Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-06-27
BAND WILL co
WITH CLARK
BOSTON & MONTANA MUSICIANS
DECIDE IN FAVOR OF KAN
sAS CITY TRIP.
BUT LEAVE THE EMPLOY
OF THE MINING COMPANY.
Action Entirely Voluntary-May Have
to Surrender Their Famous
Name.

The Boston & Montana band will ac-
company the Clark delegation to Kansas
City this week and thereby hangs a tale.
The Boston & Montana band is one
Of the best known musical organiza-
tions of the west. It's membership is
composed largely of employees of the
exact, fifteen members of the total men,
bership of twenty-seven are employed
in various capacities at the properties Of
the Boston & Montana.
Some days g the announcement was
made that the band would accompany
the Clark delegation to Kansas City.
Yesterday afternoon the leader Of the
bad applied to General Manager KEEP
etko for a leave of absence for the men,
bers employed by the company stating
that they desired to accompany the Clark
delegates east.
According to the statements made
by the men themselves Mr.. Klepetko
asked them as a personal favor not to
accompany the contesting delegation
east. AS the Inc of a corporation
to which the Clark people were openly
hostile he said he could not c~ountenance
their going with the enemy as he believed
the action of the Clark men in securing
the band was taken largely for political
effect.
The men retired and last evening held
a conference at which a vote was taken.
The result of the vote was that the band
boys decided to sever their connection
with the company and go to Kansas
City with the Clark delegation. 1t was
admitted by the men that this action on
their part was entirely voluntary, n
that the officers Of the company had not
intimated in even the most indirect way
that they would lose their positions If
n carried out their original plan of
going.
Mr.. Griffin, one Of the leaders Of the
band stated today that an officer Of
the Boston & Montana mpan had
served a notice on the band boys that
they could not hereafter use the name
Boston & Montana" band and that if
they persisted in doing SO an appeal to
the courts would be made to enjoin them
from using the title.
Yes, I made the request" replied Cen
eral Manager Frank Klepetko to an In
ter Mountain reporter today, land
think the request was a reasonable one.
1 asked the boys as a personal favor not
to go, knowing that an attempt would be
made to manufacture a great deal of DO
litical capital out of the fact that an or
ganlZatlon, most of whose were
employees of our company, had accom-
panied the Clark delegation to Kansas
City :. Is it likely that if the men were
employed in Clark's mines that they
would be allowed to accompany Marcus
Daily on n of his proposed tours?
AT the time I made the request I un-
derstood that no engagement had been
completed and that the band boys had
not fully decided upon going. The Bos-
ton & Montana company has lone a
great deal for the boys and has given
them every possible encouragement.
They We're given easy positions and al
lowed to leave their work at any time to
fill engagements. Their action in quit
ting was entirely voluntary on their part
as no hint or suggestion of such a thing
was made by the company officials"
The arrangements for the departure of
the Clark delegates nave not been com
pleted, but it is more than likely that
they will eaveo on a special Northern Pa
cine train for Billings Saturday morning.
At Billings connection will be made with
the regular Burlington passenger train.
There will be three coaches which will
contain the delegates and a%lternates and
a few personal friends of Senator Clark.
probably about twenty-five in all.