The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-07-06
HOT time At 4 DANCE
One Man Got His Head Smashed
in q Row.
HIT WITH AN IRON BAR
Another Man Got q Bullet in His
Arm-They All Got Drunk and
Then the Fighting and Shoot
ing Began.

1t appears there Is considerably more
back of the shooting scrape In which
Joseph NJ. Smith, a miner at the Ana
conda mine, was shot the night Of the
Fourth thar has been allowed to come
out. 1t developed yesterday that Jo-
seph Styer, another Anaconda miner,
who was with Smith when he was shot,
received an injury far more serious than
Smiths wound, and from which it is
possible he may not recover. He was hit
on the head, supposedly with an iron
bar, and sustained a bad fracture of the
skull, and now lies very low at st.
James hospital.
Just what the exact facts are II Is
impossible to learn, as everybody who
was connected with the scrape is very
close-mouthed and will not reveal the
cause of the trouble, while there appears
to be no official investigation of the
matter. From what can be learned,
however, there appears to have been a
free-for-all fight at the saloon where the
shooting occurred, which was stirred up
with the especial object of doing up
smith and Styer, and from all indica-
tons the object was pretty thoroughly
attained. Smith n Styer, who are
partners in the mine where they are
employed. went to a dance given on the
night of the Fourth at the tough resort
formerly run at East Butte by Joe
Strosser, who is now serving a sentence
for doing a general business in receiv-
ing stolen property. The place is now
run by George Mehlich and is a tough
joint.
At the dance everybody got drunk n
a row started. it is said, about Smiths
~ If 4 - -
ich. Both Smith and Styer assert that
they tried to avoid a row and started
to leave, when Krismanich drew a knife
and made a rush at Smith, cutting him
two or three times on the head. Smith
and Styer say they then got out of the
place and were followed by Krismanich
and John Vrushu, not Which,, as the lat
ter name was given when the matter
was reported to the police. Outside, il
is claimed, Krismanich attacked Styer
and Vrushu drew a gun n shot Smith
in the arm. Smith and Styer then got
away. the former coming to the city to
have his ounds attended TO, while
Styer went home, not supposing he was
badly hurt.
Smith went TO the Braund house and
found a friend, who took him to the
city Jail. and City Physician Shultz was
called to dress his wounds, but the lat
ter declined when he learned Smith was
not under arrest and was able to pay
for treatment. Smith went ava and
did not receive surgical attention till
about 9 o'clock, when he went to St
James hospital and had the bullet ex-
tracted and his injuries dressed. 1t was
found the bullet had gone nearly
through the right forearm and caused a
nasty wound which, however, will not
prove serious unless blood poisoning
sets in, which is feared by the attending
physician. The rounds i'm the head
were only of the scalp and not serious.
Soon after Smith left the hospita
Styer put in an appearance in a badly
weakened condition, and the hospita
surgeons were again summoned. 1t wa:
found, on examining his injury. that HI
had received a terrible blow over th'
left eye, which had fractured the skull
of the forehead, crushing the bone ant
allowing the brain to protrude. The In
Jury wal dressed and last evening Stye
was somewhat improved, blu was said I,
he in a critical condition. He was abb
to talk and stated that Krismanich ha'
used a knife on him, but his injury wa
never caused from a knife thrust, and
as il was learned one Of the parties VIII
engaged in the fight was a smelter EN-
ploye and had taken an iron bar witt
him from the smelter when he went I
the dance. evidently expecting trouble
it is supposed this was the
that caused Styer's injury.
Both Smith and Styer claimed the,
were not looking for trouble and did no
know why they were attacked, but 1
another quarter IL was claimed the.
were the aggressors. The two men &C
cused of the assault are still in the city
but no arrests have been made, and a
far as could be learned. no official no
tice has been taken of the affair by tn
authorities.