Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1903-03-28
THE FIGHT At STAMFORD.
Jury's Report IS Presented to the
President.
OFFICERS FULLY ExoNERATED
Testimony Showed That The First Shot Was
Fired by The Strikers in Resisting Authori-
ty Of the Court.

ty Of the Court.
Charleston, w Va, March 21.-The
special report of the Federal grand
jury in Judge Kellar's court was made
public yesterday evening bv permits
sion of Attorney General Knox to
whom it was taken by District Attor-
ney Atkinson. The grand jury assigns
as a reason for making a special report
the fact that there had been grave VIC
~lations of law ending in bloodshed. and
that wide newspaper notoriety with
gross Misrepresentation had been Civ
en- the affair, aud great injury done
the officers of the court. The report
then continues. III part. as follows,
after rehearsing the evidence relating
to the battle
The evidence shows that Cunning
ham acted throughout in a prudent
and conservative manner, and that he
tried to perform his duty in the least
obnoxious he possibly coale
1t further shows that the resistance
was prearranged and planned. and was
the result of a conspiracy upon the part
of the mine workers and their SYM
pathizers to prevent the execution of
the orders of court at all hazards, ev-
en- to the commission of murder itself.
1.-THE evidence also. shows. and there
is no contradiction or discrepancy on
this point, that this same band of men.
or mob, organized themselves into a
semi-military body and marched across
the country to rendezvous on Big
Mountain, near Quininmont.
I'VE do not regard it necessary to
go into details of what occurred in
other parts of the town that morning,
except to saw hat it was the concen-
sus of opinion of the witnesses exam
ined that the first shot fired that
morning. which precipitated the IN
fortunate conflict, was from neal the
strikers. 1t is also the testimony Of
the witnesses examined before us that
no shots were fired by any member
of the posse until they had been first
fired upon by the strikers that Depu-
tv Marshal Cunningham and Sheriff
Cook positively instructed their men
to use no violence not to use their
arms unless IN protection of their
lives, which order. as far as evidence
before MS goes, was strictly obeved.
Chris Evans, national organizer,
United Mine Workers of America.
testified in substance that he had en-
tire charge and control of the United
Mine Workers in the district. en-
bracing the New River and Kanawha
coal fields that he both wrote and tel
egraphed to J. N. Lilly and Joseph
Gilmore. United Mine Workers. ON
the afternoon of that day to make
no resistance to the demands of the
officers to submit to arrest.
1.-THE evidence shows that after
January 7, 1902, when provisions be-
| KAN W pt Stut Ill lOI OlO uuiOu HI
ners, a large number of persons in
that vicinity. who were not miners,
and who had never mined a bushel
of coal, Joined said union and received
supplies as striking miners, that of the
crowd hat camped ON Big Mountain
after the demonstration at Atkinsvllle
on February 81. and estimated at
from $50 to 300, 80 per cent. We're not
miners and never had been that of
those who marched from Big Noun
tain to Stamford CITY on the gath and
142 by actual count, a large number
was not nor ever had been miners but
were composed largely Of the lawless
element of the community aud coun-
try adj AGENT thereto o strangers who
had come in there TO take advantage
of the lawlessness originating with
fand tostered by tho United Mine
Workers IN the vicinity Of the trou-
BILE. ("
Former Governor Atkinson Of West
Virginia now United States attorney
for. the Southern district Of the State
yesterday laid before the President
the findings of the grand jury in the
case of the recent conflictbe tween the
miners and deputy marshals at Stana-
ford Raleigh County W. Va. in which
five men were killed and many wound.
ed. The report of the jury was made
to Judge Beniamine f. Keller of the
Southern district of West Virginia
and he regarded il as so important
that he felt it his duty to lay it before
the Department of Justice.
1t was received by Acting Attorney
General Hoyt and by his direction
Mr.. Atkinson presented it to the Pres
ident.
lUNIGTtrRSs g.