The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1898-02-04
Brought 10 Ine B1r for The Murder
Of Striking Cool Miners.
WITNESSES DESCRIBE THE KILLING
Teacher ana HIS Assistant Saw the
Trhgedy from Their Sciooi-<ler,
gymen Sny Men We're Shot tn the
Hnca-Siories Told by Men Who
Escaped with Tscir Lives.
Wilkesbarre, Pa, Feb. 3, 1898.

Wilkesbarre, Pa, Feb. 3, 1S9S
Taking of testimony in the trial Of
Sheriff Martin and his deputies began
this morning in the Luzrrnc County
Court
When court opened District Attorney
Martin made motion that The jury be
taken to Lattimer, to view the scene
OF the shooting, but a. this would occu-
py the entire day, the court denied the
motion, saying the jury should be able
to get an idea of the situation from
! maps.
Attorney McGahren then presented
the case for the Commonwealth. after
which Andrew Silver Was called. lie
is Hungarian, but speaks excellent
English. lie proved the death of Mike
CeZlak, saying that he saw him lying
dead on the road at Lattimer with Z
bullet in his head. Witness said he
saw the sheriff draw his revolver and
heard 1t snap, and then the shooting
commenced, and the witness dropped
to the ground to avoid being shot
Witness said there was first one shot,
then two and then 4 vollcy.
The second witness was John Mahpla,
who was at the time OF the strike the
president of the Harwood local union
of the United Mine Workers of Amer
lea. lie told of the meeting where It
was agreed to march to Lattimer al
the invitation Of the miners there; his
counsels OF peace; and the start the
nexs day, all the men 0aing unarmed.
| Witness was the flag bearer. 1T West
| Hazleton they were stopped by the
sheriff. who ordered them. to disperse.
Mahala protested tina; they were
breaking no law. whcreupon one of
the deputies grabbed the American flag
from him and tore it in halves. Con-
tinulng, the witness said:
| THE sheriff pointed his revolver, and
threatened to shoot. The deputies
| pushed us around with the muzzies
of their guns and swore at us, and one
struck John Eustis twice with his gun,
cutting his head and breaking his arm
in two places.
''Then Burgess Jones. of West Halle
Ton, demonstrated with the sheriff, say
ing that he could keep the peace with
out using any weapons; that he had
confidence in us, and would let us
march through the streets of his bor-
ough rs much as we liked. The sheriff
and his deputies then boarded the cars
| and we marched on toward Lnttimer."
Witness was in the rear Of the crowd
when the shooting commenced. BY the
time he reached the front the shooting
had ended. He saw ten dead men and
a number of wounded ones lying in the
| road.
Rev Father Richard Aust. pastor of
| the ST. Stanislaus Polish Catholic
Church, chairman Of The prosecuting
| committee, was called 10 prove that
many of the strikers were snot in the
back. He had buried thirteen OF the
dead and looked after q number of the
wounded.
Rev Carl Hauscr, pastor OF the Lu-
theran Church ut Freeland. said he had
examined several and found all of
! them were shot in the side or the back.
81 boarded n car" he said. (which
brought ten of the dead and Il lot OF
the wounded from the scane OF the
shooting. There was a pile of rifles IN
Il corner. I said 10 one Of the deputies,
Frank Clark: Il ann AFRAID Df $une OF
them falling and exploding You need
MT be afraid he said, they are all
empty now
Charles Guscout. principal of the Lat
timer school, a frame building abo,u;
six hundred yards from III: scene of
the shooting and in full view of all that
took place on the cventful tenth of
September at I.Gittimer. said he was
rseaching schGll, when he hoard an un-
usual noise. and going 20 the winGow,
he found that number of m@n. aacut
eighty. were aliGhting from an electric
car. They were dcpn:ias
Miss COylc. his assistant, also watch
cd them, and wllr thGi' attention was
rhlls riveted. the Dup's rush:d for
the door and got rutSi1a. He snw tho
deputies line un lo!nss the road and,
then, not satisfied with The position,
THEY moved ov=r 20 The side of ne
road and formed IN with riflaS ;...oI>-
The strikers were by this time aomiI y
over the bi'yw of the hill two or nhrcc
hundred yards away. they were
marching five or SIX abreast and were
quiet and orderly. Witness c,ul.l not
see that thcy carried any weapons
They approached slowly. and as they
drew near the sheriff advanced to n,@t,
them. AS he reached lhs first man. Il
dozen or 30 formed q sort of half cir
Gle around him. He lid n0l hear the
sheriff say anything, nor did he see
him read any paper. 4 lninu:c after
the line first stopped those behind push
ed ahead to see what was gcing on and
got ahead OF the sheriff. Al that mo-
ment one of the deputies ste3Ded on.
Of the line and advanced ten Or twelve
PAGES, as II he was going - leave the
other deputies, whercupor one shouted:
IF you do not come back we will shoct
you. too
The fellow jumped back into The
line, and almost immediately after the
witness heard a ,,,,,a r,,,,,