The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-08-13
A Mob Attacked Non-Union Men al
Shenandoah, Pa.
TROOPS SENT TO THE SCENE
A confliet Between Deputy Sheriff and
Mipsrs Led to . Terrific Fusillsde-A
Merchant Killed, Policeman Shot and
srriksrs woundsd-A Reign OF Terror
.C,uss Of the Trouble.
Harrisburg. Pa. - Tie Eighth and
Twelfth regiments and the Governors
troop OF cavalry were ordered to She
nandoah. The total strength OF the
troops numbers 1900.

Shenandoah. PA reign OF terror.
compared With which the scenes enact
ed during the riots Of 1900 seem insig'
nificapt, held Shenandoah In Its grasp
Wednesday night. Centre street. one
Of the principal thoroughfares. was In
the hands Of an infuriated mob. Two
Of the borough policemen were shot.
one perhaps fatally. Joseph Beddnll.
q leading merchant and cousin OF
Sheriff Beddall. was brutally dubbed
to death. and upward Of n score OF
strikers whose names could not be as
certalned were shot by policemen. anu
It Is expected that many deaths'will re-
suit.
The trouble started about o'clock
D. m. when Deputy Sheriff Thom"s
Beddan attempted to escort two non
union workers through the strikers line
Of plckets.
The workmep were dressed In their
street clothes. but one of them carried
n bundle under his arm. and thi:
aroused the suspicion Of the strikers
The bundle was torn from him. and
and overalls the man was taken from
the deputy and beaten almost TO death.
In the meantime Beddall opened fire
ON the mob, which had gathered and
emptIed his revolver. Two Of the shots
took effect, one man being shot In the
leg and the other In the foot.
The deputy and his men were now
compelled to fiy for their lives. and
took refuge In the Philadelphia and
Reading Railroad depot. The depot
was soon surrounded by an angry mob
Of 5000. which was becoming more
threatening and demonstratIve every
moment.
Joseph Beddall. a hardware mer.
chant. was seen making his way
through the crowd. and the mob. di.
vining that he was carrying ammuni.
ton to those inside the depot. seized
him and beat him with clubs and bill.
lies Into insensibllity. He died en- route
to the Miners Hospital.
Shortly after this the entire borough
police force arrived on the scene and
escorted the deputy sheriff and his man
20 an engine which had been backed
the mob realized that they were about
TO escape they surrounded the engine
and the engineer was afraid to move.
In q few moments. however. the po.
He fred q volley. dispensing the crowd
for q brief period. and the engineer
turned on full steam and got away
with his men.
Stones were now thrown thick and
fast about the heads Of the police.
whereupon Chief John Fry gave the
order to fire. At the first volley the
mob sell back and several were seen to
fall.
Their retreat. however. was but mo-
mentary., They turned. and with re-
volyers, stones and shotguns charged
on the little band Of policemen and
made them f1y for their lives. The pc
licemen turned In their flight at short
Intervals and fred volley after volley
at their pursueys. but the mob seemed
thoroughly infuriated and smoking ne.
volvers seemed to have no terrors for
them.
When the Lehigh Railroad crossing
was reached q passing freight train
blocked the progress Of the police. two
oe whom were caught and brutally
beaten. One Of them. Stiney Yacopsky.
was fatally injured.
II 10 estimated that upward Of 1000
shots were fired, and the wonder Is that
more fatalities did not result. More
than twenty strikers. ali of whom Were
foreigners. were shot. and at least two
of them win die.