Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-09-09
PLEA FROM A Church
To All the Parties Principal to the
Great Coal Strike to
Call Ii Off.
POCKETS DO A DEEP OF MURDER
Only to Find That the Murdered Is a
Union Man-Mules Return
ing to the Pits.

Philadelphia, Sept 9.-At the week
ly meeting yesterday of the Methodist
miniStrs of this city Il resolution was
adopted calling upon Governor Stone,
President Baer. of the Reading COM
pany, and President Mitchell, of the
United Mine Workers of America, to
end the strike in the coal regions. The
resolution is as follows:
Resolved, Seeing that this matter
has become one in which every per-
son is interested, that we as citizens
and as ministers representing COM
munities upon which this strike has
entailed suffering, request the contend
ing parties-in the interests of the gen.
eral weaI-to at once take such meas
ures as shall terminate the condition OF
things now prevailing.
I'VE recommend that if unable to
settle their differences between them
SeIVeS-aS appearances now Indicate
they submit the matter for final ad-
Justment to immediate arbitration.
I'VE recommend also that the au-
thorities of the state use the full pow
er which the law-or their positions
may give them, to the end that a
settlement of the strike be made and
this peril to the welfare of the country
be aVerted."
Fight Is Death to Two.
WilkeSbarre, Pa, Sept "a fight
yesterday between striking miners at
Maltby resulted in the death of one
man and the fatal injury of another.
Both victims were Italians. The man
killed was SistienO Vancastelli, aged
SO years. His companion. Frank Por-
tay, was stabbed several times, and
is in the Wilkesbarre hospital not ex-
pected to live. All Sunday night strik-
ers gathered in the vicinity of
the Maltby min,. of the Lehigh Val
ley Coal company, at Maltby, and the
Harry E. colliery at Forty Fort. 1t
was rumored that both of these mines
were to start with u full force of
men.
All tho Roads Were Picketed.
The strikers had pickets on all roads
leading to the mines to intercept any
men who might be on their way to
work. A heavy fog prevailed. and it
was difficult to see people in the road
way. Shortly after Il. m. a number
of strikers on guard at the Maltby col
liery saw two men approaching car
rying guns. The pickets came to the
conclusion that they were nOn-union
men going to work The strangers
were stopped and strikers crowded
around them. One striker in the crowd
the men We're starting on a hunting
trip and that they were union min
ers. The other strikers did not un-
derstand what was said, and believing
that the foreigners were non-union
men on their way to work attempted
to take the gun away from Van
castelli.
Found To BE Union Miner.
He resisted, Il fight ensued, and soon
the two Italians We're lying in a pool
of blood in the roadway. Nancastelli
was shot in the side and the left side
of his face was crushed in. His COM
paniOn Portray was stabbed in the side
several times. \ number of coal and
iron policemen was on the scene Il few
minutes after the discharge of the gun
was heard They found Vancastelli
dead and Portray unconscious. The
dead man was taken to his boarding
house nearby and his companion was
brought to the hospital in this city.
In one of the pockets of Vancastellrs
coat was found q union miners card. |
No arrests have been made.
Taking Mules Back to the Mines.
Lancaster. Pa. Sept. 9.-Ten car
loads of mules from the coal mines,
which were pasturing in Lancaster
and Chester counties, We're yesterday
shipped from COatesville to Wilkes
barre There are still about twenty |
car loads in this county, and it is un-
derstood that they will be shipped to
the coal regions this week.