The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1898-10-14
FOURTEEN NOW DEAD
As the Result Of Wednesdays
Shooting at Virden, Ills. %
THf COMPANY AGAIN TRIES IT.

Another Attempt Made to Land a Load
of Imported Negroes at the Mines Is
Prevented by the Military, Under
Orders From Governor Tanner.
, virden, Ills, Oct. 14.-Yesterday
passed without another outbreak Of
violence, but aside from the restrain.
ing influences of the militia no progress
has been made toward permanent
peace. The idle miners are excitabe
and determined. while the Chicago.
Virden Coal company has shown no
sign of a purpose to abandon its plan
Of operating its mines with imported
Degroes.
Wednesdays shooting has resulted
In IA deaths so far. as follows: Ernest
Kitterly. of Mt. Olive; Ellis Smith. Mt.
Olive; Ed Welsh, Springfield; William
Blue, Springfield; Ernest Kemler. Mt.
Olive; A. H. Brennan. Girard; Frank
Biliyen. Springfield; Ed Green, Mt.
Olive; Ernest Long, Mt. Olive; William
Harmon, Springfield; Eli H. Kelly.
detective, Chicago; w. A. Carroll,
guard on the train: AL w. Morgan,
guard, killed In stockade; Thomas
Preston. guard, killed at stockade. The
first ten were miners.
The number of injured will OF much
exceed 20. OF these few are in a
critical condition.
The coroner's inquest yesterday
brought out no evidence of conse-
Quence. After the examination of
about 30 miners the sitting was ad-
journed until today. The miners were
unanimous in testifying that the first
shots were fired from the train while
the train was about 100 feet south of
the station. They claim their men did
not return the fire into the train until
the train reached the stockade. They
testified that their men shot into the
air until the train came to a stop.
Yesterday afternoon all the arms and
ammunition of the Chicago -Virden
Coal Company were confiscated by
Captain Fervier. commanding the state
militia. There were 1876 Springfield
rifles and $500 rounds Of ammunition.
M. Turner, one of the guards station
ed in the yards south of the town to
announce the approach of the train
carrying the negroes, says he fired the
first shot as signal to the main body
of miners near the depot. The miners
had agreed, he says, that ten shots in
rapid succession should be the signal
that the train was approaching. Turner
says he fired the shots. shooting in the
air, and the men on the train an
swered with volley into the crowd,
Whereupon the firing became general.
The rear of the Climax Trading COM
pany's store and adjacent buildings
bear evidence Of the terrific firing that
took place when ]. F. Eyster was the
target, springing across the roofs. The
plate glass windows in the front Of
the store are broken. In the rear the
building Is riddled with bullets and
buckshot All the window panes bear
shed Is moved by the charge of buck
shot that was fired at Eyster just as
he sprang through the skylight into
Miners Hall. Gun wads and cartridge
shells lie scattered around the rear of
the store in the alley.
Sixty feet from the rear door of the
Climax store stands the covered de-
livery wagon in which Eyster made the
"trip to the stockade with physicians
Wednesday afternoon. A load of buck
shot has riddled the rubber curtains.
and dents from bullets are visible in
the sides of the wagon. The tongue
Is broken off short and the stub end
blood stained. 1t is learned that the
team of horses were shot, and, goaded
to madness by the wounds, broke the
tongue and ran. They went two blocks
and both fell dead. The windows in
the store under the Miners Hall were
broken in. and the mob dragged Eyster
into the street. Aside from this there
are no other buildings damaged.
Assistant Adjutant General Ewitt. at
Springfield. yesterday mustered into
the Illinois National Guard four com.
panies of the Sons os Veterans regi.
ment for service at Virden.
Adjutant General Reece was at Vir-
den yesterday He states that from
the best information Obtainable firing
began by the deputies on the train.
The bodies of the dead men showed the
wounds ranged downward. indicating
that shots were fired from the train
and tower. General Reece denies the
statement of Manager Lukens, Of the
Chicago-Virden company, that he and
Lukens had an understanding as to
troops being sent to Virden when
Lukens needed them. He says he had
no conversation with Lukens what
ever. A representative of Lukens, he
states called on him several times to
get assurances about troops, but Cen
eral Reece declares he gave him none.
A meeting Of the executive committee
of the strikers was held late yesterday
afternoon. Chairman John Belgar as
serted that not man among the Thiel
agency and Pinkerton detectives sta
toned within the stockade had been
sworn in as deputy sheriff. He fol-
lowed this statement by declaring that
ali of them could be held as accessories
on a charge Of murder. He stated that
there were 20 men inside the stockade
when the train bearing the negroes
stopped at the shaft Wednesday noon
and that so Pinkerton and Thiel men,
acting as guards, were on the train. He
said none of these men are residents of
the state. and consequently Sheriff
Davenport had refused to swear them
In. 1t was decided to employ counsel
Auu AAJ tiS HldtttI DelOTe ltle STdHu
Jury.
The union miners yesterday after
noon received their semi weekly al
l0wance of 81 from the union. State
Secretary W. d. Ryan and two SOL
diers were stationed before the entrance
Of the hall, and the miners were admit
ted five at a time. 1t took almost the
entire afternoon to disburse the money,
but there was no disturbance among
the waiting miners.
$ The excitement Of Wednesday prior
% the arrival of the negro train was
squalled last night when 1t became
known that special train, consisting
Of one box car, three apparently empty
coaches and a caboose that passed
through here at 5:25 last evening bore
two carloat of negroes taken through
here to Springfield on Wednesday. The
train went outh, and by a clever ruse
succeeded In passing through ViIden