West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1902-10-30
JOHN. 7. MIGRANTS
Answer 10 United States Marshal
Elliott--An Open Letter.


MAJ. c. ID. ELICIT, United States Mar
shall and Editor Parkersburg News, Park
ersburg, w. Va.
Dear Sir:-For sometime past.
your paper has devoted much Of its
space to a matter which pertains TO
the Congressional contest, in this
District, and have not, until now,
deemed il either necessary or inn
portant TO notice the publications SO
made. Your persistent misrepresen
tation, however, OF my position on
the injunction phase OF the labor
questions, involved in the present
contest, gives me the opportunity OF
again asserting my position upon
this question, which l thought was
so well known to call for no further
expression from me-. 1t seems
strange that the opposing candidate
for Congress, in this District, should
be driven to the Ohio River, beyond
the limits of this District, tn find a
newspaper medium through which
these misrepresentation could find
expression, and can only account
for II upon the theory that no decent
paper, in the District, would origi-
nate the charges, although for party
purposes they have reproduced and
accredited them to your paper.
1t is also passing strange that you,
of all men. who during the past sum-
mer and fall. even beyond the limits
of your official duties crushed labor,
in the mining region, should now
feel so much concern on a subject
of which you were the fnancialbene-
ficiary and the willing executioner of
the writs which drove the miner
from his home and family, excluded
him from the public highways and
made him an outlaw In a community
in which he was before that time
vested with the constitutional privi-
leges of American citizenship.
You charge me with instituting
the injunction proceedings, in what
is known as the Rosemont injunction
case; that l employed attorneys ex-
ecuted the bond and directed the
proceedings, while at the same time
you personally knew that the charges
so made were untrue. You also file
purchased interview with one A. ].
Johnson, who during the strike
fomented all the discord in the
Tyrconnell region, and who was EN-.
ployed by the Roscmont Company,
while at the same time your cunning
should have taught you that had
the smallest control over the mana
cement of the Company's affairs, /
would not have permitted a man TO
remain on its pay-rolls who manifest.
ed such personal hostility to me.
In one of the latter issues of your
official organ, you ask me whether |
opprove of Injunction processes TO
settle labor troubles, why applied
to Judge Jackson on July Ist last for
an injunction in the Rosemont case;
why l employed Judge McCluer of
PaTkersburg TO act as counsel in the
suit and why l executed bond for
$1,000 in the case? Having asked
these questions you should be fair
enough to publish my reply and for
this reason | address this open let
ter to you and think that you should
be just enough to publish it.
have no uncertain political view
on this subject. l am opposed to
what is commonly known as gov
eminent by injunction and have
never directly, or indirectly, been
party to any such legal proceedings.
| was a Delegate at Large, from
this State, to the Chicago Convcn.
ton in 1896 and voted in conven.
ton and at the polls for the Injunc-
ton and arbitration planks con-
tanned in the platform and supported
in that year and 1900 the same prin-
ciples and do not approve Of the
prostitution of the courts for the
settlement of labor trouble. en-
tertained this opinion before the
first day of July last, on that day
and do still. did not apply to
Judge Jackson on the Ist day of
July, 1901, or on any other day, for
an Injunction against the striking
miners at the Rosemont mines and
had no connection with the Rose
mont case, in any form, except to
peremptorily decline to take pro-
fessional employment in the Rose
mont case, or even permit the legal
firm, of which / am a member, to
be employed in the case, long before
was thought of as candidate for
Congress.
A short step, from your luxurious
office in the Government Building at
Parkersburg. to the room of Judge
Jackson will verify this statement.
did not employ J. G.. MoClner, of
Parkersburg, as counsel in the Rose
mont case, because / had no grew.
ance against the striking miners of
that Company and you know that
Judge McCluer told you so. am
not on the bond executed by the
Rosemont Company, in its iniunc-
ton suit, and you know il because
you and ira T.. Robinson, the
brother.in-law Of a. g.. Dayton ex
amined the records at Petersburg,
and the Official certificate Of the