Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1898-10-20

Dead.
Ed Welsh, Springfield.
Frank Biyeu, Springfield.
Albert Smith, Mount Olive.
Joe Kitterly, Mount Olive.
Ernest Keutner, Mount Olive.
A. II. Breneman, Girard.
D. ii. Kiley, c. & A. detective.
Wounded.
Anks Ankel, Mt. Olive.
Gustave Weisep, Mt. Olive.
Ed Upton, Springfield.
Thomas Jennings, Springfield.
Joe Haines, Girard; shot in leg.
Joe Runk, Girard; shot in arm.
George Runk, Girard; shot in stom-
| ach.
Vim. Herman, Dirard; shot in hand
Joe Baston, Mt. Olive; shot in stom-
ach.
Joe Shprim, Mt. Olive; shot in arm.
Bart Tigar, engineer Chicago & AL
ton; shot in arm.
j. f. Eyster, superintendent Climax
Trading Co.; shot and beaten.
1t is said that six men were wound
ed inside the stockade, but this has
not been verified, and those inside the
stockade refuse to communicate with
outsiders.
For the past two weeks rumors have
reached Virden daily that train hav-
ing negroes from Alabama would
reach the city, and the Chicago & AL
ton depot has been surrounded day
and night by vigilant miners deter
minedly awaiting their arrival.
Yesterday the Chicago & Alton linn
tied, due to pass here at ten o'clock,
shot through en- route to Chicago an
hour late, displaying flags on the rear
indicating that special was follow
ing. Immediately the word was
spread, and a dense crowd of miners
lined the station platform, while
another crowd collected ct the en-.
trance of the stockade half a mile
north of the station. D. B. Riley, a
Chicago & Alton detective, stood
guard at switch at the south end OF
the station platform to see that it
was not tempered With.
At 1910 the special train passed the
station, and signal shots were fired
from the south end of the train an
nouncing the specials arrival. I'm
mediately shots were fired from the
moving train, and outside the battle
was on. A few moments after the
train had passed the switch where
Kiley was stationed, and while he was
talking with two citizens, he threw up
his arms and dropped dead, with a
bullet through his brain. He was the
first man killed. The train continued
to the stockade, the miners firing
into it all along the route, and the
negro passengers returning the fire.
The moment the train reached the
stockade the miners opened despe-
rate fire with Winchesters, revolvers
and firearms of all descriptions. The
negroes on the train answered with
steady fire. The miners and the
train were enveloped in a cloud of
smoke, and the shooting sounded like
a continuous volley. Engineer Burt
Tigar received bullet in the arm,
and dropped from his seat. His fire
man seized the throttle, pulled it
open, and, with a jerk, the train was
under speed, carrying a load of
wounded negro passengers to Spring
field. How many are wounded is not
known.
Ke pit Up q Steady Fire Into the Crowd of
Miners.
The train stopped at the stockade
but two minutes. It's departure did
not cause the firing to cease. The
tower of the stockade was filed with
sharpshooters armed with Winches-
tiers, and they kept up a steady fire
into the crowd of union miners. Eve
witnesses say the dead miners were
killed after the train departed. It is
toned behind the walls of the stock
ade, but an estimate is placed at be-
tween 25 and 40. Word was sent from
the stockade to physicians in town
that their services were needed.
The Attack Upon j. F. Eyster.
The supply and provision store of
the Chicago-Virden Coal Co. is known
as the Climax Trading Co., with Supt.
J. T. Eyster in charge. After the fir
ing at the stockade had subsidized, an
attack without parallel in the his
tory of the trouble was made on Ey-
ster in this store on Main street,
which win probably cost him his life.
He was sitting in his store when his
telephone rang, and he was instructed
from the stockade to secure physi-
clans and hurry them to the place.
Eyster jumped into his delivery wag-
on, and, securing two doctors, rushed
them to the mines. He returned to
his store, climbed out of his wagon,
and was just entering the door when
the cry was raised that Manager Fred
Lukins of the mines was with him.
The Unequal Combat Begun.
With a rush a throng of iafug;ated
miners pressed toward the store.
Eyster ran behind a counter with a
revolver in each hand. The miners
pressed hard after, and as Eyster
sprang upstairs he and the miners be-
gan shooting simultaneously. He ran
to the top of his building and jumped
behiDs a chimney, while the miners
ran into the street and opened fire on
him again. Chips flew from the brick
chimney and Eyster ran from cover
across to the roof of another store,
firing into the street below as he ran.
Ere2 tAsre he creased 30 the recf Of