The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1898-10-13
KILLED IN
STRIKE RIOT
Battle Between Strikers and
Deputies at Yirden, Ills.
TEN PARTICIPANTS DEAD.
A Large Number Wounded, and
Some of Them Dying,
GOVERNOR TANNERS CONTENTION

Declared That the Mine Owners, In I'm
porting Negro Labor From the South,
Was Working Injury to the Fair Fame
of the State-Mine Managers, on the
Other Hand, Declare That the Governor
Is Responsible For the Slaughter at
virden.
Virden, Oct. 13.-The little town Of
Virden is comparatively quiet after
yesterdays rioting and bloodshed, the
long expected clash between the union
miners and imported negroes. At 12:40
O'Clock the Chicago and Alton special
train, bearing 200 negro miners from
the south, arrived at the stockade
around the Chicago-V -Virden Coal com
pany's mines and Immediately the ter
rifle firing began. The list stands
ten dead and 25 or 80 wounded.
The dead are: Ed Welsh, Spring
field; Frank Bilyeu, Springfield; Albert
Smith, Mt. Olive; Joe Kitterly, Mt.
Olive; Ernest Keutner, Mt. Olive; A. H.
Breneman, Girard; d. H. Kiley, Chi
| cago and Alton detective; William w.
! Carroll, deputy sheriff; Tom Preston,
of Chicago; A. w. Morgan, Of Chicago.
! The latter was killed in the stockade,
where seven others were wounded
The wounded: Ansk Ankel, Mt.
Olive; Gustav Wevsiep, 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 stomach;
| William Herman, Girard, shot in hand;
Joe BastOn, Mt. Olive, shot in stomach;
Joe Sprim, Mt. Olive, shot in arm;
Burt Tigar, engineer Chicago and AL
ton road, shot in arm; ]. F. Eyster,
superintendent Climax Trading COM
pany, shot and beaten.
Yesterday the Chicago and Alton
limited due to pass here at 10 o'clock
shot through en- route to Chicago an
hour late, displaying flags on the rear
indicating that special was following.
Immediately the word was spread, and
O dense crowd OF miners collected at
the entrance of the stOckade a half
mile north of the station. D. B. Kiley,
a Chicago and Alton detective, stood
guard at a switch at the south end
of the station platform, to see 1t was
not tampered with.
At 1910 the special train passed the
station and signal shots were fred
from the south end of the train an
nouncing the specials arrival. I'm
mediately shots were fired from the
moving train, and outside, and the bat
tie 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 q
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 a despeF-
ate fire with Winchesters, revolvers
and firearms Of all descriptions. The
negroes on the train answered with a
steady fire. The miners and the train
were enveloped in a cloud of smoke
and the shooting sounded like con.
tinuous volley. Engineer Burt Tigal
received a bullet in the arm and drop
ped from his seat. His fireman seized
the throttle, pulled It open with a jerk
/ and the train was under speed, carry
ing eight wounded men-all deputies
except one, who was negro miner
as passengers to Springfield. One of
these died after the train reached
Springfield. He was William W. Car
, roll, deputy sheriff. Another-Willlam
H. Clarkson, an inmate of the soldiers
home at Leavenworth, Kan, who was
acting as deputy-will probably die.
3 The train stopped at the stockade but
two minutes. Its departure did not
: cause the firing 10 cease The tower
OF the stockade was filled with sharp
shooters armed with Winchesters, and
S they kept up a steady fire into the
crowd OF union miners Eye witnesses
say the dead miners were killed afte
o the train had departed 1t is no
known how many are stationed behlnD
the walls of the stockade, but an es
e innate is placed at between IS and AZ
. The supply and provision store O
= the Chicago-Virden company Ia know
as the Climax Trading company, witt
Superintendent j. F. Eyster In charge
At 2 O'Clock, after the firing at tn,
= stockade had subsidized, an attack with
out parallel in the history OF tn,
trouble was made on Eyster in hi
store on Main street, one block from
the depot, which will probably cos
him his life. He was sitting in hi
store when HIS telephone rang and h,
was instructed from the stockade L
| secure physicians and hurry them L
| the place. Eyster jumped into his de
| livery wagon and securing two doctor
| rushed them to the mines. He re
| turned to his store, climbed out O
/ his wagon and was just entering tn
/ door when the cry was raised tina
Manager Fred Lukens, ofthe mines wa
with him. With rush throng G
infuriated miners pressed toward tn
store. Eyster ran behind a counte