The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-10-13
DOZENS ARE DEAD
AND MANY WOUNDED
SPECIAL TRAIN CARRYING NE
GROES WAS FIRED UPON
BY MINERS
SAVAGE TREATMENT
OF J. K. EYSTER

ChIcaEO-Virden COmpany's Store
keeper Shot, Kicked and Beaten
Into InsensibiIIty After Having
Made "A Running Fight Against
Tremendous Odds-GOv. Tanner
Dead
ED WELSH, Springfield.
FRANK BILYFU, Springfield.
ALBERT SMITH, Mount Olive.
JOE KITTERLIN, Mount Olive.
ERNEST KNUTNER, Mount Olive.
A. H. BRENNAN, Mount Olive.
D. H. KILEY. Chicabo & Alton detective.
Wounded
Ansk Ankel. Mount Olive
Gustav Weisevep. Mount 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. Mount Olive, shot In stomach.
Joe Sprim. Mount Olive, shot in arm
Bart Tigar, engineer Chicago & Alton, shot
IN arm.
J. K. Eyster. superintendent Climax Trad
ing company, shot and beaten
NIRDEN, Ill, Oct. 12.-The little
town Of Firden is comparatively quiet
tonight, after a day of riot and blood
shed, the long expected clash between
the union miners and imported negroes.
At 12:40 o'clock this afternoon a Chi
cago & Alton special train, bearing
200 negro miners from the South, an
rived at the stockade around the Chi
cago-Virden Coal company's mines,
and Immediately G. terrific firing be-
gan. The list at 10 o'clock tonight
stands seven dead and eighteen wound
ed
1t Is said that six men were wound
ed inside the stockade, but this has nor
been verified, and those inside the
stockade refuse to communicate with
outsiders.
For the past two weeks runors have
1ched Firden daily that a 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. To-
day the c. & A. limited, due to pass
route to Chicago an hour late, display
ing flags on the rear indicating that a
special was following Immediately the
word was spread, and a dense crowd
Of miners lined the station platform.
while another crowd collected at the
entrance of the stockade, half a mile
north of the state line. D. B. KiIey,
a Chicago & Alton detective, stood
guard at the north end of the station
platform, to see 1t was not tampered
with. At 12:4O p. m. the train appear
ed at the north end and shots were
fired from the south end, announcing
the specials arrival
FIRST TO FALL.
Immediately shots were fired from
the train and the battle was on. Soon
the train had arrived at the north end
switch, where Kiley was standing He
was standing talking with two COM
paniOns when suddenly he threw up his
hands and fell with a bullet through
his brain. He was the first man killed.
The miners were firing into the train
and the negro passengers were return
ing the fire. AS soon as the train
reached the stockade there ensued a
desperate fight with firearms Of all de-
scription. The negroes kept up a steady
fire and the carnage of battle reigned.
The miners and the train were enveI-
oped in a cloud of smoke and the shoot
Ing sounded like a continuous volley.
Engineer Burt Tigar received a bullet
In his arm and dropped from his seat.
His fireman seized the throttle, pulled
1t open, and with a jerk the train was
under full speed, carrying the load of
wounded negroes to Springfield. How
many were wounded Is not known.
The train stopped at the stockade only
two minutes. Its departure did not