The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-03-02
SHERIFF MARTIN ON THE STAND
DELIVERED HIS STORY IN A
NERVOUS MANNER.
Strikers Jumped On Him, Pounded
Him, Struck Him, and One Tried
to Stab the Poor Man.

| Wilkesbarre, Pa, March lit was
announced this morning that Sheriff
Martin would be placed on the witness
stand this afternoon by the defense to
tell his. story of the shooting of the
strikers at Lattimer on Sept. TO-
Thomas A. Harris, paymaster for the
Valvin Pardee company at Lattimer,
testified that he was sworn III as a
deputy and armed with a Winchester
rife loaded with Is ball cartridges.
September he, together with w. Hulp
was guarding the railroad approach to
the breaker at Lattimer. When the
! strikers approached Kulp fired his gun
in the air and the strikers broke and
ran: at the same time q striker fired
a revolver and shouted: You've got
US today, but We'll come back tomor-
row several thousand strong"
In the afternoon Sheriff Martin was
called. and as he entered the witness
stand there was a rustic of excitement.
He was rather nervous, coughed fire.
quently and could not keep his hands
still.
His commission and proclamation
were read and placed in evidence. He
then went on to tell his story and spoke
for an hour without interruption. He
told of the trouble with the strikers
and describing his movements on the
Friday when the shooting occurred,
said:
THE mob swore at US when we ap-
preached, cursed me and would not
bulge when 1 told them to do so. 1
read my proclamation and walked
through them, asking them to go home.
One young man swore at me violently
and said they would go to Lattimer
in spite of me. / answered him. One
man picked up stone, but dropped 1t
when L pointed my revolver at him.
Il told a crowd of spectators to go
home. as the strikers were desperate
and there might be trouble. Finally
the strikers left the road and started
over some lots. Soon 1 heard they
were going to Lattimer, and I hurried
off with my deputies to intercept them.
l told them again to keep cool and not
to shoot unless their lives or mine were
in danger. After lining them up along
side the road, 1 told them l would
go out to meet the strikers and try
once more to disperse them. A deputy
asked if he should not go with me.
No, I said. I'll go alone 1 thought
one man was enough to die at once.
felt somehow there was going to be
trouble. l met the strikers about 80
yards from the deputies and asked them
where they were going. To stop the
Lattimer breaker a lot of them cried.
81 told them they must not go. and
tried to read my proclamation to them,
but they crowded around me, swear
ing at me and hustling me to one side.
One man tried to grab me. and l then
attempted to get hold of him, but the
crowd jumped on me and pounded me
about the body. I dropped my paper
and pulled my revolver. One of the
men tried to snatch the revolver from
me, but failed. Then one struck me an
81 II,
to my knees. 1 tried TO shoot him. but
my revolver would not explode Their
the shooting commenced. 1t lasted
about half a minute.
I'm the crowd 1 saw three men armed
with revolvers, and one with a knife
The latter made a stab at me. but
missed. Two men were shot just be-
hind me to the left. was in the direct
line Of fire.
Cross examination of the witness
took place and will be resumed tomor-
row.