The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-10-13
Governor Tanner Declares That
Importation of Labor
OF the Glass Employed by the
Mine Operators
SHALL CEASE AT ONCE.
Declares That the Mine Owners
Are Murderers
And Should Be Tried and Con-
victed of the Crime.

Springfield. III, Oct. 13.-In an inter-
view with Governor Tanner regarding
the Virden riot, he said:
Mr.. c. W. Loucke, president anu MI
T,7lxins superintendent of the Vlrden
Coal company at 1890 YESTERDAY ilis'I9
GOOD their threats to land train load
of imported Iaborers from the south ana
at+ernnted to put them to work at their
mines. at the point of the bayonet ana
the rnuzzle of the Winchester, such Ia
borers being drawn largely, If not en-
tireIy. from the criminal class, eX-coh-
victs. who learned their trade while do
ing time in the penitentiaries OF AIa-
banaa after having been fully ADVISED
and having full knowledge that the
landing of such imported laborers Woulu
precipitate a riot. I had Wlred lheIh
that if they brought these imported Ia
borers they would do SO at their own
peril. and, under the circumstances
would be morally responsible and GRIM
inallv liable for anything that might
happen.
From the information 7 can gather
at this time the very minute the train
stopped in front of the coal shaft, where
the doors of the stockade were thrown
open for the imported laborers to enter
the firing began. The killed and wound
the outside. The others were the hlreu
guards who were brought along by the
coal company. Most, If not all OF IheTn.
were non residents of Illinois There
is no means of learning their names or
whereabouts, for the reason that they
declined to give them out, knowing,
perhaps that they are crInlnaIly ma
Bile for murder, as they mad no perInlS-
sion from any officer in Illinois author
izing or deputizing them to act as dep
uty marshals or deputy shertns. In
T->-,7 rNF N101
rected Adjutant General Reece to order
Captain Craig of the Galesburg battery
and one company Of the Sons of Neter-
ans regiment now stationed at Pana to
proceed at once by the quickest route to
the scene of the trouble. General Reece
accompanied Captain Craig, and have
instructed General Reece to quell the ri
OF and maintain order, protect life and
property, to disarm all persons bearing
arms and to not allow imported labOrerS
to unload from any train within the linn
its of the city, nor to march in a body
'These avar1ciOus mine owners who
have so forgotten their duty to sOciety
as to bring about this blot upon the fair
name OF our state have gone far
enough; yes, too far; as they had fair
warning from me, by wire and tele-
phone, that importation of labor that
would bring into our state an undesir-
able class of citizens had to be stopped.
And 7 say now to such and all others,
that it is a thing of the past, that it
shall not be tolerated in Illinois while I
am governor. These men. the pres dent
and officers of the company, who par
ticipated in this riot by the bringing in
of this imported labor. are guilty of
murder, and should be, and I believe
will be indicted by the grand jury and
tried and convicted for this heinous Of
tense"
The Other Side.
Chicago, Oct 13.-Prestdent G. w
Loucks of the Chicago Virden Coal
company, has made the following state
ment to the Associated Press:
Our position has been defined right
along by the press. as the public can
ascertain, and we simply desire to state
rhat our employees arrived at Virden at
ABOUT 1880. We stopped the train op-
poslte the gates so that the men could
go from the train into our works, when
Immediately the mob fired from all di-
rectIonS and very naturally our men
defended themselves. The CONSEQUENT
as yet As to our future action. we
propose to follow in the future as we
nave IN the past, legal procedure in the
ootalnlns or our legal rights, and shall
take proper steps to secure redress
against all who prompted, aided abet-
teo or participated in the riots whether
tnsy are miners, miners officials, state
officials or others. We shall deterr7ir,a
before we are through whether the GOV
ernment of this state can class our col
ored population as ex-cOnNfcts scala
WagS, etc, with impunfty: and whether
the colored citizens of this country car
nave their rights under the constitution
n
the government of Illinois. We shall
determine for ourselves and Others in
TINS state Just how far a governor ca7
annul and evade the duties DIacad ,7T,o+1
MN by the constitution and statutes Of
this state.'' - u
Military in Control.
Virden, Ill, Oct. 18.-The town is as
IuISI I as a country church yard todav.
Two Gatl1ng guns of the CaIesf9,1re-
osttsfy on the public square and
b1ue-cappeQ infantry man al eacT, 80.
ner in the business district - ~,
only evidence Of yesterdays riot ont
side OF the OfNeiu home a story ana q
half cottage. In the front ward of tti.,
humble home stands five biacl<-co1-a1r-t7
eoTnhs, on each OF Which is sinDle
plate, engraved with the words s9At
Rest
Under the lids are the mortal remains
of five victims of yesterdays batt1a 81
the stockade of the Chicago Virden
Coal company. They are:
Ernest Kitterly, Mount Olive.
Ellis Smith, Mount Olive.
Ernest Keutner, Mount Olive.
Ed Wetz, Springfield.
Wrn- Blue, Spring gf1eld.
coroner Hart has impanelIed a iurv
ana VIII endeavor to place the response
plllCy Tor the shooting.
Colonel Mcknight of the srovernor's
stan, accompanied by Adjutant General
reese, at midnight visited the stockade
OF the Chicago Virden Coal companv
ana served formal notice on Manager
Luklns, who has been inside the stock
ade throughout the trouble that the SOL
diefS would visit the stoekade today
and disarm all inmates Colonel Nc
Knight says that no objections were Of
fered to this proposition. He anticf-
pates no trouble at that point and he
expresses the opinion that there will be