
| proceeded to the office of the Woodmen
order. Although they met with desper-
| ate resistance from the start, the Rock
| Islanders succeeded in getting the bulk
of the records out to the train.
| The Fultonites, in the meantime had
called out the fire department, sounded
| a general alarm, and with the augment
| ed crowd succeeded in tearing up the
track in front of the locomotive. 1t
| was then attempted to back the train,
| WhereupOn the Fulton people tore up
the track in the rear.
BY this time the Fultonites were re-
| inforced by crowds from Clinton and
| Lyons and having this advantage and
| with the use of the arms of the Lyons
company of the Illinois state militia,
a guard was formed about the train In
the meantime, two additional masters
in chancery injunctions were secured
| and the sheriff swore in 200 deputies to
assist in enforcing them.
The Fulton people showed fight from
| the moment the Rock Island crowd ar
| rived. They began hostilities by tear
ing up the walks about the depot and
assaulting the invaders with the loose
| plankS.
AT the door of the head office, the
village marshal, William Bennett, stood
with drawn revolver. A brick from one
of the invaders felled him to the ground
The Rock Islanders then made rush
into the office and captured the rec
| ords. At the depot. which is half q
| block distant, the fight was renewed
and here it took the nature of a riot
during which $50 of the Rock Island
| people were put under arrest. Tt was
} at this time a large number of bott
| sides were injured.
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