The sun., 1897-09-12
MINERS SIDE OF THE CASE.
They Lay Stress the Fact That They Were
Gnnrmcd During the Fight.

.HAzLEToN. Pa. Sept. 1.-THE miners tell In.
teresting stories OF their side OF tho shooting.
Andrew Novooiny, the man wbo was seized by
Sheriff Martin Just before the shooting began,
does not fix the word OF command to shoot as
coming from the Sheriff.
Novootny gave his version OF the encounter
to- lay. A crowd OF his countrymcn, who had
boon among the marchers. stood about gcsticu-
latins and giving noisy confirmation to what ho
said. He declared that Sheriff Martin caught
hold OF his coat and pointed pistol at his head,
commanding hin, to stop. Then he said:
Vou shoot II you want.
a: that the Sheriff turned up the muzzle OF
his pistol and fired in tho air. Almost instantly
tho deputies. not more than thirty feet away
fruin tho foremost strikers. blazcd away.
Noyootny escaped unharmod. the Sheriff
utuvt between him and the deputies, forming a
shicld.
John Ncmc.h. AN influential man among the
strikers. though rot "a miner himself. has made
N stntcmenr on behalf o his conn,rymen.
The purport Of it is that the Harwood men
81 co To marcn TO Lntimcr upon invitH.ion OF
tt" workers nt tho latter place. who said that
thoy would lclve the mines as so0n the col
unin appeared.
= point was raised at the outset that mono OF
some Of them naI sticks in their hands. but
they soon threw them away 10 sho" that they
were not armed.
When :hc Deputies hogan TO shoot and the
victims to fall. Nemcth declares. there was
nothing left for these who were not hit by The
tiea Kept crying. shoot thcm!" Kill them! !"
N Harwood men viii lcave their camp
again." Ne:ncth said tonight. They will hold
:ice is what they want. The company and the
deputies have been trying to picture them as the
.:rhe miners say that among all the dead and
wounded who were carried of the tield not ono
was found armed with deadly weapon. Only
The 800 men in the Lattmcr mines. to whom
the strikers we're marchin;, Joined the strikers
.he men quit work in n body.
This afternoon they held n meeting and de-
cided not 10 return to work until every demand
made at every mine in the region has been con-
ceded by the operator.
The meeting was held in froat OF a tumble
down frame schoo!house. n few yards from the
scene OF last nights tragedy. 1t WIS entirely
toight young Polander. who has hitherto acted
NJ messenger between the strikers and the
am satisfied that you arc not armed" he
said 10 the men. and that you will not arm.
and wan, to tell YOU that. you will best serve
our cause by remaining so.
On MONDAY committee conssting of four
italians, four Hnngarians nna four Polander..
the nationaliies rcprcscntc AT the latter mines.
will tie sent to inform the operators OF their
action and to assure the other strikers that
they are with them 10 the end.
The miners first collected at Hnrwood ycster-
day and marched to the Hazle mines at West
Iiazeton There they found ilftccn twenty
deputies. They kept on toward the workmen.
When the deputies threatened 10 shoot the
strikers laughed.
The deputies used their muskets as clubs and
Kept the mob back for some minutes. Many OF
strikers picked up stones md some of them were
thrown.
One man, Just in the act of hurling a stone at
John Pricc of the deputies. struck and
knocked down by musket. Another had his
arm broken.
Two of the leaders were put under arrest. The
qcrimmage was general for few minutes and
blood on both sides was stirred up.
The strikers got the men out of the mines and
continued marching toward Latimer. Sheriff
Martin renewed his forces and by the use OF
trolley cars intercepted the marchers. Their
the shooting took place.