The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-03-01
LATTIMER MEN HAD ARMS.
prrOLTERS PICKED UP BEsIDETWo
or THE DEAD STRIKERS.

SGT Fire on tho FleeinE Men-9hartO
u.rtiu'. Dangerous Struggle with the Mob
nj, Desire to Avoid shooting at Theu,.
UuErsRARRE, Pa, Feb. 2s.-Testimony OF
xital Importance to the defence was elected In
,o,dcy's proceedings Of the trial Of Sheriff Mar.
,p and his deputies for the shooting OF the riot.
on. strikers at I.attimer on Sept. 10 last. The
,.s,iuony OF witness after witness utterly re.
,r,cd the contention OF tho prosecution, OF
,hich So much has been made, that the depu.
,i.s cont shooting after the strikers had
,,.r,cd to run away. All OF these witnesses
also said that not n single shot was fred after
tho yollry from the deputies. Others testified
chat thcy had seen n man stand behind tho limo
of IDENTITIES and beckon tho strikers to come on.
witnesses also swore TO finding revolvers near
,hc hodics of two Of the dead strikers after the
shooting.
This evidence effectually disposes of the
widely spread report testified to by any num-
her of witnesses for the prosecution. that the
strikers had no arms when the clash came at
Iatti,ncr. II il fair TO assume that IL two had
firearms others among the 400 odd in the mob
were armed similarly. The most intelligent
and important witness in to-day's proceedings
testified that he heard two pistol shots fired just
before the vollcy came. 1t is the contention OF
tho defence that these shots came from the 70.
u VI n t't 'hhet s"N eeahNN Aouut
the wounds in the arms of Deputy Treble.
Cora llcinbach of Lattimer. n young woman
NJ IL. was the first witness called to the stand,
Che had heard at noon on Sent. 10 that the
strikcrs we're coming, and Us she was apprehen-
siyo that scenes of violence might ensue she
had gone to Miss Coyle's school and got her
little brother out. She heard the volley fired
byIthe'depu.ics, and looking out of the window
saw the strikers running over the hill. She
did not hear any further shooting after the vol
lev nor did she see that any strikers were shot
rs they ran away. The whole shooting only
lasted about half a minute.
stephen Duckenmiller,, the next witness. said
that he had come across the strikers at West
H~azlcton while driving in that direction. They
had sticks, clubs and iron bars. At Lattimer
the witness drove past the strikers and stopped
about seventy.iive yards away from where the
deputies stood in line. Hooting and yelling
and in a t sort Of dog tr At the striker came on
armed with sticks and clubs. Tho Sheriff
stepped ont from the ranks OF deputies and ad-
yanCed toward the strikers.
Just at this time the witness saw .hree men
In an alley behind the deputies. One OF these
men, who was in-his shirt sleeves. motioned to
thesstrikers to come on. land they seemedsto obey
his command, for they rushed past the Sheriff
with a yell. Then there was one shot. then two
witness was positive, both in his direct and in
his cross examination, that no shots were fired
by he dcputics after the volley; He was
equally sure that no shot was fired after the
fleeing men. as had been averred by witnesses
for the Commonwealth.
William Wolfe Of Hazleton, the conductor of
the trolley car which bore the deputies to Lat
timer, said that his car passed the marching
strikers at HarleiSh, and that he noticed that
from Lattimer he saw the deputies lined up.
and saw the Sheriff advance toward the strik-
ers with a paper in his hand. Then he heard q
shot aud then a voncy. and saw the strikers
run away. He saw u man fall on the railroad
tracks as he ran away.
rived at the scene at Lattimer just after tho
shooting. Approaching the place, he had heard
first one, shot, then two shots in quick success.
sion, and then a yolley. sounding like the roll
ola drum. The whole shootin ny lasted. the wit
ness res thought, less than half a minute. The
the Sd and the 10th of sseptembber. replied that
men from the stripping at West Hazlcton. On
Sept. The witness went with the Sheriff to
G. ;std Ridge and assisted II driving back tho
We will come again tonight. and burn up
the breaker"
On REORGANIZATION the witness said that
after the shooting he had seen the deputies
tearing up sheets, binding, up the wounds of
the strikers. and CARRYING them to the cars,
Mrs. Catherine Craig, another witness, also
saw, the sheriff go out to meet the advancing
strikers. The, paid no attention to him, but
witnesses boy, who was standing at the window.
called out to her:
AiilnUlH- lneE are Killing the Sherl1,'
After the shooting Deputy Price got a sheet
from the witness with which to bind ur wounds.
w.; Va smith. The burgess of West Halle.
throw stones at men working in a stripping at
West Hazlcton and drive them out. On ac-
Sogn 1T Of 95n the he fears the people Of West Hazleton
ira policemen for night duty. On Sept. 10 the
win IS saw the encounter between the deputies
them start on the way to Lattimer. The strik-
es were armed with various kinds Of clubs.
rode on his wheel TO Lattimer on the afternoon
OF Sept..lO. When he rode past the column of
marching strikers near Farley's Hotel he saw
that they had clubs and iron bars. A striker
called out:
Kill hint
The witness put on a squirt and arrived at
Lattiner before the strikers did. He saw the
to them: ,
crowd we have met yet"
One OF the deputies said:
Sheriff. hadn't | better go with youl"
The Sheriff replied no. and started out alone |
70 meet tho strikers.
Then said the witness, "Issw the sheri II
paper he held in his hand. Some of the men
s s1oPpe 90. ana ma one man IN the third rank made 2
draw his revolver and struggle with this man. |
linen thescrowd closed around the Sheriff land I
,TSi IlT b., Of him; Then some one called Fire
rhe smoke cleared away l saw the Sheriff get
up from his knees"
hnpoA IL shoOtlnB the Witness helped bind |
up me wounds of the men shot, and saw MANY
Vi the deputies similarly engaged. On cross
Examination the witness said that from fifty to
s1ty men had rushed past the Sheriff when
.ne hiring began. They even continued to
[ueh on after the first shots. He saw men who
MAD been in the front rank OF the strikers drop
WIEN hIteen feet OF the limo of deputies.
NliIlam y. Evans, II reporter for the Halle
tR sentinel. said that he had been assigned to
io.Io" the movements of the strikers, and in
pursuance thereof had hastened to West
hallston on the afternoon OF Sept. 10, when he
HHSarl ,that there was a disturbance there,
W men ne arrived he saw n striker with a large
nsT4he IN his hand threatening Deputy Plat.
w heh me strikers drew off the deputies board
ca a trolley car 10 go to Lattimer, and the wit
~, LIS Went along on the same car. At Latti-
diur ne saw the deputies line up, and heard a
sepIty say 10 the Sheriff as he started out to
meet the advancing strikers:
Sheriff, shall | go along with you1'
x" sheriff had replied:
No, III go alone" |
me Sherir met the strikers. and putting his
nnnh In an inside coat pocket pulled out a
~"uId n3t listen to him and forty or fifty sur
rounded him and pushed him of the road into
9 ulish. Then the strikers rushed past tho
Nmt.it shouting and yelling, Then there was a
,hut lAeh Two IN quick succession from behind
sSie me OF deputies, which sounded like pistol
s1bTis, ana then a vOlley. The witness saw
DsilhtfS ShOt when Ilpy vera uitItn tn, m ar