The herald., 1898-10-14

oxoltement The town y in the hands Of
the militia now and my duty Is ended"
Eystsr's Condition
J. r. Eyster, superintendent OF the Gil
max Trading Company, the establishment
controlled by the Chicago-virden Goa
Company, who was so severely beaten IN
the scrimmage, has improved slightly.
Nr Eyster u q member OF the knights oi
Pvthfnu and stands high In the Masonic
Iodre. He was spirited away from the
8luckles Hotel during the night by his
fellow Masons, and Is now in hiding at q
nrfvate residence. 1t Is thought he will
fecoyer, Rumors that he died last night
were circulated in order to deceive the
strikers and It is believed by his friends
that should 1t become known that he still
lived there would be concerted action on
the part of the miners to fin:sh their
bloody work. Mr.. Eyster Is twenty-five
wears old. Business men speak very high
" Of him, but all are unanimous In soying
that he was too rash. If he had needed the
advice OF his friends he would not have
heen molested. Some of the miners claim
they were under the impression 1t was
Manager Lukens they were chasing, and
II Eyster had not shown fight he would
have been allowed to escape unhurt
Fired the Signal
yIRDEN, ILL.,, Oct. 13-M. Turner, one OF
the guards stationed in the yards south
of the town to announce the approach or
the train carrying the negroes, says ne
fired the first shots yesterday as signal
to the main body of miners near the de-
pot. The miners agreed, he says, tnat ten
shots in rapid succession should be the
signal that the train was approaching
tn, ha pi
men on the train answered with voliey
into the crowd, whereupon the firing be-
came general. Men are swarming into
virden on every train and highway, most
ly miners, but those who come into town
are unarmed. The company's store, where
the assault on Eyster occurred, is con-
stantly surrounded by a great throng or
people. Every pane of glass IN the WIN
dows is broken and the paint on the build
ing is thickly covered with the white flick
ings of bullet marks. The wagon in which
Eyster drove from the stockade is rid
died with bullets and buckshot.
The scenes at the improvised morgue at
the O'Neil house are most pitiable. All
the dead men there had families, and MEM
bers OF these have come from their homes
Their grief is heartrending. intensifying
the desperation and rage of the miners.
The citizens of Virden are bitter In their
venting the terrible doings of yesterday
and their rage over the action of the mine
operators in putting armed men on the
train grows more fierce every hour. Their
sympathies are wholly with the miners.
The following Is a list Of the casualties:
Another Attempt
The excitement of yesterday prior to the
arrival of the negro train was equaled to-
oil " a
oial train, consisting of one box car, three
empty coaches and a caboose.
had passed through here at 5:25 this even
ing, bore two carloads of negroes taken
here to Springfield yesterday. The
train went south and succeeded in passing
through Virden quietly and without inter-
ference. A big crowd of miners was at the
station, but the militia held them in check.
When the train stopped at the stockade,
Captain FEWER, who was in command,
said: Don't allow anyone to disembark
from that train"
The gate was opened and a file of SOL
diers rushed out on the double quick, with
fxed bayonets, and lined up alongside of
the train. General Manager Lukens made
a formal request that their employees be
allowed to land and enter the stockade.
Captain FEWER declined to grant this. Then
Manager Lukens put 1t in the form of a
under orders from Governor Tanner 10 pre-
vent the disembarking of any negro miners
at the works, and that he would have to
carry out these instructions.
General Manager Lukens protested In
vain, and the train pulled out, headed
south.
By this time the advance guard Of the
strikers gathered at the depot had ad-
vanced up the track to within 100 yards of
he CT nlroA Tt,nv L..
coats in the lookout boxes evidently halted
hem, as they remained there until the train
pa assed, when they greeted 1t with waving
hats and cheers for Governor Tanner, who
they believed had been instrumental In
starting the blacks on their homeward
Journey.
After the departure of the train Mr.. Lu-
xens made this statement:
when the special train carrying the
blacks arrived this afternoon at the mine.
he troops, under orders from Governor
Tanner. refused to let them get off the
.rain. and they were compelled 10 gol
through. II
i protested to the captain In command
# the guard In the line of this action, and
old him there was no law, except the law
II force. that would Justify this action.
He replied that he had strict orders from
he governor not to permit the blacks TO
ana, and that he was compelled to follow
A Negro Assaulted
SPRINGFIELD, ILL.,, Oct. 13.-A colored
miner claiming to be one Of those brought
rom the South yesterday for Virden, was
Assaulted at the depots here today by white
miners, they finding he was on his way
back to Virden. Officers interfered. He
vas not badly hurt. but was surrounded
IND again taken possession of by miners
ina taken to the hall of the miners union,
"nere he remained in custody of the min
srs. A large crowd of miners surrounded
lhe hall but were not boisterous. The
wounded miners brought to Springfield
rom V1rden are still alive One, Ernest
long OF Mount Olive, 1t is thought cannot
i've through the day.
Troops for Tanner
WASHINGTON, Oct. 3.-Ad1utant-Gen-
sral Corbin said today regarding the re-
luest of Governor Tanner that the Fifth
illinois Regiment be placed at his disposal,
nat the regiment would be ordered to as
'emble for the Governors use If It should
1e found necessary. The men are now on
The National Guard
SPRINGFIELD, H., Oct. 13-Assistant
today mustered into the
Illinois National Guard three companies
or the Sons of Veterans Regiment and
Will muster In fourth company this after
noon. The companies are: E. of Peoria: c,
Oregon, and H, De Kalb. The MacComb
Company will be here this afternoon and
will be sent to Virden. Adjutant-General
Reese returned from Virden today. He
says from the best information obtainable
firing was begun by deputies on the train
The bodies of the dead men showed wounds
ranging downward. Indicating that shnts