Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-12-20
N0N-UNI0N MEN
Have Their Turn Before the
Strike Commission.
Stories Of Abuse, Cruelties and Hard
! ship Almost Unbelievable.
And They have More Witnesses to Be
Called.

Scranton, Pa, Dec. 19.-The coal
strike commission listened, Thursday,
to further testimony tending to show
that a reign of terror existed in the an
thracite coal fields during the five and a
half months of the mine works.
strike About a score of witnesses were
called by the attorneys for the nom
union men. They told of serious boy
colts. brutal attacks by crowds of men,
women and boys. and an attempt to
burn the house of a nom union man.
In most instances, the witnesses testi-
fled that the alleged offenders were
members of the Miners Union.
The lawyers of the miners objected
frequently to the admission of testi-
mony on hearsay. and sometimes OBJ
jected because of irrevelancy of GER
tain other statements.
Chairman Gray said the commits
sion was not bound by any strict rules
of evidence but asked counsel to con-
fine themselves in examining wit
nesses, as far as possible, to direct
evidence. The commission, he said.
wanted TO know whether reign of
terror existed in the anthracite region,
and it could not get that information
if the strict rules of evidence were
applied.
1.-The coward who will go to the
storekeeper" he said, land tell him not
to sell the necessaries of life to Il poor
woman, usually seeks the obscurity
that the law OF evidence throws around
him. If a girl is discharged from her
position in a store because she rode
;,, I,
while a street car strike was on, the
coward who discharged her is cow
ard enough to refuse to testify"
/ He realized, he said, why some mer-
chants will not come forward and tell
who forced him to refuse to sell nee
essaries of life to certain boycotted
persons. but if he chairman Cray
We're storekeeper, he thought he
would risk his all in order to assist in
breaking up the cowardly business.
John Doran. manager of the Wilkes
barre lace mills. testified that because
he would not discharge two girls who
had relatives working in the mines,
the 100 employees went on strike and
stayed out eight weeks until the matter
was fixed up.
AHOtutI NIlhtSS Sdlu he WIS Al HELL
Der of the union and while under a
physicians care during the street car
strike here, that year, he was obliged
to ride on car. His discharge was
asked for by the union, but the mine
superintendent refused. The union
men made his occupation so unpleasant
for him in the mines that he had to
quit. He left the union and when the
strike came on he refused to leave his
work. He moved from one place to
another and finally located at Pittston.
At that place the man who owned the
house, who was a union MINER ordered
him out and he had to leave.
These witnesses and others that
were called. testified that their wives
were insulted on the streets their
children beaten by other children and
could not safely be sent to school: that
local unions requested storekeepers to
refrain from selling goods to any one
related to a man who worked in the
mines; that their houses were stoned
that they were stoned, shot at and
hung in effigy, and that life was gen.
orally made miserable for them and
their families. Most of the witnesses
| connected strikers with the offenses
alleged.
The lawyers for the non union men
said, tonight, they would continue call
ing witnesses to prove that a reign of
terror existed during the strike.
The commission will adjourn. Satur-
| day, and re-convenc in PHILADELPHIA,
Jan. 9Th.